I know a woman who lives in a bad neighborhood, and she can’t move for a year or so. She spends a lot of time there alone and has trouble sleeping because every sound wakes her up.
I told her about some security devices she can use including a door jam and an alarm where you pull the pin out to make a 100db beeping sound.
Aside from that, is there anything else she can get to help her sleep at night? She says she only gets a few hours of sleep a night out of fear of her apartment being broken into.
I recommended a security system, but I don’t think her apartment will allow her to install it on the doors and windows.
Most break-ins are crimes of opportunity. She should make her place unattractive to a potential burglar. Keep doors and windows secure. Keep valuables out of sight.
Arm her with information maybe. Are homes in her neighborhood being broken into constantly? Are her fears of victim-hood rational in other words? I imagine her fears are at least a little overblown. If she really can’t sleep at all and is living in constant fear she may need therapy more than she needs a security system.
I take it she’s on the first or second floor? If she’s higher than that, the things she needs to pay closest attention to are doors and possibly a balcony that could be climbed up to. Above the third floor shouldn’t be a problem aside from an accessible door.
There are door and window alarms she can get that would emit the loud shriek if the connection is broken between the moving parts. On doors I think they’re great, but windows have to be shut and not everyone likes to have shut windows all night (like me). She can get dowels cut for the windows if she wants them open, she can have two sizes cut, one for when the window is closed, and one to wedge in with the window cracked about 5" or so, so it can’t be opened further. Just keep them on the sill in front of the window when not in use. If she has sliding doors, a larger dowel can be cut for that, too. Any hardware store that carries them will cut them to spec for her.
If she likes the idea of an alarm system, there are DIY wireless systems out there, under $200, and all she needs is an active wired phone line. The sensors can be mounted with adhesive or velcro.
She can get pepper spray that’s made for indoor home defense use, and keep it on the night stand. I get my pepper spray from mace.com.
And as stated above, the vast majority of break-ins are opportunistic. Keep shades or curtains positioned so valuables aren’t visible from the sidewalk or street. Don’t leave windows wide open and unattended if they’re reachable from the ground by someone athletic.
I think for her to sleep well at night, she’s going to want something that emits a loud alarm, so she knows every little noise isn’t something to worry about. Once that’s in place, maybe play a white noise CD on repeat so she doesn’t hear all the little stuff she doesn’t need to worry about. It’s a real lifesaver for me, I don’t think I’d be nearly as amenable to apartment living if I didn’t have white noise going while sleeping!
Is there any way she could get a roommate? Having another person around could help a lot. Or maybe she could get a dog. Sounds like she’s too alone and would benefit from some companionship.
A handgun and some training. She can get all the gimmicks she wants, but not a single one of them will stop someone who wants access to her apartment. Only actual force can reliably stop an aggressor.
These two pieces of advice seem at odds.
I’m not a burglar, but I know that burglars look for guns & other easy to carry, easy to sell items. No employer that I know of lets you bring guns to work, so its sitting there, 40 hours a week, screaming “steal me” while you’re sitting at your desk like a chump. Its 10AM. Do you know where your gun is?
Seconding the ‘get a dog’ advice. A noise wakes you up … you look over at the dog … he’s not interested … back to sleep. I can’t tell you how comforting this was when I had trouble sleeping. And if somethings up - dawg will be sniffing and barking and generally being interested.
Hardware stores will typically have lots of types of alarms. They don’t need to be permanently installed. Get a few motion detectors for the front rooms and door/window alarms.
She could put a bar on the window, as they are fairly inexpensive. In addition, she could put a pair of men’s shoes outside of her door, if her apt. complex will allow it. This could indicate to a potential thief that a man lives there also, in other words, not a single woman. She could put the men’s shoes on her balcony also if she has one.
I’ll third the dog recommendation. A lot of thieves and ne’er do wells will balk at the idea of breaking into a house with an angry barking dog waiting for them, even if said dog isn’t really that big.
And, on top of that, your intruder having to deal with the dog might just give you the time you need to escape, fight back or call 911 (or all 3).
Nothing beats a dog for companionship, comfort and safety! My dog barks if I say a very low, quiet “woof” to her. She’ll have no idea why she is barking, she even looks a little confused. But her deep, fierce bark will scare any potential bad-intentionado.
Aside from that, as was already mentioned, you want to make your house the one that won’t be picked for burglary. You can put a timer on a lamp that will make it seem like someone is up late at night.
General thing: I find getting to know people up and down the street makes me feel much more comfortable. Even if it is a rough neighbourbood, there will be some nice people to say hi to in the morning.
A lot of people will say to go high-tech. Virtually no-one will say to go low-tech, so I will. Assuming that the apartment door swings in (almost all do)
*Buy 6 heavy duty barricade brackets from a hardware store, each with 4 wood screws the size of engine mounts.
*Find the vertical beams in the wall on each side of the door.
*Install the brackets securely, but with enough washers under each so that the seat of the bracket is higher than the highest horizontal point of the frame of the door.
*Make sure neither the doorknob nor the hinges are between the corresponding brackets.
*Measure the distance horizontally between the brackets, add 18 inches, and thats the length of the (3) 2x4s that you need.
*Buy 6 dowel pins about 6 inches long while at the hardware store getting your 2x4s.
*Drill two holes 4-inches from each end of each 2x4 while they are seated in the brackets and keep going through with the drill-bit into the wall behind the 2x4.
*When you are home & before you go to bed, drop the 2x4s into place & insert the 6 dowel pins through the drilled holes & into the wall behind them.
Ok, its crude & Medieval, but lets see them try to pick / drill / pry-bar / push that door open…
Oh, and before you say it, I’ll tell you up-front…
Another vote for get a dog. Nobody gets within 50 feet of my house without me hearing about it. Hell, you can’t even walk past my house on the other side of the street, my dog will announce your presence. As will every other dog on my street. You can track an interloper by which dogs are barking in the neighborhood.
My dog barks if I say a very low, quiet “woof” to her. She’ll have no idea why she is barking, she even looks a little confused. But her deep, fierce bark will scare any potential bad-intentionado.
