DIY Home Security and Home Security Tips
Have you ever read one of those articles about home security tips and come away feeling like you’d have to work for a month to turn your home into the fortress the article suggests?
Unless you are protecting the Hope Diamond, then home security tips for the most part truly do not need to be that difficult. Basically, when a burglar surveys at your home, he or she is thinking about a few simple questions. Can I break into this house easily (i.e., quickly)? Will I have privacy? Is there anything in this home worth stealing? If all the answers come up yes, your home may very well be a target. If you can change the answer to even one of those questions into a resounding “NO,” you can increase your home security.
Important Home Security Tips
One of the best and most obvious home security tips is that you should always be sure to lock your house up before you leave. Doors should be metal or have a solid wood core with hinges located on the inside. Don’t count on a typical doorknob lock to deter a burglar. A thick deadbolt lock that extends at least an inch into the door jam, on the other hand, will discourage most burglars who don’t want to take the time to mess with it.
Windows and sliding glass doors should also be locked. Also, you can place a blocking or anti-lift device on windows, and use a blocking device like a sturdy piece of wood or a steel bar to hold your sliding glass door shut.
Shrubbery around the windows and doors can give burglars a place to hide while they work, unless you choose prickly plants like that of rose bushes or a pyracantha, for instance. Crooks want to walk away with a handful of cash, after all, and not a handful of thorns.
Another one of the best home security tips is that no burglar wants to call attention to what he or she is doing. Anything that interrupts privacy, like a loud dog, a bright light, or an alarm system will discourage the average burglar from putting your house on his or her list.
Even if you don’t actually have a dog or an alarm system, put up a sign in your yard that says “Beware of the dog,” and post an alarm decal prominently on your window. You don’t have to be honest with a criminal.
Don’t brag about the expensive items you own, and don’t leave your computer, entertainment system, or other valuables where they can be easily seen through the window. The less temptation you offer burglars, the less chance that they will make you a target.
DIY Home Security
There are numerous DIY home security systems and individual products that are available on the market today that can be installed by the homeowner with relative ease and are available through various outlets; from very simple systems to elaborate ones that include video surveillance, the system you choose with depend on your budget, expertise and the perceived threat of intrusion.
Installing door and window contacts is a pretty easy job, requiring some basic knowledge of low-voltage wiring, knowing how to use a few hand tools, and an electric drill. DIY home security can include closed circuit television cameras and monitors that can also be hooked up to a videocassette recorder or digital recorder to document activity.
As a word of caution, cameras should never be placed in areas where family members or visiting guests expect privacy. Bathroom and bedrooms are areas in which cameras should never be located. DIY home security video surveillance in common areas of the home as well as outdoors are generally accepted, but videotaping in some areas may result in legal actions based on violations of privacy, even in your own home.
If Your Budget Will Allow, go Wireless
Many devices, available as part of a DIY home security system, are available in wireless format. This eliminates the need for extensive installation of wires running through the house making the DIY home security easier and faster to install. Even cameras are available in wireless format, which allows their installation outdoors without having to put holes in outer walls.
If you hook your system up to a videocassette recorder, you will want to have a time-lapse VCR, capable of saving 24-hours of video on a single T-160 tape. This means the tape only has to be changed once a day. You should also maintain at least one-week’s worth of video. While many hooking up a DIY home security system say that 24 hours is enough, if nothing happens just tape over it, others contend it may be a day or so before it is discovered.
Digital recording devices are the most beneficial in either a professional or DIY home security system and if equipped with a 600-megabit hard drive, can record up to four cameras with the video available for about 30 days before it starts recording over previous images. Another advantage is the video can be played back through your home computer and still images obtained through your own printer.
