Deter burglars
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andre_xs
Posts: 281 Forumite
Hi All,
in the last couple of months, burglary (and car theft) has risen quite a bit, they've broken into a house just next to our neighbour and into the car of our neighbours. We don't live in a posh area, terraced 2-3 bedroom ex-council houses from the mid 1950ies. The road is busy during the day. We have a school, zebra crossing and streetlights in front of the house.
We have two lines of thoughts here: One is of course to deter burglars generally. The other one is that burglars come into the house while we are home (e.g. during the night), regarding the safety of our family (2 kids).
So my wife and I were discussing what to do. We don't have loads of money, so we can't bullet proof our house for thousands of £££. These are some of the things we discussed, we'd be grateful for your input regarding effectiveness etc:
- Floodlights with motion sensors in front and back of the house. Or will burglars appreciate the light so that they can see better how to break in?
- Security cameras, e.g. IP cameras or a wireless system with HDD recording. Or will that give the impression that our house is worthwhile to break into? :eek:
- Some kind of in-house alarm which would turn on the lights and make a lot of noise once somebody got into the house.
- These "pretend someone is home" things like lights randomly turning on and off, TV simulator, etc.
- No, we won't get a dog. But we have two guinea pigs, maybe they can be trained to be "guard pigs"?? :rotfl:
Input most greatly appreciated! Thanks a lot in advance.
in the last couple of months, burglary (and car theft) has risen quite a bit, they've broken into a house just next to our neighbour and into the car of our neighbours. We don't live in a posh area, terraced 2-3 bedroom ex-council houses from the mid 1950ies. The road is busy during the day. We have a school, zebra crossing and streetlights in front of the house.
We have two lines of thoughts here: One is of course to deter burglars generally. The other one is that burglars come into the house while we are home (e.g. during the night), regarding the safety of our family (2 kids).
So my wife and I were discussing what to do. We don't have loads of money, so we can't bullet proof our house for thousands of £££. These are some of the things we discussed, we'd be grateful for your input regarding effectiveness etc:
- Floodlights with motion sensors in front and back of the house. Or will burglars appreciate the light so that they can see better how to break in?
- Security cameras, e.g. IP cameras or a wireless system with HDD recording. Or will that give the impression that our house is worthwhile to break into? :eek:
- Some kind of in-house alarm which would turn on the lights and make a lot of noise once somebody got into the house.
- These "pretend someone is home" things like lights randomly turning on and off, TV simulator, etc.
- No, we won't get a dog. But we have two guinea pigs, maybe they can be trained to be "guard pigs"?? :rotfl:
Input most greatly appreciated! Thanks a lot in advance.
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Comments
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I'd start with the low cost basics - like checking all the windows have window locks fitted and you use them and the door locks are reasonable (5 level mortice or decent euro-locks).
Check any garages and out-houses/tool stores are locked and secure.
Then a few cheap timer switches on some lamps, possibly a radio - most anti-crime guidance says burglars generally won't target houses if they think someone is at home. If you've got lights on and some sound, the burglar is taking a risk to bet whether your in or not.0 -
Plenty of advice available on police websites and a Crime Reduction Adviser will have good local knowledge of the types of burglaries being carried out and will give free advice.
Here's the Cheshire police one as an example:-
https://www.cheshire.police.uk/advice-and-support/home-safety-and-security/0 -
Thanks for this. Another thought which came up: What about setting up a Neighbourhood Watch area? Is that a lot of work, complicated, costly, effective at all?0
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My late parents had a gizmo (don't know where from, I'm afraid) that they could trigger remotely. It was just a small box in the hallway, but it gave a very accurate rendition of a large dog barking.0
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We have lights with motion sensors, cctv and a normal lamp plugged into a smartplug which is on a timer or can be activated remotely.
The neighbours don!!!8217;t have any security and have posher cars parked outside so I!!!8217;m pretty sure we!!!8217;re quite low down on the risk/reward burglary list!0 -
I'd be thinking -
- Net curtains so your stuff isn't 'on show'
- Strong chain on front door for unexpected callers
- Locks on window handles, but ensure you have a planned escape route for fire
- Upgrade Euro lock/mortice locks if necessary
- Rack bolts on all wooden doors, plus hinge bolts to prevent kicking-in
- Garage door bolts if 'up and over' style
- Secure gate to back garden so peeps can't wander around
- Padlock any 'helpful' tools such as ladders
- PIR sensors and anti-smash bulkhead light(s) (not floodlights!) around house
- Random on-off unit an upstairs light
- Wireless alarm with a dummy and real bell-box, located so it can't be pulled off with rope with phone-dialer to alert you if alarm triggers. Get a part-zone settable alarm so you can arm the ground floor when in bed.
- Internal IP camera(s) so you can see what's going on from your phone if alarm triggers
- RFID wallet for car-keys if it's keyless entry
- A decent safe bolted to joists at back of wardrobe for passports etc. to limit ID theft
Consider taking up golf, requiring you to store a No.7 iron under the bed...0 - Net curtains so your stuff isn't 'on show'
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"Consider taking up golf, requiring you to store a No.7 iron under the bed..."
I quite enjoy cooking, that requires me to keep my 8" Sambonet cleaver under my bed.0 -
- These "pretend someone is home" things like lights randomly turning on and off, TV simulator, etc.
I saw what I presume was one of those TV simulators working in a house upstairs window and it was not convincing. If it was also unconvincing to a crook then it would be a lot worse than useless.
Far better to use a real television and get the extra benefit of the sound.
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