Fall has arrived, which means it's time to start planning your trips for the coming holidays. The last thing you want to worry about while your away is your home being broken into. Luckily there are simple things you can do to secure your home before you leave. 

Hold Your Mail 

Nothing says "empty house!" more than mail and newspapers piling up on your doorstep. The Postal Service and your local newspaper will be happy to hold your deliveries according to your instructions. Simply call the paper or the delivery person to ask for the hold. You might have to go to the Post Office, though, to submit a written hold notice to have your mail delivery suspended. 

Ask a Neighbor for Help 

You may receive deliveries from the package services while you're gone. Any deliveries left on your property for more than a day are a dead giveaway that the house is vacant. You should ask a trusted neighbor or friend to drop by every day to pick up any packages or mail and newspapers accidentally delivered. If you really trust them, you might give them a key to the house so they can enter and adjust the window coverings. This will discourage any patient burglar monitoring your home for activity.

Schedule Snow Removal

Contract with a service or neighbor to clear your driveway and sidewalks if it snows while you're away. Not only will it appear that someone is home, you won't run afoul of any ordinances mandating cleared sidewalks within a set number of hours after a snow storm. 

Use Light Timers

Place several lights and at least one television on timers. Set them so different lights come on and stay on late each night. Breaking up the uniformity of automatic lighting will lend the appearance that people are home and using different rooms. Turn the volume on the TV up pretty loud so prowlers at the windows can hear it. Along the same lines, you could have a radio set on a timer, as well. Set it to a talk station to give the illusion of conversations taking place inside.

Install Motion Sensors 

Don't let prowlers approach your home at night. Install motion-sensing light fixtures at all exterior doors and around long stretches where there are no doors. Burglars hate the spotlight and most likely will move on to easier targets.

Upgrade Your Locks

If your door locks haven't been upgraded for a long time, you most assuredly should do so. Now that criminals are learning how to pick locks and acquiring bump keys online, the standard store-bought locks present very little challenge to burglars anymore. You should consider keyless entry locks and systems that can't be jimmied. 

If you would like to find out more about high-quality locks and security tools, please view our products and solutions pages. Area Safe and Lock Service offers state-of-the-art defenses for every budget. Contact our experienced, friendly staff for an appointment, directions to our shop or to inquire about the right system for your home.