How to Choose Safe Locks for Your House

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Safety is a big concern these days. Choosing the right locks can help keep you and your family safe. All locks are not created equal. Although many may look alike, there is a huge difference in how safe they really are.

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Instructions

Difficulty: Easy

Step1

Buy deadbolt locks that have bolts that extend into your walls at least one and a half inches. It has to be long enough to be impossible to kick in or be pulled out.

Step2

Make sure the piece opposite the bolt (called the strike plate) is anchored down with three inch screws. Do this so that your screws go through the sheet rock and the jamb of the door and into a wall stud where they won't pull out.

Step3

Buy only locks with double cylinder-double keyed locks. The kind with a turn button on the inside aren't safe. It takes a second to bust a pane of glass in the door or nearby window and open the lock. Don't leave the key in the lock but keep it near the door in case of fire.

Step4

Check your doors for safety. Make sure they fit their frames snugly. If there are big gaps, it's time to replace the doors. If the gap is even all the way from top to bottom you may be able to have a carpenter add to the door frame.

Step5

If there's a big space between the door and the frame, a small saw like a hacksaw will fit in the crack. Then anyone can saw the bolt in half with the right blade. If the door isn't flush where the hinges are, that too can be sawed through. If the doors fit is way off, you need to buy new doors.

Step6

Spending some time evaluating your home or apartment's safety and spending some money shoring it up may mean saving a life later on.

Step7

Keep your windows locked even on the second floor if there are balconies. Lots of break ins occur because people don't use the locks they have to protect themselves. (You can open the window and put a nail in the the casing so that it can only open a few inches.)