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How To Stop a Burglar While You're Gone
The typical lock in most homes will
not provide protection against break-ins. A professional burglar
can usually enter your manufactured home with no more than
a plastic credit card or a thin screwdriver. Give your doors
the best resistance to forced entry by installing dead bolt
locks and a reinforcing strike plate with 3-inch screws. If
you secure your doors with double-keyed dead bolt locks, make
sure you have ready access to the key from inside if an emergency
demands you exit quickly.
Arrange to have newspapers, magazines,
mail and other regular deliveries stopped. Ask a neighbor
to pick up any flyers that are thrown on your drive or lawn.
Old newspapers and overflowing mail are a clear indication
that you're not home. Also make arrangements to have your
lawn mowed. Ask a neighbor or hire a landscape service to
assure it will be done regularly.
Buy and use a few inexpensive electronic
timers. Don't set the timers so all the lights are turned
on or off at one time. Or, use random access timers that automatically
change the time your lights go on and off each evening. Burglars
watch for unusual patterns, such as total darkness in your
home. Variations in lighting patterns look more natural to
an outside observer.
Give your park manager the dates when
you'll be gone, phone numbers where you can be reached, and
your trip itinerary. Ask your immediate neighbors to contact
the police if they spot unusual activity around your home.
Don't leave a message that you're on vacation on your answering
machine message. Just say you can't answer their call right
then, but suggest leaving a message. Many machines can be
set up so you can retrieve messages even when you're away
from home. Answering machines that don't give away your plans
are a good idea, since a phone ringing on and on can also
be a tip to burglars that no one's home.
Store small valuables such as silverware
or jewelry in a safe deposit box. Hide TVs, stereo components,
computers, VCRs, or other large valuables in an inconspicuous
closet. The idea is to keep expensive items out of view from
the street or yard.
Protect sliding glass windows or doors
with anti-jimmy bars that can be laid in slider tracks to
prevent them from being opened. You can also install a second
lock on the sliding panel of the door. Pin door hinges on
exterior doors so they can't be removed, even with the hinge
posts out. Also, make sure you protect storage sheds with
a heavy-duty lock. Locks with steel-reinforced shanks are
more difficult to break than other types. If you have a door
with glass panes, install grille work or take other measures
to prevent a thief from breaking the glass, reaching in and
opening the door from the inside.
In addition, don't broadcast your vacation
plans. A recent ten-year study of home burglaries by the U.S.
Justice Department discovered that a startling 42 percent
of apprehended burglars were known by the victim. The fewer
people you tell about your being away, the safer your home
will be.
Visit our pages on home security devices and keeping safe at home for more information.
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