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Home Security Checklist
This checklist is designed to assist you in securing your home. The information on this form is for your personal use only and should not be shared with anyone else. Please check each item on the list and make any necessary changes to your home.
You should be able to identify weak-spots
around your home and vulnerable entry areas. Remember, the burglar only needs one weak spot to gain entry. Reducing your risk is up to you! If you answer no to any of these questions, you have a problem to correct.
Another resource to consider is harnessing smart technology and automation to further protect your home.
- Is there a wide-angle viewer (180 degrees) on the main entrance?
- Replace door chains with a wide-angle viewer.
- Are all exterior doors (including the garage) strong enough to withstand excessive force?
- Use solid core doors.
- Are exterior doors secured with deadbolt locks that have a minimum one-inch throw through the doorjamb into a wall stud?
- If hinge pins are outside, are they pinned to prevent removal?
- Are locks that can be opened from inside at least 40 inches from any glass?
- Are sliding glass doors and windows secure against forcing the locks or lifting doors out of their frames?
- Are garage doors secured? (Overhead and side doors leading into garage.)
- Is the strike plate fastened to doorjamb with 2 to 3-inch screws?
- Are double-hung windows secured with pins or extra locks?
- Do metal windows have auxiliary locks?
- Have you secured all windows with sticks or
charlie-bars?
- Do curtains, drapes or blinds fully cover windows?
- Are panes in louvered windows well fastened to metal retainers?
- Are exterior lights on at dusk and replaced promptly if burned out?
- Are trees and shrubs trimmed from your doors and windows?
- Is your residence number visible from the street?
- Are all entrances (doors and windows) to your home well lit at night?
- Are all bicycles, mowers, and ladders kept inside in a secured location?
- Do property fences offer concealment opportunities for intruders?
- Have you engraved your property and put up Operation Identification stickers?
- Do you set light and radio timers?
- Do you keep a list of all valuable property, credit cards, and serial numbers in a safe place away from the home?
- If you have a monitored alarm system, do all family members or responsible people know the proper codes to arm or disarm the system?