Indicators of Forced Entry Into Homes

When you come home from work and find that somebody has been in your home, you panic.  What makes this type of situation even more frightening is when you see no clear indications that a break-in occurred.  If you know that an unauthorized person has been in your home, but there is no visible door or window breakage, you should look for and consider the following things.

1.  Has your door been "credit-carded"?  The scenes you see in the movies are real when it comes to this type of illegal entry.  In fact, most home door locks can be "credit-carded."  This, however, is usually only true for the knob or lever lock and not the deadbolt.  However, most contractors are not installing deadbolts correctly.  Because they are not drilling out the deadbolt bolt hole in the frame, the deadbolts are not fully locking.  This means that a talented crook can slide something between the door and the jamb and push the bolt back.  Make sure your deadbolts are being fully locked into position when the bolts enter the jamb.  The hole should be at least one inch deep.
2. Check the painted jambs and weather stripping on the outside of your doors.  Is the paint scratched off?  If so, that means somebody has been trying to pry your locks open.  If you have any doubts, and if the damage looks old, repaint the door and jamb and check from time to time to see if any paint has been broken away by a potential burglar.
3. Check your roll up garage doors for any sign of prying. These can be pried up.  Then check the inside man door that lead from the garage to the kitchen area for signs of prying.
4. If you suspect that somebody is using a key to gain entrance into your home, re-key the locks immediately.

Wooden Door Jamb Is Split

Everyday, I see door jambs that are split. If your door jamb is split, you will see a crack running up or down your door, emanating from the lock strike. This means that somebody has kicked you door in. If you own a new home, you can visually inspect your door to see if there is some unevenness in the paint or wood. This will tell if a split door jamb has been repaired. It must be noted here that, if a split door jamb has been put together using only wood glue, the jamb has lost integrity. Not that it had much to begin with anyway!

Consider asking your locksmith or handyman to install door jamb armor. Door jamb armor is a strip of painted metal that can be installed over the cracked wood in your jamb. Once this armor has been set in place, it is held there by extra-long screws which enter the jamb deep enough to sink into the stud behind the door jamb. This kind of installation not only properly repairs you door, but makes it more difficult for burglars to gain entrance into your home by kicking in the door.

Some companies sell what they call wraps that are installed under your locks and give the door more integrity. However, if your door is going to be seen by company, then I would not use wraps, because they never look good installed.

After you have your door armor installed, you can install an Exit Security Inc. Ring Bolt on the inside of the door. This device is said to hold up against 800 pounds of push force.

You can find door jamb enforcers at any local hardware store. Just go to the lock hardware section and ask the salesperson for help.

The Deadbolt On Your Door Will Not Keep You Safe

I do not know how may times I have seen residential doors easily kicked open, even when they have deadbolts. Of course, you should have deadbolts on your doors in order to keep neighbors from using their credit cards to slip your knob open; and most neighbors will stop short of kicking your door down. But do understand that, if you have a back door that is obstructed from view, then a burglar will go for that door and he will kick it in. Also remember that 1 in 5 homes will experience a home invasion.

To date, the only cost-effective device you can use to make a door kick-in attack unlikely, is A-Best Locksmith's Secure Bolt pictured above. This product is said to be tested to hold up to 800 pounds of force. Granted, you cannot leave for work from your front door and hook this Bolt on the way out. But you can have them in place on your garage and rear doors. Hopefully, your front door is visible to neighbors. When you are home, this bolt can secure every door, making you as secure as you can be from a home invasion. In the event you hear somebody trying to come through one of your doors, you will have ample time to prepare. In fact, I doubt if anybody can get past this device without spending a large amount time ripping the door frame out! With this bolt, you should consider an alarm and motion sensor activated lights above each door to your home. If you live in an apartment complex, you simply cannot afford to not have this product.

A-Best Locksmith can install this on your door for $60 each plus a service call of $50. (Murfreesboro, Nashville, Manchester, Tullahoma, Shelbyville, Mt Juliet, and Lebanon, TN.) If you would like to order this product over the phone, your cost is $29 each. Bulk rates are available for apartment complexes. Call David at 615-308-6794. Flat rate shipping of $10.95 USPS. Visa and Master Card accepted.

