Approaches to home security for parents with young children fall into two main categories. The first are those that provide a peace-of-mind feeling, and the second are those that reduce the risk of possible illegal entry.
Maintain Garden
The first step to making your home secure for your growing family is hands-on and completely free: keep all bushes and trees near your house trimmed. Overgrown trees and bushes create one of the most common home security problems. Overgrowth can prevent streetlights from illuminating your home, obstruct a clear view of the property by patrolling police cars, provide cover for intruders and block neighbors’ line of sight. It also can cover a house number, which will slow service from emergency vehicles should the need arise. Easy fix: trim back the trees and bushes so the property is entirely visible from the street, and no windows, porches or doors are concealed.
Use Lights
The second step parents should take to make their home more secure is to shed light on dark areas of the property. A light on the back door, driveway leading to the garage, back and upstairs windows, and any other dark spots increases a homeowner’s visibility of the property. It also signals to an intruder that “the neighbors can see me, I’d better go.”
Install Locks
The third home security tip for parents of young children is to make sure sturdy doors and locks are installed throughout your house. A high-quality metal lock and strike plate, a 1-inch deadbolt, 3-inch screws and even re-keying the lock between owners are important features of a secure door. The door itself should be solid, with no glass or hollow core. For visibility, a peephole can be fitted, and you can install glass only on the side opposite the handle and lock so that people can’t break the glass, reach in and unlock your deadbolts.
Install a Home Security System
Finally, for homeowners who prefer a more high-tech approach, a home security system, complete with detectors and alarms, can provide round-the-clock monitoring for your home and your young children. You can hire Security Guard for better security purposes.
A basic system includes sensors on the perimeter doors and any doors to an attached garage as well as interior motion detectors and 24-hour monitoring. According to Vivint, when an alarm is sounded if the homeowner can’t be reached for an “all clear,” the police are notified.
After a walk-through, start-up costs include installation and hardware. Monitoring charges are additional. Additions to the basic system can include window sensors that activate the alarm if a window is forced open as well as glass-break detectors.
