Knock, knock! Let the fun times begin for those with a tooth for DIY home security ideas in mind.
While it’s an entertaining and ageless joke with endless punch lines -many cute and few hilarious- the tragedy of invaders of our home who fail to knock and just Take, take! are predators we can learn to fight against if only we use a little DIY sense. Not all of us have a computer science degree but being passive aggressive won’ solve it. Hoping your goodness will rub off won’t work. We can easily protect ourselves, however, even if we can’t afford a security alarm or alarm system. Would be thieves watch out!
Beware things that go bump in the night, dogs mysteriously barking breaking the thick tension of night air, the man on the moon winking and what seems like the foundation settling with creaks emanating from unknown places. These are telltale signs that perhaps your home has been compromised and a something is lurking and is squatting on your house like a down on his luck farmer.
1: Change is a Good, Good Thing
Changing your locks may turn out to be a hectic decision in the first few weeks as you scramble to get all your keys replaced and handed to your immediate family members. If you have just moved into your home, it is important to proceed with this step post haste. If you have handed out spare keys over the years it could easily have been misplaced from one of your friends and is now stuck in the lost and found. So jot down on your five-year plan to update your locks every several years.
2: Green Is Great, Visibility is Better
Turning lights off when not in use is a great habit to form. Just as naturally as you would brush back you hair behind your ear, tucking the ends tightly, you have trained your hand to glide over the light switch panel. Reaching your hand in the open bathroom door you quickly flip it off without stopping. You continue walking down the hall. But wait. A dark house exudes the personification of an empty house, which represents an easy target. So instead of just leaving lights on randomly, set up timers to turn outdoor and select indoor lights on. Another way to give the impression of a full house without pulling Kevin McCallister’s (Macaulay Culkin) Home Alone booby traps is switching your radio dial on.
3: The Roof is on Fire? Ensure Working Order
Ever encounter a harmless smoky kitchen disaster-a recipe charred black as wisps of smoke rise from within-and your smoke detector insistently blares as you randomly wave your oven mitts in the air? Invest in either new smoke detectors or replace the batteries. You should also place it in an area where smoke would be most relevant without placing it too close so that it catches every stray steamy assault from your crockery.
4: Reclaim Your Privacy
Notes left on your front door for your friends, family, the postal man, your babysitter- All of these left on the door are like a welcome mat with an automated voice that bids strangers and acquaintances alike to enter. Updating your Facebook status about your two and half week vacation out of the country, another bad idea. Guard your identity by withholding your full name in the phonebook and on your mailbox. Besides, initials are much more mysterious! In addition to guarding your name, guard your door. Random salesmen pestering you like a live version of an over the phone telemarketer? That’s what built in door peepholes are for.
5: Property Check List and Walk Through
Nighttime has fallen on us, and with it the sudden desire to allow our eyelids to permanently droop for the hopeful solid eight hours. Before you succumb to your REM sleep cycle, walk through your home checking off that windows are locked, doors are closed and clocked, and all easily forgotten entrances, like the mudroom door that refuses to slam shut, or the garage door that we assume is locked are actually locked. A couple times a week go over your property to investigate clues that you may have loiterers or trespassers. While they might be harmless mark your territory. Trees and fencing are great ways to reestablish the historic moat around the castle in a modern neighborhood friendly approach.
Now that you have taken back the key to your domain and have actively shielded and defended your family, home and cherished belongings it’s time to reward Butch with a juicy steak of his own. Because while your baseball bat beside the front door may seem like a good idea to you if the need arises for you to wield it, we all know that the barred teeth of Butch is what is really keeping unwanted vagrants from your home. Ah, man’s best friend saves the day once more!
(Image: Ari’s House / trufig.com)
