AboutFred P. Wessells Expertise I can provide advice regarding most aspects of home and personal security & safety, as well as just about anything related to computer security. Lighting to locks to windows and more. I DO NOT WANT QUESTIONS ON ALARM SYSTEMS, other than common smoke/carbon monoxide detectors. This is not my area of expertise. How to keep from needing an alarm system is more in my area!
Experience I have worked in the industry for 18 years as a security officer, feature writer and editor for a national security magazine and as a security consultant.
Publications Security Technology & Design magazine, Access Control magazine, Locksmith Ledger magazine, several community newspapers and legal newsletters.
Question Hello, your last bit in your profile/intro 'How to keep from needing an alarm system is more in my area!' What are cost-effective ways to make the home more secure without going crazy with money on a home alarm system? Thanks.
Answer First thing I'll suggest is that you go to my security Web site [www.blackdogsecurity.org] where you can read a bunch of articles I've written about home security (and some other topics). You can refer to that all the time, and there's a heck of a lot of info there...and I keep adding to it as time permits.
Now, the best way I can tell you how to make your home safe is to use mine as an example. This is NOT going to be a short answer, so sit back, relax and start reading...grab some coffee to keep you awake too!
I live 3 blocks northeast of Detroit. It's a safe area, but you always have to be alert in general. First, consider how people break into homes: front door, back door, basement window or a regular window that's hidden from the street--in that order. Take them in order.
Doors: I have the original 1941 solid 2-1/4" wood door on the front of my house. I also have a top-notch storm door that locks. To make it even more secure, I had a Schlague heavy-duty, double-cylinder deadbolt lock installed. You need a key to open the lock from inside or out. There are no windows in the door, so it's a bit of overkill, but my keys stay in the front door lock for easy exit in an emergency. My side door is new. It's fiberglass that looks exactly like all the natural wood in my home. It has a single-cylinder deadbolt on it since the only window is WAY up at the top. I also have a fence and locked gate between my house and garage, so if anyone ever knocked on the side door, I'd answer it with a gun in hand. That takes care of doors. Double-cylinder deadbolts are for doors with windows where someone could reach through and simply turn the turnscrew on the inside of the door and waltz right in. If you want REALLY good security locks, Medeco makes the best, but they are a bit pricey. Keys cannot be duplicated however except by you.
As noted, my yard is fenced with absolutely no entry to it. It irritates the hell out of the electric company since the meter is on the back of the house, but that's there problem. You come in my backyard, you get to meet my 80-lb Black Lab.
Basement windows should be replaced with glass block windows if you haven't done so. My basement has six windows. Three are regular glass block (opaque so no one can see in), one has a dryer vent built into it, and the other two have little screens in the middle so you can open them for cross-ventilation--a MUST!! An average basement window will run about $65-75 to install glass blocks. But remember that they also provide incredible insulation to keep the warmies in (important if you live in Detroit).
Regular Windows. I had new windows installed about 5-6 years ago. Nothing fancy about them, but one thing I like are the "clips" above the bottom window. That is, when you open the window, if those "clips" (for lack of a better word) are pulled out, the window will only go up so far (about 6"). In the summer, that's usually just fine for me, so I leave them out to prevent the window from going any farther up. If it's really hot and I want more air, I just push them in and raise the window more. BUT when I'm not home, those clips are never pushed in. No one can open the window past those 6". The only way in is to break the window, and bad guys do not like noise. Besides, the only window you can break is my front living room window...no other window is accessible because they are either in the fenced yard or my bay windows in the dinette--surrounded by very sharp, pointy, really joyous hedges and bushes! One attempt to get to one of the bay windows will leave you a bloody pulp on the front lawn. That is another point to well remember: Use landscaping to your advantage. [I've written feature securities on some very major security installations that totally rely on security landscaping as a major detraction.]
It also helps to have caring neighbors who listen and watch what's going on in your area or on your block. We are blessed with that where I am.
Now the other thing bad guys really hate is light. Light is downright nasty. And this is both inside and outside. It's 8.5 feet between my garage and house, behind that locked fence I noted before. When I come home from anywhere, I open the garage door from the car (you must have a garage door opener for security), close the door before I get out of the car, keep a pickaxe at hand in the garage if someone tries to slip in behind me. When the garage door opens, the light goes on. I lock the car, exit by the side door that is directly across from the side door to my house.
