I was a Crime Victim!
I wrote this guide and the home security reviews, to help you to prevent your family & friends, your home from exact that! As the numbers of burglaries in houses and apartments are increasing dramatically I want to help. This guide shows you what you simply can do against it!
So – You want to Feel Safe at Home again? Then I encourage you to read on….
Therefore this Home Security Guide brings you the best tips to secure your home! We will provide you with Reviews and Installation Tips of the best, smart home security products on the market!
I was a Crime Victim – Short Personal Story
Skip if you want to the next headline
I was a crime victim.
Hi everyone. My name is Hartmut (founder of this Website) and I want to share a short personal story with you. Maybe you will understand, why Home Security is one of my matters of the heart and why I collected all these tips – to keep you safe!
In December 2012, just 5 or 6 days before Christmas I was on my way back home from work – 2 hours earlier than normally. It was around 5.30 pm and already dark. I entered my home through the front door and walked into our living-room. Immediately I noticed how cold it was in our house. The Glass-Doors leading into our Garden were wide open. At first I just thought my wife or I had missed to close the doors when we were leaving this morning.
Then I turned on the Lights ….
The burglars had opened all drawers, all wardrobes, cabinets and cupboard throughout our entire house. They savagely tear them out and cluttered everything that has been in there all over the place. I was at the top floor, when I heard a cracking sound from downstairs. I grabbed a big Flashlight like a heavy club – my heart pounding like crazy, slowly walking downstairs.
Approaching our living-room again I only saw “someone” dressed in black – like a shadow – leaving our home ….
Today I thank god that we did not met – no one got hurt. But this feeling – of no more being safe in our own home – stayed for a long time.
I hope this big home security guide and all the collected tips can help all of you – to keep you and your family safe from any creepy burglar or criminal.
Read on – Lets make your Home Safe – together:
Home Security Reviews
Facts & Tips
If you wondered what the chances are that an intruder will find his way into your home, you’ll want to read on. The fact is, the United States lead the world in occurrence of burglaries and about four burglaries occur every minute; that’s one every 14 seconds.
A lot of people feel no longer safe. This can cause great psychological problems. Feeling safe at home is key for our overall well being.
– Click to Enlarge –
In today’s world you can easily feel safe and secure again by using one of the Best Home Security Systems and following some of our guidelines down below. You will find in depth Home Security Reviews about the best Security and Surveillance products on the market. From all-in-one piece security cameras to monitor and/or live-stream your home to complex Smart Home Security Systems you will find a matching device for your needs.
As always we will only review the Top-Products of each niche. You can “feel safe” choosing the right one to protect your family and home.
With modern safety technology from our home security reviews and foresighted behavior the risks can diminish. In the upcoming chapters we will give you the most important tips for an effective protection against burglary. If you just want to discover our reviews of the best Home – Security Devices you can fast forward down below.
How foresighted behavior can prevent burglary!
We will have a closer look at the vulnerabilities of homes and what you can do about it. We help you to prepare against burglaries, particularly during the holiday season.
With a well planned use of mechanical protective measure and a smart alarm system, you can get an effective protection. Having things setup right, can even help you to save money. A lot of insurance companies reward your efforts!
– Home Security Reviews –
What does “risk-aware behavior” mean?
The behavioral prevention directs the focus on the reduction of opportunities for crime, to a deterrence presence. “So it is said in a police study about the effectiveness of intrusion prevention. Simply put: if the perpetrator suspects that the house was abandoned for a long time, it is tempting for him to enter. Overflowing mailboxes, withered flowers or constantly raised or closed shutters signaling him a top opportunity.
Therefore, the motto is: Do what you can to make your house look occupied even on holiday or for a longer stay in hospital.
– Home Security Reviews –
Surrounding neighbors, friends and family.
Your helper of flesh and blood!
The easiest protection holiday makers most effectively can get is by just speaking to their relatives or neighbors. Inform them when you are on vacation and they will keep an eye for you on your home. 
You can ask them for help by simple home maintenance. They can keep watering the flowers or putting the garbage cans out. Under certain circumstances there is even a sibling or parent, which feeds as a house-sitter while you are far.
If you do not have any helper of flesh and blood, our Smart Home Security Reviews will guide you to the best electrical Butlers out there to keep your home safe!
You will find home security solutions for monitoring your home with products from the Security Cameras Reviews to complete Home Security Systems reviews. You even will discover how simple switches & sensors like in our Samsung SmartThings Review can stop your worrying while you are on holiday.
Turn on and off certain lights in your home which you can easily automate with Systems like recommended in our Philips Hue Lighting Review and let your system move the blinds.
Another great, easy and cheap to install tip is to use special lights that mimic the flicker of a TV. We recommend the “FakeTV FTV-10 Burglar Deterrent“.
