Avoid Burglary: Reinforce Your Doors

Avoid Burglary: Reinforce Your Doors

Sometimes, TV talk shows have a panel of guests made up of reformed burglars and thieves who are tasked with informing viewers about how they can prevent burglaries. Guests talk about their crooked pasts and how they entered the homes they burglarized.

Most say they entered through an open window or unlocked door. Some may claim they picked locks. However, picking a lock is not as easy as reformed burglars may make it seem. Instead, the majority of homes are entered by force. Burglars will break, pry, jimmy, kick, or cut open doors and windows to gain access to a home.

Since the majority of illegal entries are by force rather than finesse, homeowners should examine the construction of doors, windows, and their frames of their homes. A sturdy, solid door jamb or window frame can help prevent a forced break-in.

Choose Sturdy Materials

Solid wooden doors without decorative panels or steel and steel-clad doors offer the best protection against forced break-ins. Likewise, door frames constructed of steel or solid wood should be installed securely to the walls or wall studs. Lastly, the door and door frame should fit together snugly. If a homeowner is able to insert a screwdriver between a door and its frame and wiggle the screwdriver more than a quarter-inch, the door needs to be reinforced.

If reinforcing a door’s frame is impractical, use a latch guard to reinforce the area around the latch of the lock. The latch guard will make it nearly impossible for a thief to spread the door and frame apart enough to “pop the lock”.

Additionally, a door’s hinges should be protected to make it difficult to pry the door open from its hinges. Homeowners can use hinge guards or hinges that do not have a removable pin to protect the hinged sides of their doors. Hinges should be on the interior of the building and not on the exterior where thieves can access them.

Don’t Forget the Windows

Windows are more vulnerable to attack than doors. Secure all windows with security screens or decorative grills, especially if the windows are not visible from the street or are not well-lit.

Once you have determined that your doors, windows, and their frames are as secure as possible, choose the best locks you can afford for your doors. Pop-A-Lock Jacksonville can install the lock that best fits your needs and help you upgrade the security of your doors and windows. To get started, give us a call at 904-246-4590.