Home Security Tips while on Vacation

You’re all packed up and ready to go and enjoy that well deserved vacation. Hopefully, the house and all your valuables will be here when you return. Fact is, there are burglars and other people intent on finding houses just like yours that are unwatched and unguarded. These homes without any home security systems are perfect for any burglar. No rush to get into or out of the house because no one is there to surprise them. Without spending the vacation budget for a security system, here are a few ideas to help keep your home safe.

Simply put, do anything that may suggest that the house is occupied. This would include having the lawn cut while your away or setting the sprinklers to go on.

Have the mail stopped or picked up by a neighbor. Nothing says “no one home” than a mailbox stuffed full of third class or junk mail!

Have the newspaper and any milk delivery stopped. What do you think when passing a home with 6 or 8 newspapers collecting at the end of the driveway. The burglar thinks the same thing! By the way, why aren’t you reading the news online? After all, this is the 21st century. :)

Consider getting a timer for several lights in the home. By having lights turn off and on at different times suggests that someone is in the house. For about 10-15 dollars each, you can get these simple timers at any hardware store. For more money, drapery motors can be installed to open and close window coverings at specifie times.

Get a barking dog motion detector. These bark when hit by an opening door.

Put sticks in the tracks of all windows to make it more difficult to open. You can cut these to length if letting in some fresh air is important to you.

Unplug the garage door opener. With a little time, someone with a radio transmitter and a laptop computer can input many key sequences into a file and try them out. Although many of the newer garage door openers have more advanced security features, the older ones do not.

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