Every burglar who might watch your neighborhood will think you are at home and – KEEP AWAY!
The fact that the apartment often is illuminated always at the same time, does not necessarily mean that burglars will know that you are away and use their opportunity. “That would presuppose that the burglar observed the object for several days. This is, at least for the “burglar by opportunity”, too much effort,” says Mr. Schmidt a German security expert.
Home Security Reviews – Tips
What you can do to secure your Home?
– Arrangements before Your Departure –
Before leaving you home there are a few easy steps to follow.
- Use programmed light switches like in our SmartThings Review or mentioned in our Guide to the Belkin WeMo Series all through the house. Let them turn on and off in a way that mimics your ordinary behavior. Search for switches that have battery reinforcement, so the switch/system doesn’t stop if there is a power cut. Utilizing lights and switches that have more than one on-off cycle can make the illusion much more natural. You find a good app that gives you these schedule opportunities from SmartThingsor even you can take a look at our Philips Hue Lighting Review.
- The same sort of switches you use on lights can likewise be utilized to turn radios or TVs on and off. Sound and Lights together are a strong barrier against burglary.
- Consider utilizing programmed curtains and electric blinds. Wraps that are constantly shut or constantly open propose nobody is home.
- Robbers once in a while call to check whether anybody’s home before a break-in. So you can attach a re-direct to your phone or a friend.
- Organize someone to have your garden cut or snow expelled from your strolls in case you will be away for a long period of time.
- Turn the volume of your telephone’s ringer down so somebody outside can’t hear them ring.
- Rather than ceasing your mail and daily paper, request that a neighbor picks them up and hold them for you. Seeing your post box is emptied regularly makes a criminal think somebody is at home.
- Continuously stop your auto in the carport with the carport entryway shut when you are there. That way somebody looking for patterns won’t know your auto isn’t there when you’re away.
- In the light of a legitimate concern for home security, never leave notes on the entryway. They simply say to a criminal, “Enter.”
- Request that a neighbor looks after your waste cans now and again and to put it out and bring it back on garbage day.
Home Security Reviews – Tips
Make It as hard & difficult as possible to Break In
The second thing criminals search for is simple access. The harder it is for a robber to get in, the more improbable you are to return to a burglarized home.
- Never leave entryways or windows opened, and never conceal a key to your home outside where it can be effortlessly found. Like you can find in the Smart Door Locks section, modern locks give you the possibility to enter key-less. You even can grant someone else access if you want. This makes – leaving a key outside – complete obsolete.
- Consider utilizing locks that have an interior stab which is saw resistant. This makes it troublesome (nearly impossible) for a hoodlum to saw through the jolt with a hacksaw. Additionally, some locks accompany techniques, hostile to bore. Utilizing solidified steel chips inside the lock that will devastate a boring apparatus on the off chance that a thief tries to penetrate through the lock.
- Use strong core or metal entryways that are secured with great quality deadbolt locks. Search for or ask the locksmith for ANSI grade 1 door locks. Deadbolt locks ought to have an horizontal rush no less than 1 inch long. With shorter screws, a robber can still effortlessly break in by utilizing apparatuses to spread the door jamb and open the entryway.
- A metal strike plate is connected to the door frame to hold the jolt or lock set up. The most well-known path for a hoodlum to constrain a doorway open is to kick it open by kicking at the plate. You can make this harder by utilizing a substantial four-screw high security strike plate. The wood screws used to connect it ought to be long enough to secure the plate. That way, they will fix the pillar and be solid secured in the door jamb.
- Any window or glass board in the main entry area that is near to the lock ought to be strengthened with an imperceptible window security film. Thiefs can’t break the glass and reach through to open the entryway. You should take an at least 8 Mil film to really get a benefit in safety. For more easy application of your window security film, you can buy a Toolkit like the Gila RTK500 Window Film Application Tool Kit. I already attached these films to different windows and this really makes it much more easy.
- Attach your windows to a home security alert and install locks that work from within your home. A good tested home security system is the one from Abode. You find the Review down below!
- Treat an entryway between your carport and the house like an outside entryway and utilize the same sort of locks or smart Locks like you find in our How Smart Door Locks improve your Life – Review that you use on the front of your home.
- Another home security measure is to attach windows locks that keep them from being opened more than 6 inches. In the event that you do, however, everybody in the home needs to know how to expel the stops to give free exit in case of an emergency like fire.
- Never leave a ladder that can be utilized to get to the rooftop or a second floor window outside or even in an open shed.
- Utilize a metal or wooden pole in the track of the window to keep them from sliding open.
