The U.K. Home & Business Security Advisor |
PART THREE - THE SHELL OF YOUR HOME
This section is very important for your home security and crime prevention and probably represents an area of expense. Please don't think or home security as a financial liabilty...It is an investment that could pay high dividends
| 1. Examine the condition of your front door and the door frame. If
they are rotten, don't repair them....replace them!
Fit a deadlocking rim latch or a 5 lever mortise lock. Only buy products that display the British Standards kite mark. This will ensure that it has been security tested and fully complies with BS3621. 2. Back doors are a common point of entry. Try this test....Shut the door and from the outside, push hard at the top and bottom.....see what happens? The door flexes. That flexibility is used by burglars to get the leverage required to force open the door. You can prevent this by fitting a mortise lock as above, and supplementing it with key operated mortise bolts; one up into the header and one down into the threshold. Don't rely on ordinary door bolts. They are only as strong as the screws that hold them on.
4. Patio doors are especially vulnerable. The locks supplied are often woefully inadequate. Fit an additional patio door lock. Here's another test for you to try.....Open the door and stand astride the runner. Hold the door handles and lift....If the door can be raised off its runner then you must fit an anti-lift device. This could be a purpose-made device or as simple as a block of wood fitted into the upper channel. [If you linked here from the window locks section, CLICK to return] 5. French doors will benefit from a 5 lever mortise lock and key operated bolts. These should be fitted to both doors. Comprehensive details of window and door locks can be found in the section "Locks etc"
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