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Before summer explodes upon us, let’s take time to do some home improvements that will help make your dwelling more secure.

Exterior maintenance goes hand-in-hand with home security. Here are six must-do tasks to tackle.

Even if it’s not quite warm enough in Georgia to get the A/C cranked up, it’s a good idea to do a quick visual inspection of your units. Perform basic service and replace the filters. It’s not too early to call in an expert to check the performance and parts of your air conditioner, either. An A/C unit that’s on the fritz can mean comfort and safety issues for everyone in the home.

1. Do Basic Landscape Maintenance.

Remove dead shrubs and trees. Clear out fallen debris and branches. You don’t want to leave any overgrown areas near the home that could provide cover for prowlers.

2. Inspect Your Tools and Tool Storage.

Ensure that gasoline tanks and power tools are stored properly. Check for rust and broken doors and locks on exterior storage sheds, outbuildings basements, and garages. Broken locks and yard tools are an easy mark for burglars.

3. Take a Walk at Night to Check Your Lights.

Stroll around your home at nightfall. Look up at your security lights on your roofline, the corners, and especially the lights on your entrances, front door, and driveway. Make sure all of them are clean of debris and dirt and have working bulbs. Pay special attention to your exterior motion sensor lights – make sure they’re coming on and off like they’re supposed to do! Motion sensors are an important part of your home’s security

4. Examine Your Door and Window Frames.

Winter weather can take a toll on the detailing around doors and windows, making the frames vulnerable to burglars using tools to break into a home. Recalk as necessary and/or make repairs if they’re rotted or damaged in any way.

5. Protect It.

Now that you’ve read about why home maintenance is essential to keeping your home secure, why not give it the ultimate level of safety?

An EMC Security alarm system can help you keep track of your home’s interior and exterior spaces with a touch of your smart phone. One low price per month, with no contract, ensures that your home is protected with and our 24/7 professional monitoring.

Call us at 770-963-0305.

There are many advantages to living alone, one of the most noticeable is that you have your own space and freedom to live the way you want.

Despite the benefits, living alone also comes with concerns related to your personal safety and the security of your house. As a result, you may be wondering how to stay safe when living alone, which is why we’ve put together a checklist to help you learn the dos and don’ts of living alone.

1. Get a Security System

Security systems are no longer reserved for upscale suburban homes. EMC Security offers affordable, budget-friendly security systems that are perfect for homes, apartments, and condominiums. Homeowners who select a wireless system don’t have to drill holes in their walls. Additionally, wireless home security systems are extremely easy to install, and when you are ready to move, you can take your system with you.

2. Get to Know Your Neighbors

When you live alone, getting to know your neighbors could be a very good idea, so listen to your gut and introduce yourself to those who seem trustworthy. Establishing a relationship with elderly couples and other women who live alone may be a good start. It’s not necessary that you become best friends but having a neighbor to turn to, whether it is to borrow milk or to ask for help during a crisis, will go a long way toward helping you feel comfortable living alone, which is why it’s important to make an effort to be friendly for the sake of safety. Ultimately, your neighbors may be your best asset in times of need and will be more willing to assist a friend than they are to help out a total stranger.

3. Get Key Smart

If you lose a key or it goes missing, it may be a good idea to call a locksmith to switch your locks, and depending on where you can last remember having them, it may be absolutely necessary to change your locks. For example, the last place you remember having your keys is a public place, the risk that they could be found by a stranger is high, therefore the greater precautions you should take with your locks. Changing the locks is preferable in situations like these rather than simply rekeying the existing lock.

4. Create an Exit Strategy

If an emergency occurs, such as a fire, a home invasion, or a natural disaster, it’s important to have an exit plan. If you are forced to be out of your home for a few days, know whom you can stay with until you can return home. Include your friends in the plan, so they will be ready to support you when needed.

5. Stay Offline

Announcing your adventures while on your dream vacation can be tempting but it’s usually not a good idea to share such info online. “Don’t help draw attention to the fact that you’re out of town, live alone, or that you’re going out for the evening because you never know who might see it.

6. Think Like an Intruder

One way to feel safer when living alone is to try to adopt the mindset of a thief. Take a walk around your home and check doors, peer into windows, and see if there are areas where you can improve security to make your home less appealing to intruders. Remove any shrubs or large objects that might make for great hiding places for any would-be burglars. Does anything stand out to you that would make it easy for thieves to want to target your home? Can you see high-value items, such as computers or televisions in the window from the street?

Following these steps can help you identify and correct problems related to your home that could make you an easy target.

7. Turn on the Lights

Few things that deter intruders the way lights do. Motion-sensor lights are low-cost and work well to shine a spotlight on would-be burglars or other intruders. By installing a few near your home’s entrances, you can add another line of defense to your place without spending a lot of time and money.

You can also use apps and smart devices to create a schedule for your home’s interior lights to turn off and on. Whether you’re planning to be away for a few days or are nervous at night, setting your lights to a timer makes it look like someone is home and awake.

8. Install a Doorbell Camera

Most home invasions occur during the daytime but a smart doorbell can help create the illusion that you’re at home even when you’re away. These modern home security devices are usually simple to install and very affordable. Most smart doorbells offer live video streaming, remote viewing apps, and two-way communication that lets you view and speak to whoever is at your door. These features provide an extra layer of security against break-ins and also help protect you from a home invasion or other violent home attack. Long gone are the days of having to get up and peer through the peephole — these doorbells allow you to see visitors from wherever you feel safest.

