Simple home security tips: Safely behind lock and key?

When thinking about home security, it’s easy to get caught up in tunnel vision and get stuck worrying about the hard stuff. You know, like alarm systems, guns, and “killer kung-fu” self-defense moves. While those aspects can certainly be important, they should never come at the cost of overlooking the basics. For that reason, we’re going to take a look at one of the simplest home security tips out there: door locks and keys.

Because, after all, any other strategy is pretty useless if you literally leave the door open for criminals due to an easily avoidable mistake.

Safely behind lock and key?

Managing your home locks is obviously of paramount importance to home security. While a burglar can certainly enter your home through a window or even straight through the wall, why bother if you’ve been “friendly” enough to leave the door unlocked?

So the first rule of thumb is to always keep the door closed. Even if you’re just going around the corner to pick up some groceries or take the dog for a quick walk, both scenarios could provide enough opportunity for someone to quickly sneak in and steal anything from the kitchen radio even his priceless painting. Rembrandt.

Also, if you’re home alone and out pottering in the backyard or working in the basement or attic, naturally you should keep the doors closed. You may not even notice someone coming through the front door.

In the event that you lose a key to your home, it’s probably best to change the lock entirely, as you never know who might find your lost key. Also, whenever you move to a new house, it is good practice to replace all the locks. Not necessarily because the previous owners are not trustworthy, but THEY, in turn, have knowingly or unknowingly misplaced some keys. Or you lent them to someone, a cleaning service or a babysitter, for example, and forgot.

Finally, you shouldn’t hide a spare key under the doormat, in a planter by the entryway, or in some equally obvious place. You’d be surprised how many people still do this.

If it is absolutely necessary to hide a spare key, it really should be in a place where someone would never think to look. A simple alternative is to pack it up and bury it in the ground, in a place where only you will find it. However, if you lock yourself up often, it may not be the most practical alternative, especially if you also forgot where you left your shovel.

These simple home safety tips may seem basic to you, and they are, but they are worth remembering on a regular basis. Once you have all the basics in place, more advanced security measures will make a lot more sense too.