Did you know that home security and safety go far beyond simply installing a home security system? Home security systems are an important way to protect your home against burglary, home intrusion, fire, and other emergencies. Still, there are also things you can do, in addition to installing a home security system, that will further improve your home’s security.
Here are our top home safety tips and tricks for how to secure your home.
- Use timers and smart lighting to make your house always seem occupied.
- Install interior cameras as part of your home security system.
- Do not obstruct your peephole with decor, and get a doorbell camera.
- Never let a stranger into your home.
- Don’t store valuables somewhere visible from outside your home.
- Always lock your doors.
- Invest in a diversion safe.
- Take inventory of your valuables.
- Keep your filing cabinets locked.
- Install door, window, motion, and glass break sensors inside your home.
- Install security cameras outside your home.
- Keep security in mind as you landscape your home.
- Light up your house with outdoor lighting.
- Don’t leave spare keys under the doormat or in other obvious hiding spots.
- Remember to secure your belongings outside your home.
- Be sure your home’s exterior doesn’t make your home look empty.
- Change your locks as soon as you move into a new home.
- Advertise your security system with a sign in the yard.
- Get a dog, or at least make it look like you have one.
- Don’t leave notes on the door that imply that you aren’t home.
- Always check your windows after contractors come inside your house.
- Make sure your garage is secure.
- Reinforce first-floor windows and doors.
- Conceal all wiring on your security system.
- Don’t leave first-floor windows open at night.
- Get to know your neighbors so they can help keep an eye on your home and vice versa.
- Create safe habits when leaving the house or going to bed.
- Ask for proof of ID from any contractor or service provider who needs to come into your house.
- Don’t tag locations or share vacation photos until you’re back home.
- Don’t flaunt valuables or high-ticket items on social media.
Simple Home Security Ideas for Your Interior
Home security and safety starts with making smart decisions inside. Read on to learn more about how to secure the interior of your home and keep your family and belongings safe and sound.
1. Use timers and smart lighting to make your house always seem occupied.
Automatic timers and smart lighting that can be controlled remotely help your home appear occupied, even when you’re out of town. If possible, install a whole smart home system that includes TV and music. If would-be intruders hear noise coming from your home, they’ll likely leave, and as a bonus, you’ll enjoy the smart features when you’re home.
Similarly, turn off the ringer on your landline if you’re headed out of town. You don’t want a potential burglar to hear your phone ringing unanswered.
2. Install interior cameras as part of your home security system.
When you have security cameras inside your home, you’ll always know what’s happening, whether you’re there or not. You’ll have peace of mind knowing you can take a peek inside and check on your house (or pets and family) at any moment.
3. Do not obstruct your peephole with decor, and get a doorbell camera.
While decor for your front door, like wreaths or signs, looks great and ties the look of your home together, check to make sure the decorations aren’t blocking the peephole.
You should never open the door for someone you don’t recognize, and a peephole or smart doorbell can help you identify someone at your front door before inviting them in.
4. Never let a stranger into your home.
If someone comes to the door asking for help or to use your phone to call the police, don’t let them inside; just offer to make the call for them. Speak to them through the door if possible.
5. Don’t store valuables somewhere visible from outside your home.
Keep laptops, expensive jewelry, and anything else that may entice would-be thieves into your home away from windows and doors and out of sight.
6. Always lock your doors.
Whether you are home or not, it’s smart to always keep your doors locked.
7. Invest in a diversion safe.
These are safes that don’t look like safes and provide a way for you to hide valuables in plain sight. Avoid hiding your valuables in obvious places, like inside a mattress or in drawers.
8. Take inventory of your valuables.
Not only is this a smart step to take for insuring your most expensive possessions, but it can also help you know exactly what is missing in the unfortunate event of a break-in. If you want to take it a step further, consider marking valuables with a UV light pen so you can always identify what is yours.
9. Keep your filing cabinets locked.
Lock away important documents containing confidential information, like banking account information, as well as your social security card and passport.
10. Install door, window, motion, and glass break sensors inside your home.
With these sensors as part of your overall home security system, you’ll know right away if someone tries to break into your home while it’s armed.
Home Security Tips for Your Exterior
Have you thought about how secure the outside of your home really is? Home security and safety go far beyond simply locking the door behind you when you leave. Keep reading to learn more about how to secure your home’s exterior.
11. Install security cameras outside your home.
Security cameras on your home’s exterior will capture any suspicious or illegal behavior happening in your yard and, if visible, act as a deterrent for thieves and burglars.
12. Keep security in mind as you landscape your home.
Don’t let your shrubs and trees become overgrown and block sightlines to the front of your house or your outdoor cameras. Add landscape lighting where you can, and limit hiding spaces for potential prowlers.
