Steel security doors are superior in most ways to wooden doors, but they are not always practical.  Your existing wooden door may be decorative, it may be a non-standard size, or it may simply be already paid for.  When you can’t replace a wooden door, you can sometimes augment it with steel reinforcement. You’ll need to buy a large steel plate and then drill holes for the doorknob, the peephole, and the mounting screws. The thickness of steel plate depends upon the strength of your door hinges and door material. Here are approximate weights for an average 3′ x6′ 8″ [...]

Home fires kill approximately 2,500 Americans every year and injure five times that many. They also cause more than six billion dollars a year in property damage. Burns and smoke inhalation damage can be extremely unpleasant, even if you do survive. Children five and under are twice as likely to die in a house fire as adults. Nearly 100% of these tragedies are preventable. Fire security begins with preventing unintended fires from occurring in the first place. Grab a notebook and a pen and walk through your house, conducting a fire audit of each room. Note the presence of any [...]

Garage doors create a number of security vulnerabilities for the average home.  They are often weak points against entry, but they can also enable surreptitious entry where attackers can then wait for your family or attack your main defenses without being visible. Remote Garage Door Opener Security Remote control garage door openers work by sending an electronic code from the remote to the receiver in the garage door opener. Remote garage door opening systems have had many security vulnerabilities since their introduction: The first remotes featured no security. All remotes opened all doors of that model. The next generation of remotes [...]

Fire extinguishers can help to put out small fires, but should not be relied on to put out fires that have already become large. Most home fires begin in the kitchen, so I recommend maintaining a larger capacity fire extinguisher there. The workshop or garage is another good location for a larger capacity extinguisher. In addition, there should be at least one larger extinguisher on every floor of your house. In the US, these larger extinguishers might be labeled 2-A:10-B:C. Smaller capacity fire extinguishers can be maintained in other rooms to ensure that you are never more than forty feet [...]

A good safe can protect your most valuable possessions and important documents from loss due to either theft or fire. Hidden Safes The most secure safe is one that a burglar can’t find.  Floor safes are the best for this.  Wall safes are almost as good, but they are so commonly used in the movies that many burglars will routinely check for them. The cheap alternative is simply to hide a normal safe by putting in the back of a closet and covering it up.  A large cardboard box can disguise most safes.  The downside is that a safe that [...]

Around 412BC, Euripides wrote “The day is for honest men, the night for thieves.” Bad guys usually do not like to be seen doing bad things and security lighting can help to ruin their nights. Where To Deploy Security Lighting Security lighting is most beneficial when used on doors, windows and pathways. It is also useful in parking areas, which provide many opportunities for attackers to hide. The same is true for garbage bins or other outdoor storage areas. Lights should be placed carefully, to avoid creating dark corners where an attacker can hide. Lighting should be soft and even [...]

Apartments are 85% more likely to be the target of burglary than single-family homes. Apartments represent unique security challenges because of the many techniques which tenants are prevented from using to enhance the security of their persons and possessions.  However, there are many which tenants can and should use to improve their security postures. Start with a Secure Building The best first step to achieving a secure apartment is to rent an apartment in a secure building.  The optimal security building should feature: A location in a low-crime neighborhood External gates to prevent unapproved vehicular or foot traffic A keyed [...]