Police offer tips on home security

Tuesday, January 10, 2006

Nevada Daily Mail

People would like to think they are safe in their own homes. A person's home, after all, is a sanctuary -- place where they can get away from the world's problems, relax and be comfortable.

Here's some information provided by the Nevada Police Department, aimed at helping area residents safeguard their homes against crime.

Did you ever notice how many castles seem to have moats around them, drawbridges, heavy doors and gates and yes, even armed guards or armored knights if you prefer? It seems even back in medieval times some people understood the root of security is secure.

So why is it today so many people fail to secure their homes? It is amazing how many burglaries and thefts happen in this city and in every city across this country where the people have simply gone off and left their homes unlocked. Probably the number one deterrent to a burglar is a good lock. Unfortunately, in order for the lock to be effective, it must be used. You can have the best lock in the world on the front door of your home and it will be absolutely worthless if you do not use it. People, use the locks. Please. Police also ask that you lock all the doors in your home. Believe it or not, some burglars are energetic enough to walk all the way around your home and they will try every door and window looking for one that is unlocked. Many times a police officer responding to a burglary or theft call will hear the following, "I had the front door locked, but we never lock the back door." Sound familiar?

You should make sure your doors and windows are locked. You should make sure your doors are solid as is the doorframe. Many an officer has responded to a burglary and searched the scene, unable to find any sign of forced entry. There has been no damage done to a door or window. Yet, the person living there insists the doors and windows were all locked when they left. Strange, you say? Not really. In far too many situations like this, the resident goes on to explain that while the back door was locked, all you have to do is "jiggle the handle" or push on the door and it opens.

Exterior doors should be solid. Steel doors are preferred but wooden doors are acceptable as long as they are solid core. Hollow core doors are intended strictly for interior use and should never be used as an entry door. This is true even in apartment settings where every apartment entry door is inside the building. If you must have a window on your door, have small windows. The window should be small enough a person cannot crawl through it.

Buy and install a good quality lock. Do not rely on the locking door knob. Good deadbolt locks are relatively cheap and easy to install. The bolt should extend at least one inch into the doorframe. An inch and a half to two inches is even better.

What kind of dead bolt should you install? This depends on your door. If you have a solid door with no windows, any good deadbolt lock will suffice. If you have a door with windows, you need a double cylindered deadbolt. This is the kind with the keyhole on both sides. Yes, I know it is inconvenient. After all, it takes a key to lock it as well as to unlock it. It is also inconvenient for the burglar. If you have a lock with a knob in a door with a window, all the would-be burglar has to do is to break the window, reach through the door and turn the knob. All your valuable possessions are now up for the taking. Hint: It does no good to install a lock with double cylinders if you leave the key in the lock. Leaving the key in is just the same as having a knob. You have accomplished nothing.

The doorframe must also be solid. It does no good to have a good, solid door and a good deadbolt lock if the doorframe is flimsy enough to give way and allow the locked door to be pushed open anyway. Steel frames are excellent. Unfortunately, most doors are framed with one-inch wooden boards.

By the way, a one-inch thick board is not one inch thick. It is more like three quarters of an inch but that is another story. This is why the doorframes need to be solidly installed and screwed securely to framing studs. Breaking the frame and stud at the same time, believe me, is far from an easy task. In fact, it is too much work for the average burglar, who will give it a try, but if entry is not gained quickly and easily, the burglar will generally move on and find an easier target. Installing metal re-enforcement pieces around your door latch, locks and on the doorframe also give you a much more secure door.

Windows also need to have functioning locks. Nailing or painting a window shut is always an option. Not necessarily a good option but an option anyway. Why is it not a good option? Simple, some day you may have to get out that window. In the event of a fire where the normal means of exit, the doors, are blocked, your only way out may be through a window. This is also why permanently attached bars over windows are not a good idea.

How can you make your windows less vulnerable? Keep burglars, window peepers and other undesirables away from your windows. Sure, you say, if it was only that easy.

Well, in some ways, it is. Do not plant shrubs and bushes under your windows as this allows a person to get behind these plants and hide. This has been a piece of advice given for years and years when it comes to home security. It is technically correct, although there are exceptions. Homeowners could plant a bed of cactus under your windows or substitute an old-fashioned rose bush, a wild or multiple rose, with the long sharp thorns that are way too numerous to count. The old-fashioned gooseberry bushes, certain of the holly bushes and other such thorny plants also work well.

Install more outside lighting. When it comes to security, you can never have too many lights. Burglars, thieves, crooks, whatever you want to call them all tend to have one thing in common. They do not want to get caught. The darker it is, the harder it is to see someone. The lighter, the easier it is to see. A greater chance of being seen equals a greater chance of getting caught.

Put it all together, solid locked doors which are going to require time and effort to get through. Windows which are locked after you've pushed through all these plants with long, sharp spines and thorns drawing blood everywhere they stick you. And they will stick you time and again. Ouch! No way to do this fast, just in and out. Plus, a well-lit area where you are going to be seen if anyone cares to look. It is just too risky. Your normal, halfway intelligent burglar is going to look elsewhere.

Come to think of it, if your neighbor hasn't taken any of these steps, his place might look much more inviting, especially if there are lots of dark shadows to hide in while approaching, gaining entry and leaving.

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