Home Security Gadgets & Reviews

So, you’ve always wanted to make your own spy gadgets?

This post isn’t really about home security, but I saw a fun looking book over at Amazon that seemed closely enough related that I could get away with mentioning it here:

101 Spy Gadgets for the Evil Genius

Doesn’t this just look like fun? The book lists step-by-step projects for putting together hidden cameras, computer monitoring, radios and scanners, night vision device, etc.

Here’s a snippet from the book description:

“This book offers an amazingly awesome and complete collection of professional spy tools that you can build yourself. You can build any project in this thrilling arsenal of spy devices for $30 or less! Not only that, even total beginners to electronics can construct these mind-boggling snooping tools.”

From some of the reviews at Amazon, it does sound like you need some electronics know-how to get the most out of the book, but if you’ve got a gadget lover in the family, this could be a fun gift.

101 Spy Gadgets for the Evil Genius

If you own an RV or motorhome, you may want to invest in a burglar alarm or home security system for it. This is especially true if you are a full timer (live in your RV) or take frequent vacations.

There are two types of RV security to consider: protecting the entire vehicle from being stolen and protecting the vehicle from being broken into and valuable items from being stolen.

Many luxury models have easily stolen items such as portable satellite dishes and flat screen televisions. You may also have personal information that thieves could use to perpetrate identity theft.

You can buy alarms that work similar to car alarms to keep the vehicle from being stolen or entered when you’re not around. You may also want to consider safes that can be secured under the seat or screwed into the floor in a closet or similar area. Even if you don’t want to get a full fledged burglar alarm, at least consider upgrading the locks on your motorhome or trailer. Many of the standard ones are extremely flimsy. Also ensure windows can’t easily be forced open.

Your dealer may have some upgrades available, but you can also look on the internet and make additions after you’ve purchased your RV/motorhome.

Safes have long been known to be designed to be fireproof, as well as acting as a deterrent for burglars, so they can protect your important documents and other valuables in the case of a fire. Today, more and more safes are coming out that are waterproof too.

With increasing numbers of hurricanes and other storms, a waterproof safe can give you peace of mind. This is also true if you live in a flood-prone area.

You can get anything from file safes to safes that bolt to your wall or floor and thus aren’t removable by burglars.

With a safe that protects your valuables from thieves, fires, and water damage, you’ll be far ahead of the curve when it comes to home security.

The waterproof file safe shown here is available from Amazon for $84:

Honeywell Protector 1070-Cubic-Inch 1/2-Hour Fire Waterproof Hanging File Safe

If you’ve been thinking about getting some kind of driveway alarm or motion sensor to alert you to when someone comes onto your property, but haven’t wanted to deal with installing something complicated, this Dakota Alert wireless motion detector from SmartHome might fit the bill.

It’s specifically made for outdoor use, so it can be used to monitor your driveway or any part of your property.

“The Wireless Motion Alert system will send an instant alert from the foot of your driveway to your home when a person or car enters your property. The weatherproof transmitter operates on one 9-volt battery (sold separately) and is easily mounted on a tree or post near the driveway (mounting materials sold separately). The transmitter uses a passive infrared (PIR) beam to detect people or vehicles to a distance of up to 80 feet, then sends a radio signal back to the receiver, which can be placed in your home up to 3000 feet away.”

It looks pretty easy to install. Since everything is wireless, there aren’t any cables that need to be run underground or anything. Set-up shouldn’t take long.

The wireless driveway motion detector is $159 from SmartHome:

Dakota Wireless Driveway Motion Detector

We talk a lot about fancy home security systems and home video surveillance around here, but it’s important to remember the basics when you’re protecting your family and your house.

Sturdy door locks go a long ways in fortifying your home. Most thieves are looking for the easy way in, and if they see you’ve done a good job on the doors, they’re likely to choose another target.

Pay attention to each of these areas:

Exterior Doors

For exterior house doors, choose solid hardwood or steel doors with peep holes (glass windows can be broken, and hollow-core doors are easier to kick down). Install deadbolt locks on all exterior doors.

If you’ve got glass panes near the door, consider installing a double-cylinder deadbolt. A keyed entry on both sides keeps burglars from breaking the glass, reaching inside, and opening the door.

Sliding Patio Doors

These glass doors can be weak spots in your home security. Install a keypad lock or a security bar on every patio door in your home.

Garage Doors

Another potential weakness, garages are often poorly secured. Since an attached garage offers entry the house, it’s important not to overlook the doors here.

Don’t rely on an automatic garage door opener for your sole source of security. Instead install a separate keyed locked. If you’re going to be gone overnight, use a padlock and hasp to secure the door leading from the garage into the house. For extend trips away from home, you may also want to consider a padlock through the garage door track just above one of the rollers.

Windows

Don’t forget about the windows when you’re securing the doors. For ground floor windows in particular, you should install a lock on each one. You can add keyed locks for extra security.

Source: “Stop Intruders at the Door” Fall/Winter 2007 Better Homes & Gardens “Exteriors”

When you think of fire escapes, you may think of those big metal ladders going up the side of apartment buildings. They’re a good idea if you live on the second or higher floor of a big building, right? But what if you live in a two-story house?

It makes sense to consider residential fire escape ladders too. These aren’t traditionally big clunky permanent structures such as you see on apartment buildings. They’re collapsible ladders that can simply be thrust out the window in an emergency. Then you and your family members just climb down to safety.

When you’re not using them, the ladders usually tuck into little boxes at the base of the windows on the inside. Just consider the box a bit of extra shelf space (it’s easy enough to knock objects off when you need to get to the ladder).

If you do get a ladder, make sure everyone in the family knows how to use it and has practiced. You may not be able to reach your kids to help them in an actual fire emergency.

Prices start around $70 (going up for higher than second story houses).

Home video surveillance used to be an expensive proposition, but the prices have really come down on security cameras, and you can even get a wireless internet security camera that is a snap to install (if you can plug in a USB cable and click a few buttons, you can install one).

The Panasonic wireless camera shown here can be used as a nany cam (watch how your babysitter interacts with your kids when you’re not home), as part of a security system (while it’s also good to have a burglar alarm that will call the cops if anyone trespasses, a camera can be a great way to catch an image of the thief), or even to make sure your pets aren’t getting into trouble! (The description of this camera at Amazon actually totes its uses for monitoring pets.)

In the past, security cameras have just recorded video onto a VHS tape that you could watch when you got home. With an internet camera, it’s a whole different story. You can access the feed live from your PC at work or an internet cafe across the world. You can even check in on an internet-enabled cell phone! That’s one of the great benefits of a wireless internet security camera, as compared to a traditional video surveillance system. The ability to check in any time from anywhere and watch a live feed makes it really valuable.

This Panasonic wireless internet security camera is less than $300 at Amazon. As long as you have a broadband network at home (most internet cameras won’t work with dial-up), you shouldn’t need to get any additional hardware to make this puppy work.

Panasonic Wireless 802.11 b/g Network Camera

It’s that time of year when kids head back to school, and if you have a son or daughter going off to college for the first time, you may worry about his or her security on campus. It might not be possible to give the gift of absolute safety, but you can at least educate your children (and yourself!) on personal security.

I just read Street Smarts, Firearms, And Personal Security : Jim Grover’s Guide To Staying Alive And Avoiding Crime In The Real World , and it’s definitely a good resource.

If you are worried about your kids being off on their own, knowing they have read this book (and are putting the tactics into practice) should make you feel more comfortable. Of course, this isn’t the kind of gift that will excite them probably, but hey you can always tape it to a new iPod.