(Bugout.news) For those of you who are less likely to bug out in a SHTF scenario, either because you have nowhere to go, are not physically capable of bugging out or because you and your neighbors have decided you will take stand and defend each other, in all likelihood your urban or suburban homes are not sufficiently secured.
In this day and age many homes are now equipped with a “security service” – that is, a company that installs surveillance and monitoring technology that alerts a company “command center” when a fire, an intruder or some other emergency occurs in your home. The company, when alerted, then contacts the appropriate emergency service and they respond.
In normal times such systems can be very efficient and effective, providing both security and peace of mind. But in times of social chaos, when emergency services breakdown or are non-existence, it won’t matter how much surveillance and monitoring technology you have in your home.
What will save you and help defend you and your family and neighbors are physical security measures designed to keep people away from your property and out of your home. And the good news is, these techniques are neither expensive or difficult.
1. Securing garage doors: Let’s face it: Most home garage doors are far too lightweight, on their own, to keep out a surging mob. Garage doors with glass windows are even less secure. With that in mind, there are some simple fixes that will keep the masses out or at least buy you enough time to escape or adjust your security posture.
If you have glass in your doors, you can replace them with thick, shatter-proof acrylic sheeting like Lexan that is securely mounted into frames rather than put in place with brad nails or screws. These acrylic items can often be found in most home improvement/hardware stores and likely cut to fit your frame. You should also replace glass in side doors and garage windows with similar materials (if you have a window in your garage, another consideration is installing bars).
As for your acrylic, consider something like this.
A second low-cost way to secure your garage door so that it can’t be forced off its roller track is by installing a metal C-clamp completely through the track above the rollers. You can also try some high-quality bicycle locks on both tracks; make these part of your routine home security check.
2. Front door and main entries: Intruders will most probably try to get into your home first through a standard entry point like a front door, a back door or sliding glass, etc. The graphic below, from 2010, shows how burglars most often break into homes:
Notice that fully one-third of burglaries take place with the burglar entering the front door. Are these homes being watched? Do burglars know whether these homeowners lock their front doors?
In a societal collapse, it’s more likely that a mob will rush your neighborhood rather than taking the time – over days or weeks – to “watch” your habits. So you’ll need to be ready to deploy security measures quickly. Now, you could buy a heavy security door, but they can be cost-prohibitive for most families.
A better solution is to bolster your door jamb, and to doing that is fairly simple and much cheaper here.
Also, several long screws put into your doorframe – using a cordless power drill – will also work; have them handy for quick installation. You can always remove them when the danger passes. Note: Be ready to remove them quickly if you find you will need to escape!.
Windows, patio doors, French doors: The third major entry point(s) will be windows, especially ground-floor windows, and your patio doors. Doors that are comprised principally of glass are in the greatest danger of being breached; even if you have a jamb installed, that won’t matter much when someone tosses a rock through the glass or butt-strokes it with a rifle.
The most cost-effective step is to pre-measure and cut plywood that can be quickly installed along doorframes (using the long screws-and-cordless drill combo above). This will take a bit of time and more than likely more than one person, so these are disadvantages.
You can also consider installing stainless steel mesh wiring like this model, because they resist blunt trauma and cutting. A video demonstrating impact testing of these types of screens is like this model.
Making these kinds of security upgrades to your home takes time so the sooner you can get started, the better. Try to pick designs and methods that allow you to remain functional in today’s world while still preparing you for an emergency.
[H/T: Stop Shouting!]
Bugout.news is part of the USA Features Media network of sites. For advertising opportunities, click here.
