Home security

Scuzi

Scuzi

Scuzi

Man of Honour
Joined
18 Oct 2002
Posts
20,584
Location
UK
I'm not satisfied with the security arrangements at my house so I'm exploring the various options to find which will give me the best bang for buck. We have moved into a new build property and with so many tradesmen on site, all a burglar would have to do would be to don a hi-viz vest and he wouldn't look out of place jimmying a lock or a window.

Call me paranoid but having had someone try to break into our house before was a horrible experience which we don't want to go through again.

First of all I would like to replace the locks. Our keys were handed out so many times before we moved in and I'm not entirely comfortable with that. Are there any particular brands which excel for a reasonable price?

I have made some enquiries about intruder alarms. ADT were off the cards immediately as I've heard so many horror stories. I have 3 companies coming out to survey and provide quotes, CIA, CSS and AMCO. AMCO seem to offer the best package for the price with their police response monitored system. The others are bells only systems and require much more expensive installations to get police response. Are there any particular questions I should ask when they come to survey? Any good/bad experiences with the above mentioned companies?

The other option I was considering instead of an intruder alarm was to get a Synology NAS and connect some IP surveillance cameras with motion detection. The only downside to this is the possibility of not knowing anything is going on whilst unable to check emails.

Am I on the right tracks or can I get something just as or more effective for better value? Deterrence is always going to be at the top of my priorities but I'd like a solution with something in place should a thief not be deterred.
 
In order of importance I'd always place physical security (locks, decent windows etc.) above a monitored alarm, with CCTV a distant last.

In terms of locks there's a lot of people here who like the ABS Secure locks. You can get a suited key so your front/back/patio doors all have the same key as well.

The lock is only as strong as your doors are though, you can have the best locks in the world but if someone can get a crowbar onto the hinges of a patio door then it doesn't matter, which is where the monitored alarm comes in.

You will also want to look at some security lighting which is quite an effective deterrent.
 
Be interested to hear how you get on Scuzi, i've been told AMCO are a much better alternative than ADT and am pondering using them.

As a general question to anyone who knows, wired or wireless system? Wireless seems to solve the installation problems around the house but is it vulnerable to being "jammed" in some way?
 
Word about euro cylinders. This is going to sound strange, but, true story. Instead of spending money on Yale or other popular in UK brands go to ebay and find something contiental from foreign sellers. Gerda, Abus, DOM Sicherheitstechnik, ISEO, Wilka etc. Make sure it's vertical dimple - like ISEO R7, R50 or alternatively something completely weird like DOM Diamant. It will be anti snap, have anti drill construction, bumper key proof by design and have central wards in keyway so picking would require specific multipoint lever custom made for that particular series to even start. Even if in the future someone makes bumper key blanks that work the chances of burglar in UK having blank key to make a bumper key in his arsenal is very, very slim. DOM Diamant will set you back about £200, but ISEO R7's are only about £35.
 
Last edited:
As per the end of Caged's post deterring them in the first palce is as effective as making it tougher to actually get in. Don't leave side gates unlocked and/or don't make it easy for them to get down the side of the house and out of sight, keep door ways illuminated or security lit, etc. they want to be able to get in and out quickly and easily and as unobserved as possible.
 
I've been looking into the locks and the DOM Diamant looks awesome but the price is just crazy. I think I'm going to go for the ABS secure locks as they seem to offer a good balance and the one key for all doors is quite a nice feature.

I've ordered some rack bolts for the personnel door on the garage and a couple of locks, one for each side of the up-and-over garage door. I was thinking about a garage defender but reviews don't seem to be great as apparently they can be prized out of the ground and they just seem to shout "there's expensive stuff in here!" Short of getting a more secure roller shutter door on the garage, is there anything else I could do to make the current door more secure?

While all that is on the way I'm going to drill some holes in the floor for a ground anchor. I know it would be better if it was concreted in but I'm guessing that bolts will be good enough to slow any potential thief down?

Thanks for the advice!
 
I read somewhere the most effective deterrent is lighting. Sounds simple but just keeping the outside areas lit up should help a lot.
 
Ground anchors are well worth having for bikes, some insurance companies only cover your bike if it is locked to something even in a locked garage. I have fitted 6 at various places I have lived and never lost a bike. Get/borrow an SDS drill if you are fitting one yourself as it takes an age to drill into a concrete floor otherwise! I had a garage door defender at a previous house, it certainly put off opportunist thieves as they made 3 attempts to steal stuff out of my garage that stopped after I fitted one.

Security lighting is also worth having, I have 2x 4w lights on my drive on a dusk til dawn sensor and a floodlight pir at the back. Annoyingly as it's a bungalow the pir is not out of reach so was just angled away when we were broken into.

