How To Increase The Security Of Your Front Door
The first thing that most people see when they walk up to a home is the front door. It is a symbolic and physical safeguard that stands to restrict the access that people have to your home. It is a mark of hospitality and security. The front door is the cornerstone of home security.
The security of your front door is not something that should be taken as a joke. If your front door is not secure enough, it compromises the entirety of your home security. There are many homeowners who believe that if the door has a lock, it is as secure as it should be. However, it is not that simple. Hopefully, this article helps that kind of homeowner make the decisions necessary to increase the security of their front door. Let’s take a look at some of the measures homeowners can employ to increase the security of their front doors.
Practice Proper Door Maintenance
We’ll start off simple and concise. One of the easiest ways to increase the security of your front door is to ensure that you are properly maintaining said door. This process plays a major role in increasing the strength of your door, and also in increasing the longevity. Before you can even begin to fathom maintaining your door, you have to make sure that you have the right type of door. It is best to use solid core doors for exterior doors, especially the front door. The reason behind this is that they are much stronger than other types of doors, and are much more resistant to be kicked in.
It might sound complicated when someone tells you to properly maintain your door, but truth is, it is a rather easy task. The process of maintaining your door simply involves paying attention to it and regularly cleaning it free of gunk and debris. Homeowners should look for signs of decay, warping, and damage. If you do happen to spot anything of this nature, make sure that you work to rectify it in a speedy manner. The easiest way to compromise the strength of your front door is to neglect its maintenance and upkeep.
Improve Your Lock
Front door locks exponentially increase the strength of any door, so it goes without saying that the strength of your door rests on the strength of your lock. It is best to use deadbolt locks for exterior doors since these provide the maximum amount of security. Also, make sure that they are ANSI Grade 1 Deadbolt locks. In addition to using a deadbolt lock, choose one that has a longer throw, as this will help keep your door even more secure. There are also some additional methods that homeowners can employ to make their locks even stronger. For instance, they can have additional security pins added to their lock cylinder, which will make it harder to pick. Also, using longer screws to secure the strike plate make it extremely difficult for burglars to kick your door in.
Install Wide-angle Peepholes
There are many burglars who take advantage of a homeowner’s kindness and naiveté to gain access to their home. One common tactic that many burglars use involves ringing the doorbell and then trying to overpower whoever answers the door. This can be avoided if homeowners install wide angle peepholes. These peepholes allow them to see whoever is at the door. Think of this as a screening process for allowing people into your home. This will drastically increase the strength of your front door if it is employed in conjunction with the methods described above. The use of a peephole gives homeowners the upper hand and helps keep them and their families safe and secure.
Use Outdoor Lighting
It is important to have proper lighting on your front door. This will make it easier to always see who is hanging around your front door, and it will also make it hard for anyone to get the jump on you. This measure might not sound like something that increases the security of your front door, but it does. Installing an outdoor light near the front door means that you will always see what is going on around that part of your home no matter the time of day. There are some burglars who prefer to do their dirty work at night and the use of an outdoor light will help prevent this. It will help homeowners have a clear view and it will also deter burglars from approaching.
Conclusion
Front door security is extremely important and it is not something that should be taken lightly. The steps listed above are meant to help you see how you can increase the security of your front door. It is important to remember that your front door is not just a symbol of hospitality, but it is also a symbol of security. As such, homeowners should make sure that they are doing everything they can to keep their front door secure.
Author Bio
Ralph Goodman is a professional writer and the resident expert on locks and security over at the Lock Blog. The Lock Blog is a great resource to learn about keys, locks and safety. They offer tips, advice and how-to’s for consumers, locksmiths, and security professionals.