6 Tips for Enhancing the Security of Your Custom Garage
Planning to build a custom garage on your St. Paul property? Are you aware that your new garage will likely be the most vulnerable entry point into your home? Given its wall-sized door — which is designed to open relatively easily — it’s no wonder the space won’t be quite as secure as the rest of your home.
With hundreds of burglaries occurring every year in the Twin Cities, most of them with forced entries, garage security is something you can’t afford to neglect. Below the garage builders at Sussel Garages share a few simple ways to increase the security of your custom garage.
Keep Your Garage Door Opener Out of Sight
If you keep a garage door opener in your vehicle and occasionally park in your driveway, a thief can easily access it. Just one broken window and there it is — access to your garage and the rest of your house. That’s why keeping your garage door opener out of sight is so important.
When you must park in your driveway, stow your garage door opener in your glove box, center console, or even better, bring it inside with you. The same idea applies when you park in public parking lots where thieves can easily access your vehicle. Don’t dangle a key to your house in front of strangers!
Install a Smart Garage Door Opener
If you know you won’t remember to keep your garage door opener out of sight, you’ve got another option for protecting that opener: install a smart garage door opener. Opting for this device is literally the best way to ensure your garage door opener never falls into the wrong hands.
Since you control the smart device remotely from your phone, your phone’s passcode protects access to the opener. Only you and members of your household who have the app and access code can open the door.
Even better, smart openers are designed to send you notifications when you’ve accidentally left the door open! Even if you’re miles away at the office, you can close your garage door remotely with just a touch of your phone. There are several options on the market, so if you’re unsure which device is best suited to your needs, ask your garage builder for recommendations.
Add Motion-Activated Lights on the Exterior of the Garage
The end goal for any burglar is to get inside, get the goods, and get out unnoticed. But when you have floodlights outside, those lights can be a major deterrent for anyone planning to attack your home.
Lack of outdoor lighting makes your property incredibly vulnerable as thieves can easily move around under cover of darkness without being detected. Motion-activated floodlights eliminate that cover.
Your garage builders can help you determine what level of electrical service you need for your garage and design the appropriate electrical work for hard-wired security lighting. Discuss your security needs with your builders as you create your garage plan so the pros can give you valuable suggestions on the valuable security additions.
Use Privacy Film on Windows
If you keep a bunch of pricey stuff in your garage, you can’t afford to have transparent windows! Thieves can easily take a peek at exactly what you’ve got going on in there and determine whether breaking into your house is worth the risk. That’s where privacy film can work wonders.
The film is just like tinted window film you’d apply to your vehicle windows — you can see out, but anyone outdoors can’t see in.
Use a Garage Door Opener With Rolling Access Codes
If a smart garage door opener isn’t your style, consider installing a coded opener that allows you to set rolling access codes. Household members will know the various codes to access the garage, but even if someone you don’t know gets ahold of a singular code, the likelihood of them gaining entry is incredibly low.
Choose a High-Quality Garage Door
Security lighting, cameras, and intelligent garage door openers are excellent ways to improve the security of your garage. However, the single most effective thing you can do to reduce your risk of a garage break-in is select a high-quality, sturdy garage door.
Not only will a premium door enhance your home security, but it will also improve your curb appeal, boost the value of your home, and last longer than less expensive, lower-quality options. As part of your custom garage plan, your garage builders can help you determine which type of door will serve you best and the material (steel is likely your best option) that’s best suited to your security needs.
Sussel Garages: Minnesota’s Most Trusted Garage Builder for Over 100 Years
If you’re ready to add a custom garage to your St. Paul or Minneapolis home, our team at Sussel Garages would love to help you bring your garage vision to life. Over the last 100+ years, we’ve served over 50,000 satisfied customers throughout the Twin Cities metro, and we’re ready to help you plan, design, and build the garage of your dreams. Check out some of our past projects for a taste of what we can do!
To learn more or get started, feel free to give us a call at 651-645-0331 (St. Paul) or 612-379-0949 (Minneapolis) to discuss your project. You can also request a free estimate or send us a message for more information.