Basic Home Security

What does basic home security mean to you?  If you as that question of 10 people, you’ll probably get 10 different answers. Here are some of the things they’ll throw in:

• Good strong door locks, security screens and window locks;
• Making sure you lock the doors and windows when you go out;
• Not leaving your door key under the pot plant near the front door;
• Clearing your mailbox regularly so identity thieves don’t get your credit card details;
• Having good motion detector security lighting outside your home so you can see if anyone is prowling about at night;
• Installing an alarm system that will go off if someone tries to break in while you’re at work or out for the night;
• Getting your neighbors to keep an eye on your home when you aren’t there;
• Having a big ugly noisy dog;
• Having a sign on your gate that suggests you have a big, ugly, noisy dog (even if you have only a little fluffy white one);
• Making sure you don’t leave spades, ladders and other implements outside where thieves can make use of them;
• Keeping the shrubbery trimmed so burglars don’t have privacy while climbing through your windows;
• Having secure pool fencing;
• Having lockable entrance gates that actually get closed and locked;
• Installing security cameras;
• Having working smoke detectors;

Of course, they’d all be right. All of those things are basic home security measures. You don’t have to do all of them, but the more you do the safer you’ll be.