What is home security? What sort of steps does one have to take to achieve it? What simple ways can one change their home to be more secure? This article will answer these questions and more, detailing a variety of secrets, tips and tricks which will secure your home for good.

Trim back the brush aside your home. It may look pretty, but you are giving criminals a hiding place right near your house. Instead, keep an open grassy area between your home and your landscaping. This will help keep unwanted people from getting a close eye view through your windows.

If you use a social media site such as Facebook it can be tempting to tell everyone that you are planning to go away or are already away. Try your best not to post about being away until you are back, especially if your site is not private. You never know who could be watching and see it as an opportunity to break in.

Do not leave an extra key under your doormat or any other place that a burglar would look for it. If you know that you have a tendency to misplace your keys, it would be a good idea to leave an extra set with one of your neighbors, or you can leave them inside your car.

Clean up that dirty garage and park your car in it. Parking your car in your garage can really help keep criminal activity at bay. First, your car will be less of a target than if it was sitting parked on the street. Second, it makes it tougher for criminals to track your daily activities.

Walls are great for hiding things. You can hide small, valuable items inside the walls of your home. Place them in switch plates, phone jacks or an electric outlet. Even if every single plate in your home is being used, you can purchase a fake one purpose-built for concealing valuables.

Check the batteries of your smoke detector each and every week to determine if they are running low. If your smoke detector is not on, it will not pick up the smoke of the fire, which can lead to a disaster. Use quality batteries that last a very long time on your smoke and carbon monoxide detectors.

Are you aware of the value present in the wiring in your home? Lots of people don’t know this until their wires are stolen. Copper, found in many wires, can be removed in little time, and is worth quite a bit of money. Be sure that your wiring is concealed or difficult to access in order to keep your wires safe.

Watch what you say on social media. In the era of constant Twitter and Facebook updates, it is easy to become too lax on what you share. No matter how excited you are about your upcoming vacation, social media is not the place to broadcast your trip. It is too easy for someone who is not a friend to learn of your plans, allowing them to break in when they know you are away.

If your home security system goes off a lot because it is faulty, or you accidentally set it off yourself, fix the problem immediately. A home security system is one of the best ways to prevent break-ins, but your neighbors will ignore it they hear it set off a lot.

If someone comes to your door selling items or claims to want to check something out for repairs, ask them to slide you their ID through the mailbox or under the door. Some robbers will come into your home to case it out, and their sales pitch can sound spot on.

It is a great idea to do business with a security company that has 24-hour monitoring. If something happens in the middle of the night, you want to be able to get in touch with someone rather quickly. Waiting around for a response will only give robbers the chance to harm you.

Have someone you trust come and cut your lawn if you will be out of town for awhile. If you do not want to hire someone, have a family member or friend do it. If you grass gets too high, burglars will know that no one is home, giving them the desire to break into your home.

Make sure to arm your security alarm system anytime you leave your home, as well as in the evenings while you are sleeping. An unarmed system will not do you any good, as it will not help to protect your family and property from an intruder. Make sure your security company explains how to properly alarm your system, and use this feature.

These easy ways to secure your home are now at your service for your own home. Protecting your loved ones will be a piece of cake once you get them all in place. Just take the time to get the work done so that your home becomes the protective place it needs to be.

Try Out Some Of This Awesome Home Security Advice was originally published on Spring