Ensuring your home is safe and secure is vital and a lot of people think they have everything sorted. The truth is, your garage door can be a very weak link in the overall security of your home, and a lot of people don’t realise this or implement the right measures to reduce the risk posed by your garage. Whether or not your garage is attached to the rest of your home, it is important that it meets your basic security needs. If your garage is over 10 years old it, is probably time to review how safe it is, and maybe upgrade to a more modern option.
An older roller garage door can be a signal to a burglar that your home is easy to break into. Older doors are more likely to have the lock simply drilled or cut out, and if it only has one lock, then it can take as little as 10 seconds to overcome. A further weakness of some older doors is that they use locking cables, and if these are cut, the whole locking mechanism is beaten.
There are a lot of safety features on modern garage doors, and many come with the practicality benefit of being automatic. Modern garage doors now have options when it comes to locking systems cannot be drilled or cut out. The security of your garage also depends on the type of door you have. Automated garage doors tend to use the door motor to close itself until it is told to open. At AllStyle Garage Doors & Window Shutters, you can further improve your security with the B&D auto-lock for your panelift door, which essentially deadbolts your door into place when it is shut.
Three Simple Methods to Improve Security
1. Look at Your Emergency Release Lever
The emergency release lever is a backup system that allows you to switch to manual operation of the door if the automatic opener fails. Unfortunately, it can create a security risk, as a burglar can sometimes use a coat hanger to pull it down and then open the door. To minimise this risk, you can use a cable tie to lock it into place, and if you ever need to use it, you can simply cut the cable tie. Additionally, you can remove the lever altogether, however you should be aware that if the automatic system fails, you might be without an operational garage door until it gets fixed.
2. Installing Motion Sensor Lights
A very simple yet effective method of protecting your garage is adding motion sensor lights. These lights will help to detect the slightest movement and provide an extra layer security. Most burglars would prefer to move on to an easier target than go about breaking into your garage under bright lights.
3. Maintaining Your Garage Doors
To ensure that your garage doors are working perfectly, it is important to check on it once every month. Are there any weird noises? Are they closing slower than normal? These are just some of the things to keep track of, so that you can ensure the safety features are in working order. Moving parts such as the hinges, roller and spring need to be lubricated regularly as well.
Alternatively, you can approach the team at AllStyle Garage Doors & Window Shutters for assistance to keep your home garage doors secure and in ideal working condition.