Garage Door Security Weaknesses
Today we’re going to talk about four weaknesses inherent to garage doors. By knowing these weaknesses, you can tailor your security to circumvent them and derail a burglar’s attempts to exploit them as a means of entry to your home. Since many garages are now attached to the house, this is a serious security matter.
Garages have several security weaknesses that can make it easy for a burglar to circumvent security measures, either by going through the garage door or something else. Garage break-ins are a severe security breach since so many garages are attached to the house.
Garage windows
Newer garage door windows have durable, but not unbreakable glass. It becomes like a carnival game, breaching the garage door by way of the windows--just not by crawling through them.
Instead, thieves will use a wire coat hanger or other objects for fishing for and hooking the emergency release handle. Once they practice a bit, a burglar can become quite adept at it--after all, that’s their job. But to thwart this, the savvy homeowner can put a zip tie through the lever hole. It will still work as an emergency release, but the fishing game won’t work.
The bigger windows that used to be standard for garages are easy to break and crawl through the opening. If your garage is one that still has the big window, consider looking online for a tutorial on how to put metal bars across the windows.
Small or large, curtains or other items that will impair a thief from peeking in your windows are a must. If he’s going to try to see if it’s worthwhile to rob you, make him work for it. Chances are he will seek more accessible homes.
The connecting door
Homeowners almost always leave the door between the house and garage unlocked to make getting into the house easier once they get home. “After all,” they think, “I’ve closed my garage door! Isn’t that enough?” Well, no. It isn’t. They feel the garage is safe, and therefore the house is secure enough that they don’t need to go through a double-lock situation to get into their home. Except--it’s not. The door from the garage to the house needs a deadbolt or needs to be on the security system, especially if the thief found a means of gaining entrance to the garage. Once you leave for work, if he’s in the garage, he has all day, and all the tools in your garage, to help him gain entry through the garage-to-house door. This work is all done in the privacy of your garage, away from the curious eyes of the neighbors. The entrance to the house requires a deadbolt.
The door to the back yard
Many newer homes have a garage that features a door that will take the homeowner to the backyard of the house. The problem is, this door, also hidden from prying eyes of the neighbors, is often a cheap, hollow-core door with a single doorknob lock. This door should be deadbolted, reinforced, or replaced, and also have its alarm.
The automatic door opener
The door opener, by itself, is not the security threat. The security threat is that people forget to close the garage door once they get all the groceries in the house. You could put the garage door on a timer, so it automatically closes after a certain amount of time. A timer would also run the risk of having it close when you don’t want it to do so.
Next, the garage door is controlled by a remote. There are very few things we’re less careful with than a garage door opener remote. Anyone who has a remote keeps it in their car. The problem is that the car registration has your home address, and the home address will be the one for the remote. A cunning thief steals the remote and makes a note of the address.
If the garage door remote gets stolen and nothing else, most people will think they lost it. They’ll grab the spare, or use the front door, and never believe their remote has been stolen. This gives the thief ample opportunity to marshall up the resources to hit the house hard when he does rob it. The solution is to lock the remote in the glove box and keep your car locked. If your remote turns up missing, be suspicious! Unplug the garage door opener until you find it. Also, keep your garage door closed even when you’re home.
The weaknesses inherent to a garage door are not insurmountable. If you’re having a problem with one of these items, take action! Call a locksmith to add a deadbolt or smart lock to your garage-to-house door or door to the backyard. Add acrylic windows to your garage. Or, even get a Smart garage door opener to bypass a remote altogether. We care about your security and want your family to be safe.
Phoenician Garage Door & Repair offers full-service garage installation, repair, and maintenance in Maricopa County. Emergency service is available. We are licensed, bonded, and insured. Call (602) 610-0112
