Most people feel relatively secure when inside their homes, although garage door security can give them pause to wonder if would-be crooks can actually gain access to their otherwise safe abode. The fault in security when it comes to garage doors is usually found in the automatic garage door opener.
While this type of device is a godsend during inclement weather, it can also compromise your home's security by making your garage penetrable to would-be crooks. And it's not a big stretch to imagine that when burglars can break into your garage, your home is next on their list. With many homes having access to the interior via the garage, this can pose a risk to your home's safety net.
How Do Crooks Get in Via the Garage?
A safety feature that is meant to add to your security in using your garage door and automatic garage door opener is actually where the weak link lies. Most doors are equipped with an emergency release lever that allows you to open the garage door if your power is out. You can also use a coat hanger or other object (if you're so inclined, and crooks are inclined) to gain access to the pull cord on this lever, effectively allowing yourself into the garage.
What Can You Do?
There are a number of things you can do to overcome this security issue. For starters, you can disable the release lever, but this means that you also lose the ability to open the door in an emergency. You can remove the cord, but that's not a foolproof way to ensure that someone with bad intentions won't get in using the coat hanger method described above.
Frosting the windows on the garage door can make it harder for the coat hanger method to work. Going retro with your garage door is also possible. This would require you to get out of the car to let yourself in, just like they did before there were garage door openers to do it for you.
A Better Option
If you're not willing to do that and the solutions above seem a little far-fetched or impractical for you, then you can have your local locksmith install a keypad system on the door. This allows you entry to the door by entering a special code, so you can disable the release lever without worrying about the consequences of disabling the emergency lever.
Your locksmith can also secure the entry door that is located in the garage leading into your home with a high-quality deadbolt lock. Even if your garage door is secure, making it difficult to enter your home through the garage makes sense, because once a thug is in the garage, he has free reign out of sight of anyone else to make his way inside quickly. A deadbolt can make that more difficult.
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