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Protecting the Homestead
June 10, 2009 | Permalink
Most every road warrior has experienced that momentary wonder of whether the coffee pot was turned off or the front door locked. Some may become anxious when they first open the front door after a long trip. Fox News recently ran a great article on home security with tips every road warrior should follow.
One important point made in the article involves the growing popularity of social networking sites on the Internet. These far flung “friends” may be fun to share recipes with, but it isn’t a good idea to be bragging about an upcoming vacation. In some cases, you may as well hang out an “I’m gone, rob me” sign on the front porch. This, of course, does not apply to good friends and neighbors, especially those who can keep watch over your house.
In addition, you are advised to not let technology do you in; the GPS in your car with your home address combined with your automatic garage door opener is a recipe for disaster. A clever car thief can steal your car at the airport, use the GPS to find your house, open the garage and load up your stuff in your car.
To avoid the above scenario, the article advises you to not program your address into the “home” field in your GPS. If you absolutely must have something to gage the distance to home, pick the address of a store at least two miles from the house. Should a thief find your home, don’t let them use your automatic door opener. The simplest way to protect against this is to unplug the opener. Most models remain locked even without power.
With the advent of digital recording, it has become easier to use cameras to both record and transmit pictures of your home and property. Whether you use hidden interior cameras, so called nanny cams, or install protected cameras in plain sight, electronic security can be a very good idea.
Some innovative homeowners, like one recently reported on by the BBC, have even used webcams to actually catch the thieves in the act. Just imagine sitting in your comfortable Extended Stay Hotels room and logging on to check up on your belongings. Now that’s home security.
Whatever methods you choose, take some time before your next trip to make arrangements to keep your home and property safe and secure. As a wise fellow once said, safety is never an accident.
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