Secure Your Garage & Keep Your Home Safe

August 22, 2019

Many people go out of their way to properly secure the front door, back door, and windows of their home to prevent break-ins. But what about securing the largest point of entry to your home? Your garage door is another way for someone to gain access to your home and to all the things you might store in the garage itself and it wouldn't take much inspection for someone to see if it is the weak spot in your home's security. So whether you need to secure your garage door while you're away on vacation or would like to feel even safer in your home each night, we put together some tips for further securing your garage door.

1. Make sure the door closes and stays closed. This might seem too simple for us to suggest but you'd be surprised how often people click a button and either go into the house or drive away before watching the door close completely, missing the door opening back up because the sensors detected something in the way or the opener experienced some kind of temporary failure. Because of this, modern garage door openers have smart features like being Wifi enabled, so that you can control your opener from an app on your phone and receive alerts should your garage door not close all the way or open unexpectedly while you're away from the house. Not only would upgrading your garage door opener give you these fantastic security features, but modern openers provide ultra quiet and smooth operation that old openers lack.
2. Remove viewing points into your garage. If your garage has windows, whether in the door or around the sides, you get the great benefit of natural light streaming into your garage but unfortunately, you give someone the ability to look into your garage and see what is being stored there. Preventing outsiders from seeing what you have parked or stored in your garage is a great deterrent so it's worth either adding covers to the windows or adding frosted window film or spray so that you still get the light streaming in, without actually seeing what's inside.
3. Add a lock to your garage door. Some garage doors are installed with a lockable latch that prevents your door from being opened manually if the garage door opener has been disconnected or isn't on because of a power failure. But if your door doesn't have this latch, you can easily install your own lock system by simply drilling a hole into the track above the rollers and use a padlock to secure it. This is highly recommended for when you leave your home for a weekend or a long vacation.
4. Install motion-detecting lights. Another great deterrent from anyone sneaking around your garage is adding lights that only turn on when they detect motion. Many systems come with added features like customizing the range for motion detection or a timer for when the light turns off if it does detect something. Installing these lights in front of your garage door and around the sides is recommended, especially if you have windows or side doors that lead into the garage.
5. Don't leave the garage door opener in your car. This tip is the easiest, cheapest, and you don't have to install any gear for this added layer of security. For many, the garage is used even more than the front door for entering and exiting the home, especially with their car. And if you park your car in the garage, anyone passing by knows that you have your garage door opener with you in the car. If anyone were to steal your car or break into it whether you're at work or out running errands, they could easily steal the garage door opener and would have immediate access into your home with the click of a button. For this reason, we recommend to everyone that they keep their opener remote in their bag or on a keychain and not in the car.

Safety is always our number one priority at Precision Door of San Diego. If you decide it's time to upgrade your garage door opener, we will help you select the perfect model for your needs and install it the right way, guaranteed. We proudly offer the top brand items for garage door openers, including Marantec, Precision, and LiftMaster. And of course, for all your other garage door needs, don't hesitate to contact or call us for fast, friendly, and professional service.