The garage is one of the easiest access points to the rest of your house, and burglars make fair use of it regularly. And with lots of high-value items typically stored in the garage, like expensive tools and vehicles, making sure your garage is locked up tight is key to preventing devastating loss. Here are a few great tips for how to protect your garage from theft.
Close and Lock
Yes, this is an obvious solution to keeping thieves out of the garage, but you’d be surprised to know how common it is for garages to be left open or unlocked. This isn’t just about keeping burglars out during the night; if you keep your garage open during the day, passersby can easily see what you have inside. If they see something of note, they might come back and try to break in later.
Conceal Your Belongings
If you do have to keep the garage open for a large part of the day, do your best to hide your things. A simple tarp will prevent some opportunists from knowing that you have something of value. Pay special attention to any windows, as well. A set of thick curtains or blinds over interior windows will keep prying eyes from taking a peek.
Keep it Lit
Most home burglaries occur during the night; being unseen is key to breaking in. Deter would-be burglars from your home with motion-activated floodlights. If movement is detected, they’ll turn on and illuminate the invader and hopefully scare them off for good.
Change Your Remote
If you have an automatic garage door, chances are you keep the remote in your car. After all, keeping it where you’ll use it is a good way to keep an eye on it. The problem with this is that if a thief is able to get the remote, maybe from that time you had to park in the driveway because the garage was full, he basically has a key to your house.
Instead of keeping the remote in the car, replace it with a keychain version that can be kept with you and the rest of your keys at all times. Even better would be to replace the remote with a smart garage door opener that is activated from an app.
Fix the Service Door
The garage’s main entrance may be the big front lifting doors, but most garages also have a service door closer to where the house meets the garage. It’s usually a standard door with a standard lock, making it easy to break into. You can beef up security for the service door by adding a strong deadbolt and reinforcing the strike plate.