MIAMI (PRWEB)
June 13, 2021

How secure is your home really? It’s not always easy to spot potential security vulnerabilities and repairs when you’re running from one task to the next. Setting time aside to evaluate your Miami home’s security is critical.

Just a general check-up once a year is enough to keep you, your family, and your valuables safer.

If you truly don’t have the time for a security audit or you’re worried you will miss something important, there is always the option of contacting professionals such as Quickly Locksmith to assist you.

However, if you would like to perform your own security audit, this guide will show you what to look for.

Home Security Audit Checklist:

Let’s start with the most important kind of security audit, the one that will help protect your home from criminals.

Locks are essentially your first line of defense, so start by checking the locks of all external doors around your home. Are all the locks in good working order? Do you keep spare keys in a safe and accessible place? Depending on how old your locks are, you may want to consider either replacing or upgrading them. As an additional measure, you can look at adding deadbolts to specific doors around the outside of your Miami home.

Do you know exactly who has a spare key for your home? Have you recently misplaced any spare keys? Make sure you know exactly how many key copies exist for your home and where they are located. If you’ve given a spare key to a friend or neighbor, make sure they still have it. If a number of spare keys are missing, you may want to consider changing your locks and starting fresh.

Both doors and windows are potential entry points for criminals. Take the time to look at the condition of all windows and external doors. Cracks and general structural weaknesses make it that much easier for intruders to access your home. Don’t forget to look at the window latches too.

If you do have video surveillance set up at home, add this to your security audit checklist. Is the network still reliable? Could your camera placement be improved? You could also decide whether upgrading the system is worth your while based on new products on the market. Lastly, make sure there are no trees or other plants that might be blocking cameras.

If your home has an alarm system, start by testing all the motion detectors as well as any door and window sensors. Next, look at the actual panel and whether there are any notifications that need to be dealt with. Lastly, test your alarm system with your security company and make sure your call list for alarm activations is still relevant.

You can now move onto your garage. Start by making sure all locks are in good working order – this includes the lock of any side entrances and interleading doors. If your garage has a keypad, this might be a good time to change the access code.

If emergency services had to get to your home, how easily are they able to see your house number? Clear away any plants that might be covering up your house number.

The final item on your home security audit checklist should be your daily routine. What are your patterns when you leave and arrive home? Do you make a point of closing doors behind you immediately? Does your family know what to do in the invent of an emergency? Identify any vulnerabilities in your daily routine to stay safer.

Now that you’ve identified what you need to do to upgrade the security of your home, you can get in touch with professionals such as Quickly Locksmith to assist you.

Environmental & National Emergency Security Audit Checklist:

Once the general security of your home is taken care of, it’s important to audit how prepared you are for an environmental or national emergency.

Start by evaluating fire risks and how prepared your home is should a fire break out. If you have a fireplace, does it have a fire screen and when last did you clean the chimney? Do you have fire extinguishers and where are they placed? Where are your smoke alarms situated and are they all still working?

Next, look at your flood risks. Do you have flooding sensors in your basement and if not, should you consider installing them? It’s also important to check the condition of your sump pump.

• Emergency Supplies & Evacuation:

Having emergency supplies doesn’t mean you’re preparing for doom’s day, it’s just a precaution should there be a national emergency. It’s ideal to have enough water and perishables to last a week or two, as well as a first aid kit. Flashlights and copies of important family documents can also form part of an emergency supply kit. Lastly, it doesn’t hurt to have an emergency evacuation plan in place should anything go wrong.

Enhancing Your Home’s Security:

Now that you have the results of your Miami home security audit, decide which smaller fixes you can take care of yourself and what will require the help of a professional. The next step would be to get a quote from a reputable locksmith such as Quickly Locksmith so that you can budget for your home security improvements.

There is no need to do everything at once though. A locksmith will be able to tell you which repairs and improvements you should prioritize first.

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