Did you remember to check the dog door?
So you’ve upgraded your locks, activated your motion sensors, and are feeling pretty good about the state of your home security. Hold it right there – it’s easy to overlook some major security threats that compromise the safety of your home and family. We should know — we’re professional home locksmiths here in New Orleans. Here are five you may have missed, plus how to fix them.
1. Sliding doors. The basic lock that came with your sliding doors won’t keep out anyone determined to get in. If you haven’t taken special precautions, burglars can simply lift most sliding doors out of their tracks. Fortunately, there are many specialized locks and products that make sliding doors more secure, including keyed locks and bars.
2. The dog door. Do you have a larger dog? Even if they can’t fit through your dog door, burglars have been known to reach through the dog door to unlock the door. One solution is to install a double cylinder deadbolt that requires a key on both sides to lock or unlock. If you haven’t yet installed a dog door, position it in the middle of the door (you don’t want it to be too close to either hinges or lock) and choose one with a magnetic or electric option for more security.
3. The tree outside your upstairs window or porch. Homeowners often pay less attention to upstairs security, figuring that anything above ground level is inaccessible. But if there’s a tall tree close by, a burglar can scale it to break in through the upstairs. Keep trees close by your house trimmed, don’t leave ladders around in your yard, and install window pins on upstairs windows. Keeping your shrubs and trees trimmed also improves visibility, which burglars hate.
4. Your door hardware. A high security lock won’t keep your door safe from being kicked in if you have hollow doors, flimsy door frames, or strike plates attached with short screws. Investing in a better lock only makes sense when combined with stronger hardware to support it.
5. The back door. Even if your front door is completely up to snuff with a good deadbolt and heavy duty strike plate, every external door is a potential entryway for a burglar. How weak is your weakest link? Check to make sure side, back, and garage doors are as well protected as the front door.
Pop-A-Lock is a residential locksmith in New Orleans that provides full home security audits to evaluate the security of your home and address weaknesses. Call us today at 504-588-2192 for a free quote!
Photo by Northern Green Pixie
