As autumn appears on the horizon and the afternoons start turning to twilight, little gaps that weaken home security begin to get bigger. It’s the ideal time to audit and tune up your safety measures, implementing small, simple steps that can keep your place bright, comfortable and impermeable to intrusions. These practical Autumn Home Security Tips can make all the difference as the season shifts.
Run a “Dusk Audit”
This need not take any longer than about ten minutes, but it will have benefits that last you until the days begin to get longer again. Step outside as the dark begins to fall and look at your home like a visitor (or, indeed, a trick-or-treater). Can you easily see the house numbers, porch, and path? Are there dark corners where someone could hide by the gate or the garbage cans? Note things that need to be fixed, and check that any recent upgrades are fully covered by your homeowners insurance.
Also, run a seasonally-appropriate “pumpkin test”. This involves placing a pumpkin on your porch and looking at your home from the street. If you can’t see the pumpkin, your lighting needs work.
Light in layers
There is so much to be said for layers of security; they leave little room for burglars or other intruders to hide. Implement a 3-2-1 rule, where those numbers mean:
- Three motion lights at obvious points of entry: front entry, side path, and back gate.
- Two low-glow fixed lights, one on the porch and one on the driveway. These should always be on and should be recharged or have the batteries replaced regularly
- One interior lamp that is set to a smart schedule to give the impression of the home being occupied.
Many intruders are opportunistic by nature; they target homes that they believe are either unoccupied or have lax security. If you can present a challenge using smart Autumn Home Security Tips, this will be enough to put most of them off.
Parcels in your porch? Not an option
Increasingly, an intruder doesn’t need to enter your home to take things from you. With tech being what it is, parcels are often dropped at the front door or close by when delivery drivers attend a property and don’t get an answer. So do everything possible to prevent this happening:
- Specify a safe place for package drops: this can be done on shopping sites and you to name a spot where parcels can be left out of sight. A lockable delivery box with a code you communicate to the delivery drivers is a good idea.
- Angle a doorbell cam so that it is catching faces and hands so you can see when a parcel has been picked up and by whom.
- Flatten boxes and turn them inside out when putting them out for recycling. You may be very happy with your new 14-in-1 cooker, but if a burglar sees the box they may also be interested in taking it.
The shorter evenings make Fall one of the most magical seasons of the year, but that magic is also felt by potential burglars who take advantage of the shorter days. By taking some simple measures, such as following practical Autumn Home Security Tips, you can feel more secure all year round.