The problem: That area was black...and I do mean black. No streetlight reached it...nothing. Not a good thing. So I had a mercury vapor light installed directly above the garage door. Comes on at dark, goes off in the light. Cost about $75 with a bulb (they last about 3 years) plus installation. It costs nothing to run it. And this is a BIG light; you can buy smaller ones for less. It lights up the entire area around the side of my home. Then just two years ago I installed a smaller mercury vapor light on the back of my house that shines out into the yard and also into my neighbor's driveway (but not his hot tub). The neighbors behind me have told me how much they appreciate that light because they both work retail and come home at 2-3 a.m., and there's always light there. On the side of the house I have two floodlights (right at the corner) that are turned on manually. I do that randomly since they light up the whole yard and more. Light is your friend.
Inside lighting is even more important. I have nightlights in every room, so there's always some semblance of light in the house. (And I still fell over a chair leg four weeks ago and smashed the crap out of my right hand trying to break my fall. If you get up at 5 a.m., turn the light on!) I also have a light on a timer, so some light in the house always goes on and off at various times during the night. I also work another job at night, so I'm up quite late anyway. And I have a lantern on the front lawn that comes on at dark and off at light, only it just has a regular lightbulb in it. Porch lights work just as well.
When you aren't home at night, always have lights on and always have a stereo, radio or TV on. Sound and light will keep anyone away.
Total so far:
Garage door opener: $300
Glass block windows: 6 x $65
Side mercury vapor light: About $150 installed.
Back light: About $75 installed
Timer: $15
Front lawn lantern: It was there, but I had to repair it to get it to work. But Edison, or whatever electric co. you use always has a plan to install sensor lanterns on your lawn at a fairly reasonable price.
Big Dog: More than you ever want to know!
That's yet another thing to consider--a dog. That is perhaps THE best deterrent to anyone coming in your home. Not one of those yippy yappy piddly things, but a DOG! Black Labs are the best (or Yellow or Chocolate). They are kind, gentle and VERY protective. But if you aren't a dog person or cannot have one for whatever reason, use the other tips.
Keep bushes by your doors trimmed so no one can hide behind them and bushwhack you. Use other bushes like the ones by my bay windows to keep people OUT of your area. Secure your yard if possible. You also can buy "alarm decals" to put on a couple of major windows so people will think you have an alarm system. That will keep them away.
And there are even more little tricks of the trade. I'll try to think of some, but it is getting late and my brain is a bid addled by now. One thing I remember from my old neighbors next door (where the hot tub is) was their phone. I don't know if they were both deaf or just liked noise, but the phone was incredibly loud, and so were their voices when they talked. It's no fun listening to someone's phone conversation while sitting in your living room with all the windows closed!! But what I'm getting at is that if you have a phone and you aren't home and it rings and rings, people can hear it and know you aren't there. Not good. I solved that very easily AND saved a ton of money. I had two phone lines for fax and phone, dumped both of them, bought a cell phone that is with me 24/7, and cut my monthly phone bill by at least 60-70%. And no matter where I go, I answer my phone. No one knows if I'm home or not, and every time I pay the bill I chuckle at how great that is.
I think that's about enough for now, since I don't know if I've covered everything. Like I said, check out my security Web site for other answers and topics, and PLEASE feel completely free to e-mail me with more questions at: info@blackdogsecurity.org. I really don't mind helping folks secure their homes at the least cost possible. It's fun, and it really irritates the bad guys!
Best regards!
P.S. One thing I didn't mention is guns. NEVER EVER have a gun in your house if: (a) You don't know how to use it competently; (b) You are afraid to use it in self-defense. The corollary to that is if you have children in the house, the guns cannot be loaded and should be locked up. Here, it's just me and my dog. I have a rifle and shotgun in my gun rack and my .357 magnum in my nightstand. All are loaded. I'm extremely competent in the use of all, and not the least bit concerned about shooting anyone who breaks in. And Michigan's new law says they don't even have to be threatening you. Breaking in is a threat in itself. So that is another answer, but one I offer with the greatest reserve.