Home Security Reviews – Tips
Install a Home Security Alarm System
You will find all the Reviews down below
Of course we know that home security cautions can be no surety that robbers won’t be able to enter your home. In any case you can make it more troublesome by expanding the danger that the robber will be seen and catched by the police or the home owner. In most cases, when it is obvious that it will be hard to break into your home, the thief may search for a simpler target.
Of course if you want the best possible safety you can start a contract with one of the big home security companies.
In a lot of cases, utilizing Smart Home Security devices as you find them down below in our Home Security Reviews Section, can be a perfect base of safety and often can save you tons of money as you do not have to pay any monthly Fees. Our Review of the Abode Home Security System is a good example. You do not have to pay monthly as the system itself gives you a good solution for home safety. Nevertheless if you want someone else to actively keep an eye on your home safety – you can make a contract with a security company as well. They even offer contracts for only certain periods of time. So if you want to travel the world for a few month – do it with peace of mind!
- First step if you want, pick a home security system from our reviews, that utilizes sensors for movement detection and additionally secure all windows and entryways that could give access.
- A second step can be to likewise consider utilizing glass-break sensors that set the caution at the sound of a window or glass door being broken.
- Keep in mind to never post your pass code alongside or on the home security caution key cushion.
- Additional make sure to utilize the security yard signs and window decals that say your home is ensured by a home security framework.
- As a last result, check regularly if the sign is still good visible. Cut down bushes that have grown in sight or fix it if pets or the kids of the neighborhood have hauled it out of the ground.
Home Security Reviews – Tips
Don’t Make It Easy to Hide
What do you think is the main goal of a burglar? Burglars simply want to find a house where they find it less risky to be seen. So there are easy ways to make exact that – harder.
Burglars can hide behind big trees or bushes. Trim back or even cut any growth beside entryways or windows. On the off chance that you are going to utilize plants beside the house, you ought to plant prickly plants, for example, holly or roses which make it less “comfortable” to hide behind.
Additional you can use outside security lighting to enlighten each entrance. Light up the main passage to your door, using an installation with two bulbs or led’s or with two separate devices on the small chance that one light wears out.
Use outside lighting with movement detection for the yard, carport and other outside areas leading to your home. As soon as someone approaches your home your lights will turn on. This will make it much harder for criminals to break into your home. Neighbors will be more aware of strangers then with lights turn on and off only by movement. As you can see this simple method will help you to feel more safe at home.
With the Sunforce 82080 80-LED Solar Motion Light you find a very powerful outdoor light with motion sensor which enlightens a very huge area.
The Swiftly Done Bright Solar Power Outdoor LED Light is a perfect solution near your doors as it brightens a small area in front of your door. The motion sensor works really well as a friend of us told us who tried to sneak up to his own front door without triggering the light – no chance.
After this you might think you need a more condensed spot light which gives you a good amount of light to a smaller area (like your parking car). You can take a look at the Mr Beams MB390 a spot with over 300-Lumen which is weatherproof and can be attached wireless as it can be powered with batteries. You can find this spotlight as a 1-LED design (NOT recommended), a 2-LED design like mentioned above with 300-Lumen and even a 4-LED design with about 600 Lumen.
Keep in mind the back and side of your home offer some covering for a criminal who is attempting to sneak around. So give careful consideration to securing all doorways.
Home Security Reviews – Tips
Get to Know Your Neighbors
The best home security will always be neighbors who pay special attention to each others homes. With this in mind, make it a point to meet your neighbors regular. Help each other by watching out for strange things while you’re away.
Another point is that your neighborhood does not necessarily need an area watch program. Of course, if there already is one, you can inform them when you are away.
Home Security Reviews
– CONCLUSION –
If you follow all our Home Security Tips you will find your home a safer place immediately.
Home Security Reviews in order of release:
- Best Home Security System 2016? Review
- How Smart Door Locks Improve your Life!
Article + Reviews - Sensors & Switches; for monitoring and notification
– SmartThings Review
– Belkin WeMo Series Review - Top 3 Security Cameras for Your Home
– Arlo Wireless Home Security Camera Review
– Netatmo Home Security Camera Review
– Canary Security Camera System Review - Smart Alarms – Scare them Away!
(arrived; release 18th of May)
Upgrading your home or house can be quite expensive. But when you read the numbers of increasing crimes and burglary – they are an investment in a safer future.
As a conclusion we want to give you a last tip on our home security reviews. For those who can not lift everything financially at once. According to the individual risk analysis, find a start and protect the weakest area of your home. A good starting point are Smart Door Locks and Security Camera Solutions. If you are looking for an more advanced solution you can check our actual recommended Best Home Security Kit. And the best – most of our tips are 100% free!
All the best – we hope you always feel and are safe at home.
Home Security Reviews
Please share your experience and opinion on home security.
We love to exchange!