Sooner or later, everyone is going to find themselves locked out of their homes. The emotions doing this will create cover everything from embarrassment to fear. If you don’t want to go through the embarrassment or fear related to locking yourself out of your home, there are some measures you could take to prevent such lockouts. Let’s look at a few options.
Carry a Spare Key
While this option might seem obvious, you would be amazed at how many people don’t carry a spare key to their homes. If fact, a lot of people will carry a spare key on the same keychain as the original key. One would only benefit from doing this if the original key were to break when being used.
If you are going to carry a spare key, you need to keep it on yourself, separate from the original key. If you use a cell phone cover, put the spare inside the cover. If you decide to stash a key outside the house, you need to get creative. Burglars will always check under mats, on window ledges, and above the door. The best place to stash a key is somewhere only you would ever think to use.
Leave a Spare Key With a Trusted Neighbor or Nearby Relative
If you aren’t comfortable stashing a key around the home, your next best option is to leave a key somewhere close to your home. If you have a neighbor that you truly trust, that could be a viable option. If you have a relative that lives nearby, that too would be a viable option.
Of course, this option would only be beneficial if the person you leave the key with is easily accessible. If they aren’t home when you place the call or knock on the door, the lockout continues.
The Layered Option
The layered option would require that you put in place a series of actions that would eventually lead to the house key.
Let’s say you have a garage that opens with a garage door opener. Opening the garage would be your first layer. If you want to stash a key outside the house, you could make it a key to the garage.
In the garage, you would hide the actual house key. The chances a burglar will find the first key and then go into the garage and find a second key are very slim. You can create as many layers as you want, only restricted by your imagination and your ability to remember the path you created.
Install a Key Lockbox
Technology has a way of eventually solving all problems. If you so choose and want to make the investment, you could purchase and install a high-grade electronic lockbox somewhere around your home. Inside the lockbox, you would put your spare key. The only people who would be able to open it would be the people with whom you entrusted the code.
Of course, a highly motivated criminal might try to open the lockbox by force. That’s why quality matters. If the lockbox is near impossible to penetrate without making loud noises, most burglars will take a pass.
Install Smart Locks
Again, it’s technology to the rescue. Everything we have around the home can now be operated remotely with software and a cell phone. That includes our garage door openers and house locks. By installing smart locks on your doors and windows, you would always have the option of using your cell phone or another remote device to unlock the door or a window.
There is a downside to this option, especially for women who carry purses. If you were to be locked out of the house because you lost your purse, it’s highly likely your cell phone and or remote device are in the same purse.
Ideally you want to hire a professional, like A&B Locksmith, to do the job for you, as they have the expertise and skill to do it right.
Maintain Locks
There are two primary reasons people like you get locked out. One of those reasons is related to locks that break or malfunction. Absent the application of blunt force, locks will usually work fine until they start to wear down. You can prevent lockouts caused by aging locks by inspecting and maintaining them on a regular basis. When issues appear, you would be better off paying to replace your locks than going through the stress and potential expense of a lockout.
Install Locks That Lock From the Outside Not Inside
The other reason people like you get locked out is that they forget their keys and lock the house from the inside before they realize there is an issue. You can purchase locks that require a key to lock them from the outside. While there is a risk you might leave without locking the door at all, there would be no risk that you will lock the keys in the house
Working as a cyber security solutions architect, Alisa focuses on application and network security. Before joining us she held a cyber security researcher positions within a variety of cyber security start-ups. She also experience in different industry domains like finance, healthcare and consumer products.
