Many home security tips have to do with the areas near your home’s doors. These include basic home security advice like having bright, motion-activated lights by your entryways.
But safety-minded homeowners know that there are several things you can do to your door itself to keep your home secure. In our Cary, NC door sales showroom, we frequently help homeowners who want to know all the best front door security tips.
Read on to learn our top 5 tips and features to consider if you want to ensure that your home has the most break-in-proof doors possible.
Front Door Security Tip 1: Lock your Doors
Of course, the easiest way to secure your home is to keep your doors locked.
But do you struggle to remember if you’ve locked the door? Or would you like to be able to lock the door from anywhere?
If you answered ‘yes’ to either of those questions, we highly recommend you integrate a wireless locking feature into your door hardware. This will let you lock your door remotely from your mobile device, whether you’re on the couch in your living room or across town at your office.
These smart locks come in a wide array of styles, so you’re sure to find one that suits your taste.
Front Door Security Tip 2: Install Long Strike Plate Screws
Your front door’s deadbolt is only as effective as its strike plate. The strike plate is the metal piece of the door frame that the deadbolt inserts into when locked.
The shorter your strike plate screws, the easier it would be for an intruder to pry the plate from the frame. They could then disengage your deadbolt.
We recommend strike plate screws that are at least 2.5 inches long.
Front Door Security Tip 3: Security Hinges
Doors typically have three hinges that they swing from. Sometimes, homeowners worry that an intruder could pop out the hinge pin on the front door, and enter their home by opening the door from the hinged side.
But you don’t need to worry about this.
That’s because on in-swing front doors, which open into your home, the hinges are on the interior of the front door. They aren’t accessible from outside your home.
On out-swing doors, which open away from the home, the hinges are on the exterior of the door. However, this doesn’t pose a security risk.
That’s because its industry standard for out-swing front doors to have riveted hinge pins. This design doesn’t allow the pin to be removed from the hinge.
Most doors have three hinge sets; it’s most common for the top and bottom hinges on an out-swing entry door to have riveted hinge pins. This makes it impossible for a would-be intruder to remove your door from the frame on the hinge side.
Front Door Security Tip 4: Auxiliary Foot Lock for Sliding Patio Doors
When most people think about safety and sliding doors, they imagine a piece of dowel rod that’s been cut to size to lay inside the track of the sliding door.
But, if your piece of wood is damaged or misplaced, your gliding door is no longer secure.
That’s why we recommend that you consider a sliding patio door with an auxiliary foot lock.
This stopper, which is easily operated with your foot, serves the same function as the old dowel, with some bonus features.
These foot locks have two lock positions. This allows you to safely vent your gliding patio door without concern that someone could pry the door open.
We think Auxiliary Foot Locks are an essential security feature. That’s why we include them standard on every sliding glass door that we sell.
Front Door Security Tip 5: Skip the Security Film
Many front door security tip articles recommend applying security film over the glazing (glass) parts of your home’s doors.
However, we don’t typically recommend this.
All glass on doors must be tempered to meet construction codes. Also known as ‘safety glass’, tempered glass is about 4 times stronger than typical glass. This means that, while not impossible, it is extremely difficult to break this kind of glass. If tempered glass does break, it fractures into many tiny pieces which still remain connected, rather than shattering into large pieces and shards.
So, applying security film may be, at best, unnecessary given the strength of the glass already in your front doors.
However, there’s an additional reason to rethink applying security film. For many door manufacturers, the application of certain films may void your warranty on your door.
We highly recommend checking with your door’s manufacturer before applying any films to your front door. That way, you can confirm that you aren’t voiding the warranty.
Summary
Choosing the right front door with the right features is an easy way to keep your home as safe and secure as possible. Window Works has helped thousands of Triangle area homeowners find the perfect front door.
When you’re ready to upgrade to safer, more beautiful front door, just fill out the form below to let us know. We’ll be in touch right away to schedule your free, in-home consultation. We can’t wait to help you find just the right front door.
