Improving security of mom's apartment

[Alex45ACP]

Someone banged on the door of my mom's apartment at 1:30 am a few nights ago, and when she looked out the peephole nobody was there. This got her thinking about home security.

It's a 3rd floor 2 bedroom apartment, unsecured (anyone can enter the building), with a small balcony.

I did a search for "apartment" in the Strategy and Tactics forum and got a few good ideas already. One clever one which I'm going to tell her about is getting a large pair of used men's work boots to leave outside the door. I also like all the ideas about longer screws for the lock and etc., but since this is a rented apartment I don't think extensive modifications are an option.

I seem to remember seeing on this board some kind of brace one can put under their doorknob, that prevents the door from being forced open from the outside. Do those work well? Any other ideas? I also hate the fact that the maintenance people have a key to her unit, but can anything be done to mitigate that?

Would an alarm be a good idea?

She already has a 642 for CCW, and also doubled as her home defense gun, but she recently moved to a state where CCW is illegal. She keeps the 642 by her bed, but I'm going to suggest that she start carrying it when's she's home. I also have a GP100 that I could lend her, I was thinking this might be a better home defense gun because it has much lower recoil.

 

[Water-Man]

I improved security for my mom (she's 93) by having her move in with me.

 

[kenno]

I would upgrade the lock system to a higher level, use 2-3" screws for the hinges and oversized strike plates so they screw into the door frame, add a second dead bolt and a brace bar.

 

[kenno]

I would upgrade the lock system to a higher level, use 2-3" screws for the hinges and oversized strike plates so they screw into the door frame, add a second dead bolt and a brace bar. If the landlord complains, he won't, tell him the improvements will stay with the apartment.

 

[cbrgator]

Is the apartment wired for an alarm system? A small dog is a good alert system too. They bark their heads off.

 

[captainofiron]

Don't underestimate cats when it comes to ferocity.

I plan on buying myself a Maine Coon for inside security, and a German Shepherd for the backyard.

 

[uspJ]

the first thing you should do is talk to the building manager/superintendent and tell him about the incident and express your interest in making the apartment more secure. he may agree and allow you to make the improvements yourself or he may wish to have their own maintainence personell do the work.

i can't really see him not allowing the improvements, the economy is bad right now and the number of people who can afford their rent is steadily declining and alot of apartment complexes are doing what they can to keep their renters. if your mother doesn't feel safe there moving to a different apartment may be the best option.

another option may be to ask the rest of the tenants if they would be interested in having a security door installed on the entrance of the apartment and see if they would be willing to donate to having it done if the building owner won't pay for it himself. with the burglary, theft rate rising many tenants would most likely be in favor of such an option.

hope all turns out well, best of luck.

 

[Ithaca37]

Don't underestimate cats when it comes to ferocity.

I can attest to this. At least mine certainly can be as ferocious as any dog and has many pointy ends with which to shred human flesh (ask me how I know).

 

[JDoe]

The Brace you were looking for is



At HomeDepot

Master Lock Dual Function Door Security Bar

Model # 265DCCSEN
Store SKU # 250113

$19.65/EA-Each

I think this could buy a few extra seconds and result in a lot of noise if a determined person was trying to force entry.

 

[eddism]

I agree with the notify management. Ask to install servelliance. This can be done for a couple hundred. And well worth the expense.

 

[EHCRain10]

Longer Screws in the hinges and strike plates of the door would be cheap and nobody would be any wiser that you had installed them

 

[MarineOne]

Those Master Lock braces are great. I've got two of them and tested it myself; you'd need to remove the entire frame to get in because of the way it wedges the door into the frame when you force it open.