The thing with security is that you can never make your house completely secure, it's all about making it difficult, not worth there while and just putting them off even trying in the first place.

Dave
 
Nightglow said:
I have one of these in my workshop, covers the doorway & window.
Can use batteries or a 6v adaptor, has a 60° scanning area.
http://www.eightriverssecurity.co.uk/mini_pir_alarm_with_remote_control.html
Click to expand...
That looks like it could be a decent solution if the alarm system is going to be difficult to hook up to the garage. Can you get something similar with WiFi connectivity?


R4z0r said:
I read somewhere the most effective deterrent is lighting. Sounds simple but just keeping the outside areas lit up should help a lot.
Click to expand...
Lighting is covered. Front and rear of the house have PIR lights and at the side of the house, the gate and garage door are covered by PIR LED light. It's battery powered and provides a good flood but I might upgrade it.


divuk83 said:
Ground anchors are well worth having for bikes, some insurance companies only cover your bike if it is locked to something even in a locked garage. I have fitted 6 at various places I have lived and never lost a bike. Get/borrow an SDS drill if you are fitting one yourself as it takes an age to drill into a concrete floor otherwise! I had a garage door defender at a previous house, it certainly put off opportunist thieves as they made 3 attempts to steal stuff out of my garage that stopped after I fitted one.

Security lighting is also worth having, I have 2x 4w lights on my drive on a dusk til dawn sensor and a floodlight pir at the back. Annoyingly as it's a bungalow the pir is not out of reach so was just angled away when we were broken into.

The thing with security is that you can never make your house completely secure, it's all about making it difficult, not worth there while and just putting them off even trying in the first place.

Dave
Click to expand...

Yeah, I agree. The way I see it is unless they are specifically targeting my car or motorbike, there will be plenty of other houses nearby with little or no additional security for them to move on to. If they're targeting our house specifically, I want to make it as difficult as possible for them. Although, saying that, if some nutter broke in and threatened me or my family, I'd just hand them the keys and let them go on their way.
 
I have a five point mortice lock on my new build front door. Definitely replacing the locks on the PVC patio doors but I'm slightly worried that the front door mortice lock uses a cylinder key system. Surely that means it's open to the same attacks as the standard cylinder locks?

Wonder if I can replace it with an ABS lock like I am with the PVC doors. Seems to be a lot easier to replace the locks on the PVC doors though...

Image of mine can be see here under cylinder mortice lock:
http://www.abbeylocks.co.uk/what-is-a-mortice-lock-also-spelt-mortise-lock/
 
Last edited:
Seeing as you are have tried CIA, & CSS, I would assume you are in the counties of Hampshire/Wiltshire?
If so try Wessex Fire & Security too and see what you get.
 
Burglars pick certain houses for a reason, Know these reasons & they won't pick yours.
 
Kemik said:
I have a five point mortice lock on my new build front door. Definitely replacing the locks on the PVC patio doors but I'm slightly worried that the front door mortice lock uses a cylinder key system. Surely that means it's open to the same attacks as the standard cylinder locks?

Wonder if I can replace it with an ABS lock like I am with the PVC doors. Seems to be a lot easier to replace the locks on the PVC doors though...
Click to expand...

Have a look at a 'Euro cylinder mortice lock', there are several lock case widths, but 65mm & 77mm seem to be most common, might be a straight replacement I think, would need to check this though.

You then use a ABS cylinder, which is keyed a like.

http://www.barnsleylockandsafe.co.u...extras-from-the-UK's-No-1-ABS-Elite-Stockists
 
Last edited:
What good are decent locks on these plaggy doors when you can jusy kick the bottom panel out ? if people knew how insecure there houses were they wouldn't sleep at night.
Euro locks recommendations are sound though but they need to be fitted to a proper door not the **** they fit as standard over here.
 
If someone really wants to break into your house they will, the best thing you can do is make it as difficult as possible for them. I'd phone the local police office. They should have a community safety officer who can come out to carry out a home survey and will offer advice on locks and placement of lights etc. Doesn't cost anything. They'll usually have leaflets and guidance as well.
 
4T5 said:
What good are decent locks on these plaggy doors when you can jusy kick the bottom panel out ? if people knew how insecure there houses were they wouldn't sleep at night.
Euro locks recommendations are sound though but they need to be fitted to a proper door not the **** they fit as standard over here.
Click to expand...

I mentioned about plaggy doors being to easy to pop out the middle panel in the other ABS lock thread. But burglars don't want to make a noise when breaking in.

I watched a video on YouTube by some expensive window company showing how it took 6 minutes for someone to break into a cheap PVC window. They were using crow bars, hammers and all sorts. I stopped watching before the end as no burglar is going to want to make that much noise getting in.
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Back
Top Bottom