To protect your home from burglars people have used everything from guard dogs to deter potential thieves. Hired private security plays an even bigger role in the last two decades. And, of course with the progress of technology, people tend to leave this job to advanced alarms and entry system installations.
In this guide, we’ll explain how to prevent a burglary at home. But, what kinds of home burglars are there?
Table of Contents
Types of Burglars
- The least dangerous thieves. Probably someone from your neighbourhood. Somebody next door? He or she might have done this once or twice and he is soon to get caught. Not at all careful. A thief might be abusing substances and lack the courage to stand up to difficulties. Even if a professional door fitter, such person will turn and run if seen to tackle the door entry system.
- The lock picker. This one is more careful and calculating. This door breaker works with a clear state of mind. He has done this a few times already and has a good deal of knowledge on getting in and out your door unnoticed. Not someone who would put up a fight when caught. Usually non-violent.
- The violent one. This type is not as calculating as the previous one – he or she would most likely smash your window and leave your entrance in need of door repairs instead of picking your lock. But, he is also not a coward. If he gets caught, he will put up a fight.
- The most dangerous. This is the criminal you should fear the most. This type has done it one too many times and knows how to fit a door. He most likely has other accompanying crimes to his burglaries and can execute as professional door fitters do. The dangerous type might be carrying firearms or other dangerous weapons not meant merely to show.
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You should make sure your house is well equipped with a professional door entry installation and security system to withstand the cleverness of both the lock picker and the brute strength of the violent type. To prevent burglary and save your doors, here are a few starting pointers:
How to Protect Your Home From Burglars
- Get an unbreakable door. Steel doors are not only durable but can also work as a deterrent. Burglars aren’t looking for challenges like us repairmen do. Most at least.
- Equip all windows well. The handiest way a man will use for a break in is the window. Make sure it’s well equipped against breakage. More on that below.
- Trim the exterior of your house. The more shrubs you have on your lawn, the more hiding places for your potential burglar. Don’t let them play hide and seek.
- Use blinds to hide tempting valuable objects out of view. Theft of any kind is mostly based on an opportunity. Your house might easy to notice at all, but then someone saw that expensive wall mounted TV or the huge surround sound stereo system by a look through your window.
- Don’t use trash to show off your newest trinket. Trash can also cause a lot of attention. Especially, if it contains huge cartons saying 72-inch plasma screen TV was installed. Fold or cut all boxes if you have to.
- Install a burglar alarm and a handy door entry system. So far we listed how to discourage a perpetrator from breaking and entering your home. But, if someone decides to do it, he or she will do it. The best medicine here is a reliable model of a burglar alarm and door entry system. There are many providers you can choose from in the UK. Here you can find a calculator to help you choose the right one for you.
- Get house insurance. Calculate the value of your home here.
- Always lock doors when outside. Nothing beats common sense.
4 Security Measures for Your Home by 24|7 Home Rescue
If you were told that someone was going to attempt a break into your home tonight, what would you do to deter thieves from entering? This is the mentality you need when re-evaluating your home security system. 24|7 Home Rescue have compiled some easy, straightforward advice to help you and your family feel safer this winter.
Firstly, think like a thief
Take a tour around your home – inside and out. Imagine that you are trying to break into your home. Where would you enter and how? Look for easy or weak points of access and consider burglars may take advantage of them. So don’t leave keys within arms’ reach of a cat flap, for example.
Key care
Even safer – take your keys to bed with you. It not only makes it harder to enter your home but also stops them from getting into your car(s). It’s also unlikely that thieves will want to risk going upstairs. It not only makes it harder for them to get inside your home but also stops burglars from having access to your car(s).
Improve fences and gates
Keep fences and gates high and well-maintained. Poor quality fencing can become easily damaged or weakened in adverse weather conditions, compromising the security around your home. If a burglar can identify a weak panel, they will take advantage of it and use it as an easier point of access. High fences also make it more difficult for thieves to scope out your garden and plan their break-in/exit routes.
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Protect outbuildings
You may not notice you have even been burgled if you don’t use your outbuildings that much, especially if they are a fair distance from the house. Sheds and outbuildings are either cluttered with junk, or home to some fairly expensive items that may be difficult to replace, such as tools and bikes.
If yours is the latter, make sure it is as protected and secure as you would like your house to be, because once they have access to tools they may also use these to enter your home. Make sure they are secure by investing in two sturdy padlocks and if your shed has windows, obstruct their view inside.