Summary

Living independently has its perks, but it can also put you at risk. Would-be home invaders are always looking for easy targets, and the fewer people that live in a home, the easier it is to get in unnoticed. Living alone can be scary but with the right precautions, you should have nothing to worry about. Trust your instincts and use your common sense. If you don’t feel comfortable or fear you might be in danger, get help!

Year after year, cooking remains the leading cause of home fires, accounting for almost half of all US home fires…

According to the latest U.S. Home Cooking Fires report, American households are three times more likely to experience cooking-related fires as compared to any other day of the year. The study, which was recently released by the National Fire Protection Association (NFPA), shows that there were more than 1,600 reported home cooking fires on Thanksgiving in 2019, reflecting a 238 percent increase over the daily average. Unattended cooking was the leading cause of these fires.

“With people preparing multiple dishes, often with lots of guests and other distractions in and around the kitchen, it’s easy to see why the number of home cooking fires increases so dramatically,” said Lorraine Carli, NFPA’s vice president of Outreach and Advocacy. “Fortunately, the vast majority of cooking fires are highly preventable with a little added awareness, and by taking simple steps to minimize those risks.”

Year after year, cooking remains the leading cause of home fires, accounting for almost half of all US home fires (49 percent) and reported home fire injuries (45 percent). Cooking is the second-leading cause of home fire deaths, accounting for 22 percent of all fire deaths.

Follow these tips and recommendations for a safe Thanksgiving:

• Never leave your kitchen unattended while cooking on the stovetop, especially while frying or sautéing with oil.
• If you plan to cook a turkey, stay in your home and make routine checks.
• Use kitchen timers to keep track of cooking times, especially for foods that require longer cook times.
• Avoid keeping things that can catch fire like oven mitts,oven towels, and wooden utensils a minimum of three feet away from the cooking area.
• Refrain from wearing long sleeves and hanging fabrics that could inadvertently make contact with a heat source.
• Be sure to cook with a lid next to your pan. In the event of a fire, place the lid over the pan and turn off the stove. Removing the cover might allow the fire to start again, so let the pan cool for a long time before doing so. Additionally, never throw water or use a fire extinguisher on the fire.
• For oven fires, turn off the heat and keep the door closed. Only open the door once you’re confident the fire is completely out. If you have any uncertainties or concerns, be sure to contact the fire department for assistance.
• Keep children a minimum of three feet away from the stove.
• Invest in a smoke detector and make sure your home security provider monitors your home for fire-related activity.

Following these steps will help minimize the risk of kitchen fires and keep you and your family safe.

Holiday Fire Safety Tips

The Electrical Safety Foundation International (ESFI) together with the National Fire Protection Association (NFPA) put together some tips for staying safe during the holidays.

1. Inspect electrical decorations for damage before use. Cracked or damaged sockets, loose or bare wires, and loose connections may cause a serious shock or start a fire.

2. Do not overload electrical outlets. Overloaded electrical outlets and faulty wires are a common cause of holiday fires. Avoid overloading outlets and plug only one high-wattage into each outlet at a time.

3. Never connect more than three strings of incandescent lights. More than three strands may not only blow a fuse, but can also cause a fire.

4. Keep trees fresh by watering daily.Dry trees are a serious fire hazard.

5. Use battery-operated candles. Candles start almost half of home decoration fires.

6. Keep combustibles at least three feet from heat sources. A heat sources that was too close to the decoration was a factor in half of home fires that began with decorations (NFPA).

7. Protect cords from damage. To avoid shock or fire hazards, cords should never be pinched by furniture, forced into small spaces such as doors and windows, placed under rugs, located near heat sources, or attached by nails or staples.

8. Check decorations for certification label.Decorations not bearing a label from an independent testing laboratory such as Underwriters Laboratories (UL), Canadian Standards Association (CSA), or Intertek (ETL) have not been tested for safety and could be hazardous.

9. Stay in the kitchen when something is cooking. Unattended cooking equipment is the leading cause of home cooking fires.

10. Turn off, unplug, and extinguish all decorations when going to sleep or leaving the house. Unattended candles are the cause of one in five home candle fires. Half of home fire deaths occur between the hours of 11pm and 7am.

As autumn approaches and winter draws near, the days begin to grow shorter making it the perfect time to re-evaluate your home security systems. Are there any aspects of your home security you need to tweak or change in order to keep potential burglars at bay? If soo, what do you need to do to ensure your home is safe?

Check All Points of Entry & Security Equipment

Check Your Windows and Doors – Make sure to check all windows and doors to ensure all locks are working. Think about whether you need any additional security measures such as safety restrictors for certain areas of the home.

Are Home Security Systems Working – Whether alarms to signal unlawful entry or door intercom systems to see and hear who is entering your home, verifying all home systems are working and up to date is an important part of your checklist.

Lock-up Outdoor Areas – If you have a garage, standalone structure, or gates to the side or exterior of your home, ensure that all padlocks are in working order. If necessary, upgrade your home by investing in additional locks if you don’t already have them.

For more information about home security tips for this winter, speak to one of our experts at EMC Security.