How secure is your garage?
Whether you’re using your garage for storing your car, housing those extra belongings or even using it as a ‘workshop’ for your hobby, you would probably miss the contents if someone decided to break in and take them.
The majority of us take normal precautions to secure our homes, locking doors and windows and keeping valuable items away from windows. But, many people overlook the security of their garage – a concern if your garage holds possessions that have monetary or sentimental value, or if your garage provides easy access to elsewhere in your home.
Garages are often targeted by burglars for these reasons, so it’s important to give a bit of thought to how secure your garage is. The best place to start with this is to look at the type of door you have on your garage.
The most common garage door (the ‘up-and-over manual vehicle access door’) needs to fit comfortably so that there’s no room beneath the door where thieves could get leverage. It’s advised that you lock these sorts of doors from the inside with coach bolts. There are also garage door locks that you can attach to the floor to prevent the door being forcibly lifted open. Just ensure that if you are driving a car into your garage that the locks don’t interfere with your vehicles wheels.
Alternatively, your garage may have a double leaf door that will need to be checked for good condition and replaced if it looks weak. If this isn’t an option for you, you may want to fit closed shackle padlocks one-third up and one-third down the doors for maximum security. You could also fit drop bolts to the bottom of the door: these are useful to stop the door swinging back and forth, plus it gives them extra reinforcement.
It’s best not to interfere with automatic garage doors, but instead contact the installer if you’re worried they aren’t secure enough for your possessions. Automatic doors have had quite a few security problems in the past due to the nature of their design. The fob designed to open them causes half the problem as lots of people have the same combination code, therefore enabling anyone with an identical fob to get into the garage. However, if your garage door is up to date, it will now feature rolling-code technology, where your remote will transmit a brand new security code each time you press the button. Try to remember to remove your remote from your vehicle if it’s parked outside - if a thief breaks in to your car and steals the remote, they have an easy way to get their hands on your belongings.
Secure garage doors are available in a variety of colours and effects, ensuring they’re in keeping with the style around the rest of your home. You have the option to choose from a horizontal or vertical roller garage door, or a sectional and compact roller. Also, if your garage has windows, it gives intruders the chance to see what valuables you have to offer. To enhance your security, you could frost the windows to provide privacy or attach security grilles to the windows – something you might want to consider if you’re keeping a very valuable classic car in the garage!