If you’ve read our posts in the past, you know that we do not take a “one size fits all” approach to security. We work with business and home owners to truly create the best security plan for their own property and security needs. Furthermore, we also work to help prepare people for seasonal changes. Just as each home and business has their own security needs, every season also brings about new security challenges across the board. In this post, we share some tips for creating fall security for your home this year.
As with most seasons, autumn brings about a couple types of potential issues. Namely, the types of burglary and fire threats families face change in nature during this time of year. Therefore, we’ll address both of these challenges. First, we’ll look at some overall security tips to lower your chance of experiencing a burglary. From there, we’ll also share some alarm-related best practices. Then, we’ll move on to some fall fire security tips. These include both tips for around the home, as well as some ideas for added security equipment. Now, let’s dive in with a focus on burglary-related fall security.
Thwarting the Threat of Burglary
The coming of fall means the advent of shorter days and longer nights. From a burglar’s point of view, this increases their chances of committing a crime under the cover of darkness. In this section, we’ll help you address these concerns in order to keep your home and family safe this fall. Let’s get started with a look at some tips for making your home less attractive to burglars scoping out a home to target.
Lowering Your Chances of a Burglary Attempt
As we’ve mentioned, burglars look for ways to stay as inconspicious as possible when trying to get into a home. Unfortunately, homeowners often help them in this endeavor. We recommend checking your yard for potential “blind spots.” For example, we recommend keeping shrubbery around your home cut low enough to see over. Planting some thorn-bearing bushes can also keep intruders wary of using your plants for cover as well. Furthermore, we also encourage you to install exterior lighting that makes your yard visible to passersby. Motion-activated lighting also works in areas where you prefer non-permanent lights as well. Well-lit, well cared-for yards make it much harder for burglars to remain out of sight. In fact, it often moves them to choose a different target altogether! Next up, we’ll check out some alarm-related ideas for adding fall security this year.
Security System Best Practices
Many of our customers have security systems that we’ve installed to help lower their risk of a devastating burglary. These alarms provide a siren response upon detecting a breach. This generally scares burglars away from the scene of the crime and alerts anyone on site to the issue. Furthermore, most of our customers also have us monitor their security systems. This process involves connecting their security system to our central station. In turn, our central station contacts the premises and, if necessary, dispatches the police upon an alarm event. Traditionally, we utilize our customers’ phone lines to connect their alarms to our central station. However, for added security as the days get shorter, we recommend an update to your alarm monitoring.
Alarm.com allows you to control your alarm system remotely, adding both security and convenience.
Our preffered monitoring service involves connecting your alarm to our central station via our cellular dialers. These dialers, powered by Alarm.com, provide an incredibly secure and reliable monitoring service. For starters, they monitor your alarm through a dedicated, cell network-based connection. That means that your alarm stays monitored even during phone outages, or if burglars cut your phone lines!
Additionally, Alarm.com customers also experience interactive security monitoring. Interactive security allows you to control your security system remotely with your smart phone. Moreover, it also gives you the ability to create text notifications for alarm events. This includes both alarm activations due to a potential breach as well as other system status alerts, such as low sensor batteries and arming and disarming events. We strongly recommend an upgrade in alarm monitoring as part of your overall plan for creating fall security! Now, let’s see how you can also address life safety issues this autumn.
Adding Fall Fire Security
Of course, life safety measures remain at the top of any security plan we create. While some people think of security companies as dealing mostly with burglary-related dangers, we also have other priorities in mind. We take a twofold approach to fire-related life safety measures. Firstly, we wish to educate customers to create a proactive approach to fire security. From there, we also want to install equipment to help notify you and create the proper emergency dispatch in the case of a fire emergency. In this section, we aim to accomplish both of these goals. Let’s start by sharing some simple ways you can add fire security in your home this autumn.
“Housekeeping” Best Practices
This section of the calendar brings with it one of the most dreaded events of the year: the return of heater usage. In addition to dirving up energy costs, this event also raises fire concerns. Taking a couple simple preacuations can greatly enhance your overall fire safety during the fall and into the winter. Before turning the heat on for the first time, consider inspecting and cleaning all of the components of your heating system, including both the cleaning unit itself and all heaters throughout your home. Of course, some heating maintenance differs based on what type of heat you have. We encourage you to consult your heating unit’s manuals and call the company that installed your heating unit for tips on maintenance.
Additionally, make sure that the areas around your heaters remain clear. Drapes, clothing, and loose papers around heaters can all work to undermine any autumn fire security precautions that you may undertake this year. Simply keeping your heaters clear of any flammable objects goes a long way! In addition to providing advice for fire-related precautions, we also provide fire safety equipment. In the next section, we’ll look at some of these potentially life-saving devices.
Monitored smoke detectors, such as this one by System Sensor, create an important fire department dispatch to any fire or carbon monoxide-related emergency at your home.
Security Equipment-Related Fire Security
In addition to monitoring burglar-related alarm equipment, we can also install monitored smoke and carbon monoxide detectors. This provides you with a central station reaction and fire department dispatch upon activation of one of these devices. This can save your home during a fire and, in many cases, even safe a life. Furhermore, as we pointed out in our post on Cost-Effective Home Security, adding monitored detectors can create an insurance discount that offsets the entire cost of installing the equipment! This mix of security and cost savings make installing monitored smoke and CO-detecting equipment a popular and effective way of creating fall security. Finally, we also recommend purchasing fire extinguishers to put fires out before they turn into major catastrophes. Having equipment to detect and fight fires can greatly reduce your chances of experiencing a home and life-threatening catastrophe.
Putting it all Together and Creating Fall Security
We hope that this post helps you improve fall security in your own home this year! Additionally, we also encourage you to contact us with any questions this post raises for you. We will happily answer any security-related inquiries you may have. Furthermore, we also encourage you to take advantage of our free site survey program. We offer complimentary security audits and equipment quotes to both new and existing customers alike. While on site, we can address any security concerns you may have. Moreover, we can also address any potential security issues that we observe during our visit.
Perhaps you have a suite of security products in place and wish to act on some of these suggestions while creating fall security for this year and going forward. Or, maybe you have very little in the way of security, and want to use this important season to build a complete security plan from the ground up. Either way, we are here to help! Together, we can create a plan that keeps you, your home, and your family as safe and secure as possible!