Anti-Wrench Collar For Commercial Front Door

No matter how you look at it, your aluminum and glass front door is a security liability; but it doesn't mean you should just sit down and accept it! In fact, there are a a number of things you can do to make this door a more secure, if not from a hardware angle, at least by appearance.

1. First, you can install physical protection on the lock cylinder. You can use a CRL Cylinder Guard, which is inserted into the door and anchored with a retainer ring behind the aluminum stile. However, this device has been known to cause interference with the Adams-Rite lock mechanism. If you opt to have this installed, make sure your locks turn with ease and that there is no grinding as you turn the key. Another guard to consider is the Keedex guard shown above. This item costs the locksmith around $7.00 and will keep a burglar from using Vice grips on your lock. In Tennessee, you may pay a locksmith around $85 to show up and install this item.
2. You can install a MAG strike protector for the narrow stile door. This device will make it harder for thieves to pry the bolt through the soft aluminum metal frame. If you have a hook bolt, a quick visual inspection will reveal this, then your door is especially vulnerable to crow bar attacks. Do know that any latch guard can be compromised with time. What you want to do, however, is make the burglar go to the next store.
3. Get an alarm and display the warning stickers. Or, just go online and get the stickers! You can also buy a stand-alone alarm unit to put on this door, like the EAX-500 by Detex. Although this device will not be monitored by an agency, if the door is breached after hours, the burglar is likely to flee.
4. Because there is no real fool-proof way to secure your aluminum glass storefront door, a good alarm must be considered, along with the lock hardware upgrades, and good lighting.

Home Invasion Alert Devices

Strobe Alarm

Here is the type of product you should consider using in your home. It is said that one in every five homes will experience a home invasion. What is a home invasion? A home invasion is not a burglary. A home invasion occurs when you are at home. I have known people who have experienced home invasions. Let us just say that you do not want to wake up in the night with somebody standing over your bed.

I like the concept of a stand-alone motion-activated alarm. Such a product is not wired into your home alarm system, which you never use anyway, and is completely self-contained and battery-operated. In the event you are sleeping, and an intruder walks by this device, he or she will be met with a 105 decibel siren. The intruder will assume the alarm is coming from the home integrated alarm and will flee. This alarm will also wake you up and enable you to get your very large, $50 group-spraying mace device or weapon. Here are a few tips on placing such an alarm.

1. Put it low enough to detect a person, but high enough to ignore pets.
2. Put it in the hallway far enough away from your bedroom so you will have more time to react.
3. Consider placing the alarm in multiple locations near entry ways.

I like the strobe motion alarm concept offered by Streetwise on Amazon.com. It comes with a remote. However, at $21, I wonder if it is too cheap; but, then again, technology is getting cheaper! Just search the web for "portable motion alarm" and you will see the available products. There are also stand-alone units that have auto-dialers as well. Remember that you get what you pay for!

Life & Property Protection Using Stand-Alone Hidden DVR Recorders

Purchasing and installing a hardwired camera system is something most people know nothing about; and, even if they did, they would find the costs of such a system a bit pricey. However, there is a way for you to protect yourself, your home, and your business without calling a professional camera installation company. In fact, you can purchase a motion-activated DVR video recording device that is completely contained in something as small as a fake smoke detector or Kleenex box! If you want to access what your camera recorded while you were away, or what it recorded when your home was being invaded, you would simply insert a flash drive into the device and download the recording to your computer.

Pictured above is an amazing hidden camera.  It looks just like an air ionizer. It sells for $499. It is available for your research at Brickhouse Security on the web.  However, there are less expensive models and types that are available. Just surf the web! But, the "ionizer" is just one example of many different ways a hidden camera can be hidden. I would, however, avoid a fake hidden camera that is installed in an item a thief would like to have, like a DVD player! Believe me when I tell you that companies make hidden cameras in DVD players. Go figure. Anyway, here are the specifications of this product as listed by Brickhouse Security:


Features:

• Records day or night
• Nightvision for when light drops recording below .5 Lux
• Nightvision records up to 20 ft. away
• Motion-activated MPEG 4 video
• SD card reader included
• Time/Date stamp
• Playback directly on unit or remove SD card and play on monitor/TV 

Every home and business should consider adding such a device to the building security program. Not only will you be able to see who is entering your home when you are gone, but you will catch thieves, cheating spouses, and housemaids looking for the painkillers! Be sure to search all the different kinds of items cameras can be hidden in!