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Warn them away
Whether you have a brave Pitbull or a precious Poodle, put up a sign outside to alert potential intruders that you have a dog. It’s highly likely that most thieves won’t try their luck and risk facing an angry Pitbull.
If you don’t have a dog, there’s no harm in advertising that you do anyway. Similarly with CCTV, you can affix fake CCTV cameras to your house. They’re unlikely to know the difference or chance their luck, but it may just be worth investing in the real thing – they’re not that much more expensive nowadays.
For more ideas about stepping up your home security, check out 24|7 Home Rescue’s guide here.
How to Prevent Front Door Break-Ins
Entrance door break-ins are very common, so what you need to do is choose the right door to fit. This is how to do this:
- Chose a door without a mailbox or pet door. Unfortunately, these helpful additions are quite convenient for burglars. They can use it to open the door from the inside.
- Fit a door with no glassy parts. It’s common sense, as glass is a lot easier to break than wood, or steel.
- Repaint the door often. Burglars sometimes mark the doors they’ve visited. Repainting your door often might distort their plans, at least a little.
- Show off with fancy locks and doorknobs. The more complicated a front door seems to open, the more it might discourage burglars to try.
- Get motion sensor lighting. Another pleasant way to discourage a break in is having a motion sensor or security lighting. 60% of burglaries happen at night and putting the unwanted visitor into the spotlight can work wonders.
- Install a deadbolt lock. This is one of the most secure locks out there. It’s recommended by locksmiths and security professionals from all over London. Just having it would surely discourage most lock pickers from trying anything with your home.
- Use an Anti-Kick device for wooden doors. – It will not only save your home but will reduce the need for a door repairman in case you do become a victim of a burglary attempt.
How to Prevent Garage Door Break-Ins
Garage doors are often neglected from anti-burglar discussions, which is why the perpetrators use it more often than you might think. If your garage is connected to your house, this one is for you.
- Use common sense. As sad as it sounds, most garage door break-ins happen because people forget to close the garage door or leave the remote in the car. Just like locking the front door, locking the garage door is simply mandatory.
- Use a deadbolt lock. This can save you in more ways than one.
- Ensure you have a door made of reinforced steel. The harder to break for the better. Literally.
- Tint garage windows if you have any. It’s not a good idea to have garage windows at all, but if you do, you better not let thieves see that your car is gone and there’s nobody home.
- Keep an eye for any malfunctions. If there seems to be something wrong with the garage door, odds are, thieves will take advantage. Make sure everything is strong and working. Here are a few important skills you should have for an inspection and small repairs.
- Set your burglar alarm to monitor the garage door.
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How to Protect Windows From Break-Ins
You’ll need a good window protection from burglars since the violent type is one of those who would target your windows first. Iron bars are a really good protection, but most people wouldn’t want to have those for aesthetic reasons. So, these are other ideas that can help.
- Invest in high-quality locks. Professional installation know-how is almost mandatory. Consult with a locksmith or handyman for what is the safest lock model you should mount.
- Use tinted or reflective glass. This is a very good diversion, as most burglars would not break into a home through the window if they can’t see what’s inside in the first place.
- A fit glass that is hard to break. Today, there are many ways to make a glass piece firm and hard to break. There is tempered glass, laminated glass, wire mesh glass, bullet-resistant glass… and the more we go, the more expensive the options get. Consider yourself what’s best for your pocket or the right handyman to ask.
- Consider a window alarm. Let us clarify, just because you have a state of the art window alarm, doesn’t mean you might not need the previous suggestions. Better safe than sorry. There are a lot of window alarm providers in the UK.
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How to Protect Home When on Vacation
When you’re out of your house for an extended period of time, all the preparations listed above should be fairly enough. Additionally, the most important thing you can do is canceling all home deliveries.
Should a delivery come, they will leave your package at the front door. Not only can anyone take it, but a potential thief would know you’re away on a vacation and come back later. You can use the Royal Mail’s keep safe service.
And, of course, despite all these precautions and detailed explanations on how to make your house safe from burglars, if fate has said that it’s going to happen, it will happen, no matter how many repairmen you’ve hired to secure your home.
In these cases, it would be a good idea to photograph all your valuables and upload the photos to a cloud service provider. This will at least make it easy for the police to find your stolen stuff. Be a part of National Home Security Month for more handy tips.
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