Thursday, January 10, 2013

Keeping Your House Safe during Your Vacation


The trouble with common knowledge is that the bad guys know it as well. We all know that when we pack up and get ready to leave on vacation we are told to stop the newspaper delivery, ask the postmen to hold the mail, make sure the house is locked tight and leave a light burning. These are great suggestions but they can stand a dusting off.

There is no problem with stopping newspaper delivery, even a burglar doesn't know if your simply cancelled your subscription or not, not so with the mail. Everyone gets mail, even though most of it goes to junk, so if you stop mail delivery it's a giveaway to a determined thief. It’s far better to have your neighbor collect it, take it in the front door and then leave your house by the back door.

If you just leave a light on 24 hours a day while you are away it looks very unnatural. There are simple timers that can be programmed to turn the light off during the day and on at night. For a few extra dollars you can get a timer that can be programmed to turn the light on and off several times making it appear that someone is home. The same timer can be used to turn the TV or radio on and off which makes it look even more occupied.

If you have yet to get a Protect America home security system this may be the time to consider the installation. Plan well ahead if you are going to have the installation because even the best home alarm company in the country cannot make miracles happen. You may wish to interview several alarm companies without pressure, and make sure that the system you get is monitored. An audible alarm is good but you are relying on a neighbor to call the authorities, not so if the system is monitored.

When and if you do install an alarm system, make sure you let the alarm company know you are going away, give them the dates of your vacation. When you read a Protect America review you will often see comments alluding to the fact that the companies tend to pay more attention to your home if they know in advance that you are away.

Over and above the basics and an alarm system, nothing beats all of them combined.

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