Commercial Rear Door Emergency Exit Rules

If you have an emergency exit sign above a door, then you have an emergency exit. Besides making sure the "emergency exit" sign is well lit, and that there are no obstructions blocking egress through that door, you must also be careful to insure that the door in question can be exited in one motion. That means you cannot have a door that must be activated or unlocked twice before a person can leave. The reasons are fairly obvious. In the event of a fire or violent crime, a person must be able to hit that door running without having to stop and think about which lock to unlock first. It may seem simple at first thought; but think about it. When people are frightened by danger, their only concern is getting away from the danger.

This means you can have only one locking device on that door. However, there are a number of things you can do to better secure your emergency exit. Let's face it: a rear door with only a lever is not going to keep you secure. After 23 years of door lock servicing I can help you with some ideas. I will list some pros and cons for each solution.

1. You can keep the lever, but be sure to add a Don-Jo latch guard on the outside to keep people from prying the door open after hours.  Pro - The guard will take more effort to breach. Con - I have not seen a latch protector yet that could not be breached.  Also, people are learning how to attack the key cylinder with a drill. A skilled burglar with a drill can gain entrance to your business in less than 60 seconds.
2. Install a Security Exit Bar. Pro - I have not seen one defeated in my life. It is easy to install and burglars cannot see it. Con - It can only be legally used when the business is closed. However, use a lever with a latch guard for daytime security. This would be my choice from experience!
3. Install a Detex 230D. This device uses a deadbolt and an alarm which will alert you to employees or customers who are leaving or opening the door unauthorized. Pro - From the outside, nobody knows it is there. Con - You have to unlock it by key every time an employee needs to go to the dumpster.
4. Install a regular panic bar. I like the Von Duprin 22 series. Pro - It can be installed without outside trim so it is invulnerable to outside attack. Con - It does not have quite the holding force of a Security Exit Bar or a Detex 230D.
5. Don't forget the commercial-grade peephole!

Exit Security Bar for the Commercial Backdoor

I can remember one Murfreesboro, TN client who absolutely refused my advice regarding the security of his back door. I told him that, for under $200, he could have the best and cheapest piece of insurance he could ever imagine. All he could say to my advice was, "I cannot afford that."  Two weeks later, this man's back door was easily compromised and he lost $30,000 worth of goods in just under 4 minutes; and the theft occurred with the burglar alarm in full siren!

One customer of mine in Murfreesboro, TN has this bar. But he is also in code violation because he has two deadbolts and a door lever as well.  His business was hit by would-be burglars four nights in a row. Both deadbolts were ripped out of the door as well as the door lever. The bottom of the door was slightly flared out at the bottom. The burglars never gained entry and the bar is still in excellent condition.

In extreme environments, some of my clients in the music industry have two of these devices on each door of their storage warehouse!

Consider the Exit Security Bar for your out-swinging commercial back door. Exit Security Bar is a device that will fit the 36, 42, and 48 inch door. They also have a device for the double door 72 inch opening and a model for in-swinging doors.  All parts are steel and come in an attractive gray finish.  The bars also come with standard L bolts for regular sized door jambs.  However, if your door jamb depth exceeds 6-3/4 inches, then you will need the extra long bolts.

How easy is it to install this device?  I Install it in under 30 minutes!

• First, you need a drill, drill bits, hammer, level, and pair of Vice Grips or socket/wrench set. I install these bars using a pair of Vice Grips.
• Second, hold the appropriate bar against the door to the approximate height and mark the two bolt holes. Use a level or measure from the floor.
• Third, drill the bolts holes through to door.  Insert the elevator bolts through the holes and set them with a hammer. When drilling, wobble out the inside holes a bit for maneuverability.
• Fourth, install bar and use the nuts provided to tighten the bar.
• Fifth, install the L bolts in the appropriate second bar, but do so loosely.  Attach this bar to the bar you attached first, tighten the L bolts nuts. Install warning sticker.

There simply isn't a safer and more durable product on the market.  This product is far more secure than a deadbolt, panic bar, or lever.  If your back door has only a lever with a latch guard, you have no protection.  Most codes will not allow you to have two operating locks per emergency exit.  With the Exit Security Bar, you can keep your present door lever or panic bar. During operating hours though, the Exit Bar must be removed for safety reasons. Use this bar when the business closes for the day.