New garage door opener technology and a bit of common sense can protect your home
A wave of home invasions and thefts have swept central Ohio in the past few months. In all five communities affected so far, thieves used the same tactic of gaining access to the homes by using garage door openers found in parked cars. So far over 50 cars and 20 homes have been broken into. Many of the thefts occurred at night while homeowners and their families were asleep, making crimes particularly troubling for locals. “Kind of scary if you have kids and a wife at home,” said one man.
This news story highlights the need to be vigilant about home security at all times. Garage security is an important part of home security, as the garage is frequently used by all kinds of thieves as an access point into the home. Here are some tips to help you secure your garage door against thieves and protect your property and your family.
Keep the Garage Door Closed
This may seem like a no-brainer, but it is still important to remember that while an open garage door can be an invitation to opportunistic thieves who may have had no prior intention of robbing you, a closed garage door is an effective deterrent. Get in the habit of keeping the garage door closed whenever you are not actively entering or exiting the garage or working in the immediate area.
Always Lock the Door Between the Garage and the House
Again, because most thieves look for low-risk, high-reward opportunities, you can deter them by making it more difficult to enter your home. Locking the door between your garage and your home provides an extra barrier for thieves to overcome and may deter them from actually following through with a burglary.
Never Leave Garage Door Remotes Outside
As the recent news story from Ohio indicates, leaving garage door opener remotes outside the garage can be a major security risk. Never hide a garage door remote or a key outside your home. If you don’t actually pull your car into the garage on a regular basis, you probably don’t need a garage door opener remote. Instead, enter your home through another door.
Consider a Keypad for your Garage Door Opener
If you don’t like to carry keys, consider getting a garage door opener that has keypad functionality. This will allow you to enter via the garage without carrying a garage door opener with you. Perhaps if some of the homeowners in Ohio had had this type of garage door opener they would not have needed to keep garage door opener remotes in their cars and they might not have been robbed.
Ensure Your Garage Door Opener is Up to Date
With some old models of garage door openers, it was possible for thieves to capture the digital combination code that activates the door. New models with better technology utilize rolling codes, so that the same code is never used twice. This provides improved security against certain types of thieves, so make sure your garage opener is new enough to have this technology.
