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Home Security Advice: Best Ways To Keep Safe At Home

Secure your home against today’s brazen criminals with the practical home security advice in these articles. Find out what you can do to feel safe and relaxed in your house without that nagging sense of doubt about the possibility of a break in or attack.

Home security advice - A really lovely home

The advice in these articles will give you the "know-how" to keep the bad guys OUT of your home and keep your family safe from harm.

Install A Burglary Alarm

One of first things that you should do, if you don't already have one, is to install a Burglary Alarm in your house that is connected to an armed response security company.

Without one, you will ALWAYS be vulnerable to being taken by surprise by criminals who want to attack you in your home. You need something that will wake you up in the middle of the night when someone tries to quietly (or not so quietly!) enter your home.

But it's important that you understand its limitations too!

Home Security Lighting

As we know, criminals like the dark. It makes it easier for them to do their criminal deeds without anybody seeing them. It's hard to identify a criminal's face on a dark night, so their risk of being caught goes WAY down.

Home Security Lighting is one way to make your house a much less attractive target to home invaders and burglars.

There are, however, a few bits of home security advice that you need to consider when making decisions about what kind of lights to use and where to position them around your house.

Home Security Video Cameras

Being able to SEE who is outside your home when you hear someone or something lurking around can be difficult. Windows only provide you with a view of a limited area and they seldom enable you to peer into the blind spots around you house.

Unfortunately, it's exactly these blind spots that criminals are most likely to hide in before they find a way to break into your home.

An excellent way to "rob" them of that advantage is to install Home Security Video Cameras in specific places around your home. If you can see the bad guys before they get in, YOU have the advantage!

Security Dogs

While it's definitely a good idea to have motion sensitive lighting and alarm sensors that detect when someone is trying to break into your home, Security Dogs have senses that are FAR more effective at detecting intruders than ANY electronic system we have today.

Having a furry alarm system, or several that live on your property is still some of the best home security advice I can give you. Most criminals are not too happy with the idea of being bitten by a fierce animal with sharp teeth and bad breath!

The Reality Of Police Response Time

Police Response - South African police car

"I will just call the police!"

These words have been spoken by many people when they are asked to imagine what they would do if somebody tried to break into their house or rob them on the street.

However, there's a big and dirty secret that most people aren't willing to even think about, let alone plan for: The police won't get there in time to save you! Find out why that is and what you can do about it in my Police Response time article.

Home Window Security

Your home's windows are often the weakest point in your home security system. It does you no good to install strong doors and security gates unless you also address your Home Window Security.

This article contains some good home security advice that'll make it harder for criminals to break in this way.

Take a look!

A Robust Door Security System

Hollow core doors are cheap (that's why most builders put them in), but next to useless at resisting a kick from a burglar. Even if the door lock is of high quality, there's a good chance the actual door itself will break when forced open.

The best thing to do is to install a high quality solid core wooden door or better yet, a metal one. Find out what other advice I have for creating a robust Door Security System for your home in this article.

Home Security Door Lock

Most people give very little thought to the type and quality of the locks on their home's doors. Do you want to feel and actually BE safer while you're at home?

Take my simple home security advice: buy a high quality Home Security Door Lock and install one on each of your outside doors. The difference to your level of safety will be enormous! It's worth the time and money to get this done as soon as possible.

Security Gates

High quality security gate on external door of house

A high quality gate will do wonders for your home security

Security gates such as the one in the image (Trellidoor brand) are a fantastic way to give a burglar a hard time! If you fork out the money for a high quality security gate, you will really make it tough for them to get in.

When I give my friends and family home security advice, I tell them that they don't have to get the very best brand of gate, as long as the metal bars of the gate are quite thick, and the locking mechanism is good.

The really good gates have more than one lock (usually 3).

These gates usually have a lock that goes into the wall at the usual place (near where you turn the key), as well as another one at the top AND the bottom of the gate for 3 in total.

This makes it even LESS likely that a criminal will be able to gain entry to the house through that doorway.

A Fence: Your First Line Of Defense

Having a fence around your house acts as a barrier to stop people walking right up to your front door from the street. It lets you decide who you want to allow into your safe zone.

Home security fencing -pallisade type with sharp spikes on top

Plain pallisade type fence

Without it, there is nothing to stop door to door salesmen or people looking for work from coming onto your property whenever they want to. This may just be a nuisance or it could be a home security risk.

The men who appear to be "selling fruit" could be checking out your place to plan a robbery or home invasion. This is a common way of doing surveillance of your home.

It's low risk for them because even if you become suspicious, there's really no way to prove that they were doing anything wrong. The most likely situation is that you would just have a "funny feeling" about them.

Trust Your Instincts!

That funny feeling is years of knowledge and experience telling you that something is not right. Don't just convince yourself that...

..."It's nothing."

The Gates To Your Safe Haven

Gates allow you to enter and leave your home when you want to while still giving you a barrier to keep you safe from crime. Gates can be bought in an endless number of different styles to suit anyone’s needs.

A sturdy gate is great for controlling who comes and goes

Some people will prefer gates with beautiful and complex designs, while others will be happy with a simpler looking gate. Both approaches are perfectly fine as long as some thought is given to the strength of the gate.

Sadly, many people invest in a secure fence or wall around their property...

...but then let themselves down when it comes to their gate.

If I was a criminal, I would find it MUCH easier to climb over most people's gates, rather than struggling to get over their fences or walls.

If your fence has sharp metal spikes on it, make sure that your gate also has them, otherwise you are leaving yourself vulnerable.

Gate Bell Or Intercom System?

An intercom device on a pole outside the home's gate

Getting an intercom system is just good home security advice

Installing a gate bell or intercom system will give you even more control over who you allow to enter your property. The convenience of knowing who is at the gate without having to go outside really gives you an advantage against criminals.

On a day to day basis, the main attraction of such a system is that it makes life easier for you. If you don't like the look of the person at the gate, or if you just don't want to be bothered, simply ignore them!

Or if that's not your style, a "No thanks!" is often enough to end the conversation.

Often you may want to speak to a visitor without letting them in. Door to door sales people or post office workers come to mind. This kind of system gives you the flexibility to decide who comes into your safe haven.

Every little thing you can add to your home security system that makes you safer and more secure is worth it for your peace of mind.

Obviously you have to make your own choices based on your actual needs and priorities, but these concepts are important enough that you really need to give them some serious thought.

My Best Home Security Advice: Do Something To Improve Yours Today

As you can see, much of the home security advice that I offer is fairly simple and straightforward. The trouble is, many people don't even take the time to put the basics in place. The result is that they leave themselves and their families vulnerable to an attack.

If they are LUCKY all they will lose is a few valuables from their home. The unlucky ones may lose their LIVES.

I hope you'll take the time to read these critically important articles. Each page will give you another "piece of the puzzle" that'll help you to protect yourself and your family from criminal violence.

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