Keep Your Home Safe

With the 4th of July holiday ahead, a lot of you are probably planning on heading out to visit friends and families this weekend, leaving your home unattended. Some great common sense tips to keep your home safe were faxed to us this morning thanks to Sheriff Leo Mioduszewski and the rest of the fine folks at the Isabella County Sheriff's Department, and I felt it was a good idea to pass them along.

First, a few things you should know about burglars, according to the good Sheriff:

• Professional burglars are few and far between, and most break-ins are crimes of opportunity, i.e. because a door or window is left unlocked.
• A recent study showed that 38% of the time, burglars get in through an unlocked door or window.
• In most cases, a burglar will attempt to enter a home while the homeowner is away, giving the thief more time to enter, locate, and remove valuables from the home.

So how can you protect yourself?

• Check all doors and windows in your home before you leave. Most of us lock the door behind us when we leave, but what about those back doors or bedroom windows? Make sure that all possible points of entry are locked.
• Make sure your home looks occupied even if you aren't in it. You may want to have timers set so the lights come on one at a time to create the illusion that someone is moving from room to room at dusk.
• You may also want to consider having a radio tuned to an all-talk station (may I suggest our sister station, WMMI AM 830?) to further the illusion. Timers set on radios and television will help create a more convincing illusion.
• Arrange with friends and neighbors to have your newspapers and mail collected daily. If that's not possible, fill out a vacation hold card with the local post office and ask the newspaper to temporarily suspend delivery.
• Doors are often the point of entry for most burglars. They'll either kick the door open, break out the window to reach in, or pry the door open with a tool. Preventing these methods of entry can be as painless as installing a deadbolt lock and using it every time you leave the house.
• If you decide to use a deadbolt, however, keep in mind that burglars can still obtain entry by breaking the window and flipping the deadblot lock open. A double-keyed deadbolt (which requires a key from each side of the door) can solve that but it will also keep anyone from getting out, which could be deadly in case of a fire. These types of doors should be replaced and in the interim the window should be covered with plywood.
• If you've got a sliding door, simply placing a cut-off broomstick or other piece of wood in the track will make any attempt to break the normally flimsy lock on these doors pointless. The same trick will work on windows that slide open from side to side.
• Keep bushes and trees near potential entry points trimmed so the burglar doesn't have anything to hide behind as they attempt to enter your house.
• Keep the yard free of clutter and your garage door shut. The absence of a vehicle is an obvious sign to a burglar that nobody is home.

By following these simple steps, you can substantially reduce your chances of becoming a victim of a break-in. If you have any questions or would like more advice on protecting your home while you enjoy your vacation, you are invited to contact Sheriff Leo Mioduszewski at (989) 772-5911.