Home Security: detached garage help?

[CindyE]

Besides locks on the door and motion sensor security lights, what can we do to make our garage more secure? It has a remote control door opener, 2 windows on the side, and a regular door. It is located behind our house, just off the alley. No guns are left out there, but tools and motorcycles are. Is there something we can do ourselves to make it more secure? Ed worries about our stuff getting stolen, and i worry about somebody being in there when i leave for work early in the AM and go out there to get in my Jeep. It is not a real bad neighborhood, but like just about anywhere, there seems to be more crime going on.
Thanks

 

[armedindy]

a dog?

 

[Rookie]

Place bars over the windows. Block the door.

 

[CindyE]

i thought about the bars on the windows, we're considering that. any suggestions how? we have a pit bull, but he stays in the house with us, and he doesn't take kindly to other dogs, or i'd love to have another one.

 

[Brandon]

3m security film on the windows. I would also think about one of those detectors that has a remote chime to it... I think Radio Shak uses these alot as you walk in the door it has the door bell chime to it. you can set the base inside so it will alert you if somone has tripped it.

I am assuming the garage has power. So a wireless camera with night vision or the abilitly to see in low light situations so you can flip the tv on in the morning or evening or when ever and see what is or is not in the garage.

Those would be the first things I would look to do. But that is just me.

 

[Rookie]

i thought about the bars on the windows, we're considering that. any suggestions how? we have a pit bull, but he stays in the house with us, and he doesn't take kindly to other dogs, or i'd love to have another one.

Know anyone with a welder?

 

[eldirector]

I've had a detached garage at the last house and the current one. A few things I've done or plan on doing eventually:

- Reinforce the doors as best you can (good steel doors help). I epoxied a steel tube through the door frame and next stud for the deadbolt to slip into, and used longer/stronger screws on the hinges.
- Remove the release cord from your garage door opener. This prevents it from being fished out through the top of the overhead door and pulled.
- Interior and exterior motion lights are good. Remote lights, that you can turn on BEFORE you get to the garage, are good as well. I use X10 stuff to control several lights like this.
- Security bars or heavy wire mesh for the windows.
- Do you have a fence? Is the man-door INSIDE the fence?
- DVR security cameras (can be had for a couple hundred bucks now)

I've done everything but the DVR. We do have a camera system, but it is live only (no recording). At least I can check on the garage without stepping outside.

 

[iChokePeople]

+5 for ElDirector's lights comment. Dusk to dawn lights, motion-sensitive flood lights, and lights you can turn on from the house. Light, light, light. Being a techie, I'd also add motion-sensitive cameras that will send an email to your phone when tripped. If anything moves around my house or my barn, my phone lights up with pictures and video.

 

[sipowicz30]

Hook an old car horn to a motion sensor light inside your garage.

 

[CindyE]

Know anyone with a welder?

yep, we have one. so maybe that can go on Ed's to do list. i didn't know if they possibly made something you could buy just as cheap as make it.
thanks

 

[CindyE]

I've had a detached garage at the last house and the current one. A few things I've done or plan on doing eventually:

- Reinforce the doors as best you can (good steel doors help). I epoxied a steel tube through the door frame and next stud for the deadbolt to slip into, and used longer/stronger screws on the hinges.
- Remove the release cord from your garage door opener. This prevents it from being fished out through the top of the overhead door and pulled.
- Interior and exterior motion lights are good. Remote lights, that you can turn on BEFORE you get to the garage, are good as well. I use X10 stuff to control several lights like this.
- Security bars or heavy wire mesh for the windows.
- Do you have a fence? Is the man-door INSIDE the fence?
- DVR security cameras (can be had for a couple hundred bucks now)

I've done everything but the DVR. We do have a camera system, but it is live only (no recording). At least I can check on the garage without stepping outside.

We do have a fence and the man-door is inside the fence. i didn't think about remote lights- that sounds like a good idea.
thanks!

 

[DownByTheTracks]

Besides locks on the door and motion sensor security lights, what can we do to make our garage more secure?...

 

[Rookie]

Group buy?

 

[iChokePeople]

Watch the last episode of Walking Dead. Take notes on the security system the old vet/farmer has in his barn.

 

[Black_Wolf]

I have gotten into the habit after pulling my car in for the night is to turn the breaker off that powers my garage door opener.

I wired it to the breaker box on its own switch so that I can just turn that breaker off and cut off power to the opener.

You could always unplug yours if it is not hard-wired.

Anything extra helps.

 

[CountryBoy19]

Hook an old car horn to a motion sensor light inside your garage.

I've done something similar with a radio before. Motion sensor that kicked a radio on to keep critters out of the corn patch... it's tough to find motion lights that trigger on small critters but that doesn't seem to matter in this case. You can make cheap motion sensor alarms this way (although they are easily defeated as well if the perp knows it is there).

 

[Mr Evilwrench]

Heh, my motion sensors out back catch anything bigger than a squirrel. I get cats, possums and raccoons all the time. My garage is attached, but I have motion sensors front and back, cameras on DVR covering the human door inside and out, and the driveway. The only window is in the human door. It might use some bars at that.

 

[Salvation]

Or a less lethal variation...

Master Landmine

Just fill with Franks hot sauce instead of paint. Almost as bad as pepper spray!

Kevin

 

[Suprtek]

 

[mcolford]

Cindy... Why not use a basic home alarm that has door/window sensors. These can be had for around $100. Wire the brain for it inside your house, and just put sensors that detect when the doors/windows are opened. This would also be more convenient as you could shut it off before you head to work in the morning, set it when you are done coming and going for the day, etc.


-MColford