A Washington Security Company Offers Tips On Protecting Your Home While On Vacation

A Washington Security Company Offers Tips on Protecting Your Home While on Vacation

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SSNWUser

Homeowners leaving to take the family on vacation mull over whether or not they locked the front door or left the light on in the living room as everyone heads on down the road. However, there is more to protecting your home while away on vacation. In addition to the basic tips of having someone keep the lawn mowed or the snow shoveled, our Washington security experts at Security Solutions share their best advice for keeping your home safe while on vacation.

1. Stop the Mail and Newspaper Deliveries

An overstuffed mailbox and newspapers piling up on the porch are beacons to burglars signaling instantly that no one is home. Putting a hold on mail delivery as well as any other deliveries that routinely come to the house is a standard trick most homeowners already do before leaving. However, our experts in home security in Seattle recommend having someone you trust pick up the mail, the paper and any packages that may be delivered while the family is away on vacation. This way, neither the paper delivery person nor anyone at the post office is aware that the house is empty. This also means that the house will be visited every day it sits empty.

2. Effective Use of Timers

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Any criminal worth his or her salt is going to be looking for patterns. Most can readily identify senseless use of light timers. Instead of just randomly picking a time for a timer to turn a light off and on, think about normal routines in the house. What gets shut off as everyone goes to bed? Typically, the living room lights and TVs are on until bedtime. Then a light goes on in an upstairs bedroom and bathroom for a time. Then the last light to go out is often the one next to the bed. Also consider what is on during the day. Since most televisions are not compatible with programmable timers, use a portable radio instead.

3. Managing the Drapes

Some homes always have the window shades, blinds or drapes closed. Other homes may open them during the day and close them at night. Deviation from the routine is a red flag that gets noticed by both good and bad people. Your good neighbors will notice any break from a routine just the same as you would notice a change in their routines. Any neighbors who are interested in stealing what is in your home will notice too. If the drapes are going to be closed while away on vacation, begin by closing them a couple of weeks before departure while everyone is still at home.

4. Lock Everything That Has a Lock

This includes the garage door as well as the door from the garage into the home. Most homes have locks on bedroom and bathroom doors that can be locked from the outside using a small screwdriver inserted through the tiny hole in the handle. Make it inconvenient for anyone who may enter the home to get around. Lock every window too.

5. Dealing With Appliances That Use Water

Since the clothes washer uses rubber hoses as water inlets, it is not a bad idea to shut off the water supply to the washer before leaving. The hoses on clothes washers can burst much more easily than metal pipes. Also, if there is a toilet in the house that has a leaky tank valve, shut off the water to it to prevent it from running nonstop while no one is home.

6. Monitored Home Security

Having a system installed that provides 24-hour monitored home security in Seattle is a great way to protect any home. Home alarm systems deter burglars, and the systems also automatically alert the monitoring center of any emergency condition. Sensors installed in your home by our Washington security experts detect intrusion, smoke, fire and carbon monoxide. We also have specialty sensors to detect movement, breaking glass, temperature extremes and even flooding. So, even though no one is at home, the home security system is guarding everything.

Every family wants to protect their home whether they are there every day or away on vacation. Following some simple protocols can prevent a home from being targeted while a family is away on vacation. A home security system will be there every day no matter if family members are asleep in their own beds or a thousand miles away enjoying a tropical paradise vacation.

Brad is a business owner and professional blogger who enjoys writing on subject matter related to security, home improvement and other consumer interests. For more information please visit- Washington security

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