10-20-2008, 02:05 PM
As an ex-juv-justice councilor in Idaho I know a bit about making sites bad targets for rip off. It's not what you might think.
Lights: Not really. You want a light, but not lights. You want the property to be dark enough that you can't function without light. This forces thieves to use portable lights, which are easily visible and anyone will be suspicious of flashlights running around a house at night.
Gates: Yes, but no. You want a gate that isn't so much hard to get into as hard to get out of. What thieves fear most is getting caught in a site by an irate homeowner or a cop. You need two gates, one for the property and one for the house inside to be secure. That at least what we FitzGeralds have always built.
Dogs: Yes, but no. It's far too easy to bribe off or shoot a dog. Or poison it and come by when the owners are away. You might want a dog, but you might want your neighbors not to know anything about it. Barky dogs aren't worth a damn, as they bark all the time anyhow and that's no alarm. You want a big bruin, preferably male rott, that sits on the porch and pants, and says nothing. The poor bugger that jumps the second gate will be eaten, and what you do with the pieces, I guess, is up to you. I expect I might not ever know, as the chickens would do a pretty good job of the rest of the debris. Where did these shoes come from? I might think.
As for the last, there are tricks out there if you really have a problem that will indeed fix the problem, but you're not going to get that advice from me.
Steel double keyed deadbolt doors are important. Small windows unless it's lexan.
Not having anything worth stealing is the ultimate line of defense.
Trust in the fact that ultimately thieves are forced to steal from each other and ultimately there is no quarter for someone like that.
2 years, maximum. It is going to be a problem, but short lived.
Lights: Not really. You want a light, but not lights. You want the property to be dark enough that you can't function without light. This forces thieves to use portable lights, which are easily visible and anyone will be suspicious of flashlights running around a house at night.
Gates: Yes, but no. You want a gate that isn't so much hard to get into as hard to get out of. What thieves fear most is getting caught in a site by an irate homeowner or a cop. You need two gates, one for the property and one for the house inside to be secure. That at least what we FitzGeralds have always built.
Dogs: Yes, but no. It's far too easy to bribe off or shoot a dog. Or poison it and come by when the owners are away. You might want a dog, but you might want your neighbors not to know anything about it. Barky dogs aren't worth a damn, as they bark all the time anyhow and that's no alarm. You want a big bruin, preferably male rott, that sits on the porch and pants, and says nothing. The poor bugger that jumps the second gate will be eaten, and what you do with the pieces, I guess, is up to you. I expect I might not ever know, as the chickens would do a pretty good job of the rest of the debris. Where did these shoes come from? I might think.
As for the last, there are tricks out there if you really have a problem that will indeed fix the problem, but you're not going to get that advice from me.
Steel double keyed deadbolt doors are important. Small windows unless it's lexan.
Not having anything worth stealing is the ultimate line of defense.
Trust in the fact that ultimately thieves are forced to steal from each other and ultimately there is no quarter for someone like that.
2 years, maximum. It is going to be a problem, but short lived.