Do spring showers bring more security to your life or worries about the safety and security of your home? In the springtime, it’s time to tackle new home projects. How can you keep your home secure this year?

Update Your Home Security 

Are you thinking of installing a home security system? Take a look at your options this spring. If you have a security system right now, hide any wiring outside your home so that you can ensure that thieves don’t cut the wires and break in.  According to Curbed, it’s also time to consider a wireless system if you don’t have one already: “Having cellular capabilities ensures that your system won’t go down just because the power went out and you lost internet service.” Make sure that your security system has layers of backup, such as a battery in case the power goes out.

Take Simple Steps to Improve Security 

In addition to adding a security system to your home, you can take simple steps to improve home security. These include:

• Leaving a key with a neighbor instead of hiding one under a mat or flower pot.
• Hiding valuables in your yard and home so that they’re not easily visible.
• Add home lighting to ensure that no one can sneak up on your property.
• Take time to renovate. Spring is the ideal time to do this work. For instance, if your windows are loose or don’t have appropriate stops, replace them.
• Do a spring cleaning of your garden. Remove brush that makes it hard to see out of the windows.

Watch for Fire Safety 

With summer fire season just around the corner, it’s time to think about home security. Consider making simple changes around your home and garden so that you don’t need to worry as much about house fires.

• Check the battery on your smoke alarm and carbon monoxide detector.
• Create a secure place for your barbeque this summer, away from overhangs or garden plants.
• If you live in a fire-prone area, reduce your brush in the garden and add patio stones, walls, and rock mulch.
• According to Ready for Wildfire, if you’re planting this spring you can “Choose fire-retardant plant species that resist ignition such as rockrose, ice plant and aloe.” Poplar, maple, cherry and other deciduous trees are less flammable than conifers.

Keep Your Home Safe From Water Damage

Spring floods are followed by the hurricane season. When you’re trying to keep your home safe, it’s important to consider the potential for these small and large disasters. Around your home, you can:

• Check gutters and ensure that they are not leaking into a cracking foundation or damaged roof. Add gutter guards or consider gutter replacement if your gutters are having trouble draining the water.
• If you live in a flood-prone area, you should take time this spring to “raise switches, sockets, circuit breakers and wiring at least a foot above the expected flood level in your area,” according to Bankrate. This helps your home’s systems run without problems if there is a smaller flood.
• Install an interior or exterior backflow valve to prevent sewage from entering your home during a flood.
• Landscape your garden so that water won’t end up sitting at your home’s foundation.

At Harry Helmet, we’re committed to helping you have the best home for your family. We want your home to be warm, dry, and safe. Talk with us about gutter covers, gutter replacement, and roofing to see how Harry Helmet can help protect your home. Schedule a free estimate today.

Written by Del Thebaud