Light up your house with outdoor lighting.
There’s no need to blind your neighbors, but it’s wise to have the outside of your house lit up. Install lights near each exterior door and keep them turned on when it’s dark outside. You can also go with motion-sensing lighting on your driveway or on the corners of your home so that if someone walks or drives near your house, the lights will come on.
14. Don’t leave spare keys under the doormat or in other obvious hiding spots.
Rather, if you must leave a key outside your home, invest in a good lockbox to keep it secured.
15. Remember to secure your belongings outside your home.
Always lock your shed or garage, and secure your grill, bikes, lawnmowers, and other outdoor gear with bike locks or other secure locking systems.
If you’re worried about outdoor tools being stolen, consider painting the handles a bright or unusual color; smart thieves don’t take things that can be easily identified by the rightful owner.
16. Be sure your home’s exterior doesn’t make your home look empty.
When you’re traveling or otherwise out of town, stop your mail or have someone else pick it up, and coordinate snow removal or lawn mowing. Your house should always appear occupied from the outside.
17. Change your locks as soon as you move into a new home.
Unfortunately, even if the seller of your house hands over their keys, you have no way of knowing who else may have keys. To be safe, change your locks as soon as possible after you move into a new home. If you have a smart lock with a keypad, be sure to change that code, too.
You should also change your locks if you lose your keys, especially if you have any keys or even keychains that could be traced back to you.
18. Advertise your security system with a sign in the yard.
Your security system shouldn’t be a secret. Putting a CPI Security sign in your yard is a great deterrent for burglars and intruders.
19. Get a dog, or at least make it look like you have one.
Dogs tend to deter thieves and intruders. Even if you don’t have a dog, put a “Beware of Dog” sign outside, or take it a step further with a water bowl or toys outside to make it appear that you do.
20. Don’t leave notes on the door that imply that you aren’t home.
If you need to tell the dog walker or the cleaning crew something, but won’t be at home when they come, just send them a text or leave a note inside. Do not leave your note on the front door.
21. Always check your windows after contractors come inside your house.
Make sure no windows are left unlocked for someone to come back to later.
22. Make sure your garage is secure.
When you install deadbolts on your exterior doors, don’t forget about any doors to your garage. If you’ll be gone from your home for a while and you’d like to take an extra step to lock your overhead garage door, you can add a c-clamp on your garage door tracks to stop it from opening.
Additionally, consider frosting your garage windows so that no one can see what you are storing or whether your car is parked inside.
23. Reinforce first-floor windows and doors.
There are several ways to secure your home’s entry points. Start by replacing exterior door screws with longer screws and adding a deadbolt to any doors without one. If your exterior doors have glass panels, consider replacing those doors entirely. If they have hinges on the outside, install a security hinge pin to make it harder to break in.
Additionally, check your window and door frames for rot, and replace any rotten ones so that a burglar can’t pry through them.
If you have any sliding glass doors, you can place a pipe or security bar in the door track for extra security.
24. Conceal all wiring on your security system.
Remove all opportunities for a burglar to tamper with or disarm your system. If your system is through CPI Security, our in-house professional installation team will take care of this step for you!
25. Don’t leave first-floor windows open at night.
While sleeping with the windows open when the weather is nice can be quite enjoyable, leaving windows open at night is not a good idea for home safety.
Other Security Ideas for Your Home
Implementing a few basic home safety tips and habits into your life can make your home safer and more secure than ever. Check out these additional simple home security tips below!
26. Get to know your neighbors so they can help keep an eye on your home and vice versa.
There are many reasons it’s a good idea to develop a solid relationship with your neighbors. That’s especially because watchful neighbors may notice suspicious activities happening at your house when you’re not at home.
27. Create safe habits when leaving the house or going to bed.
Develop a routine for locking your doors, shutting your windows, and turning on your alarm system before you leave and at night before you go to bed. If you make it a habit, you’re less likely to forget something important and leave a way for intruders to come inside your house.
28. Ask for proof of ID from any contractor or service provider who needs to come into your house.
Only allow people into your home who you expected to be there and who can prove that they are who they say they are.
29. Don’t tag locations or share vacation photos until you’re back home.
We know it’s fun to share your travels with your friends and family on social media, but wait until your home is occupied again before telling the public you were gone.
30. Don’t flaunt valuables or high-ticket items on social media.
Following a similar mindset, try to minimize how you talk about your most valuable or prized possessions on social media. Posting about things like your favorite, most expensive handbag could help give the bad guys an easy checklist of what’s easy to grab in order of value.
Want more home security safety tips? Visit the CPI blog today.
