Rural defense

[redneck]

Since you are building new you should also give some thought to line of sight from your windows, and any outbuildings you might have or plan to add.

Town is creeping out around us and we aren't nearly as rural as we used to be where I live, but in our experience and in reading the neighborhood crime reports, most problems still revolve around people breaking into cars and outbuildings. Home invasions/break ins are much less common.

In my case, we have decent sized horse barn behind our house, and nobody has ever tried anything with the doors on the front that are in plain view of the back of the house, but they have gone inside the barn and broken the tack room door open where they could work without being in direct view of the house. The tractor and tools are kept in the front of the barn, and those rooms only have doors that are plainly visible from the house.

I have to park my truck outside, and I keep it near the back corner of the house where a motion detector light covers it, and it is in plain view from multiple windows.

For the most part, anything that would be considered tempting to a thief is within easy view of a window on the house, along with the driveway and parking area out front. While too many windows, or windows too low to the ground may soften the house to a thief, not being able to assess the situation outside without stepping out of the house blindly puts you at a huge risk. I can't call the sheriff just because the dog barks, it very well may just be a racoon in the garden, but it could also be someone breaking into the barn, so I need to be able to check a couple windows and make sure the yard and front of the barn are at least clear before I go outside to investigate further.

I also recommend investing in a high powered flashlight if you don't already have one. For indoor use 3-400 lumens can be more than enough, but if you are trying to shine it across the back yard it will seem pretty weak. I carry a multiple mode light that can be used indoors on low or I can flip it up to turbo with 1100 lumens and light up most of the back yard, but you also just get one dedicated light to keep near the back door or wherever its most convenient.

 

[George P]

You might want to run wireless security cameras to your barn and other areas then.

 

[Jeff White]

There are a lot of posts in this thread that assume high speed internet is readily available in rural America. This is not the case. In much of rural America affordable high speed internet to run security systems is simply a dream.

I am fortunate in that I live about 300 yards line of sight from a local wireless internet providers tower. But many rural residents aren’t so fortunate using hotspots on their cell phones to connect other devices, if they are fortunate enough to live where they have a reliable 3 or 4G cellular signal.

 

[George P]

Wireless security doesn't always have to rely on the internet

 

[Jeff White]

My oldest son designs and installs IP security systems for the largest company in Southern Illinois. You are talking significant additional expense to build and maintain a private network with enough bandwidth to handle video especially if you want to transmit the signal any kind of distance.

 

[Deltaboy1984]

Find who a good Neighbor and who not! , A Bull plus Dogs makes a good team!

 

[George P]

My oldest son designs and installs IP security systems for the largest company in Southern Illinois. You are talking significant additional expense to build and maintain a private network with enough bandwidth to handle video especially if you want to transmit the signal any kind of distance.

Never said it was cheap; just that it was another alternative. Personally, guns, dogs, barbed wire, maybe electric fencing, etc. are all other options as well.

 

[InTheField]

We don't have wired internet in our area, but use cell based modems on our computers. Work great on 4g, which we are lucky to have. We use an Arlo security camera which uses a motion based video system. When activated, it sends an immediate notification to my smart phone, followed by an email. I can view the video on my phone and then call the sheriff if needed. It also records the video on a removable chip within the unit. By pushing an icon on the phone, I can also set the unit to sound an alarm. These Arlo units can be purchased through Verizon and each unit adds 5 dollars to my cell bill.The unit also comes with window warning stickers.

These units are great options if you don't have wired internet, but do have cell service.

 

[huntsman]

^ what’s you LEO response time? With your system is your goal to preempt or just record a B&E?

 

[Elkins45]

I’ve lived all my life (except for college) out in the country. The one piece of advice I would give is to always be armed.

If someone comes racing down the driveway and you’re out puttering around in the yard you won’t have time to go running into the house. You may have to fight it out with whatever you happen to have on your person at the time. I keep having to remind myself of this, especially in hot weather.

 

[InTheField]

^ what’s you LEO response time? With your system is your goal to preempt or just record a B&E?

The window stickers may preempt, as may the tone from the alarm. We are very rural, but less than 5 minutes from the sheriff's office. I can call immediately after my phone notifies me of entry (phone notifies me within 5 seconds of entry) and the law can be there within 7 or 8 minutes. Not enough time to enter a gun safe or fill a car with much other stuff. To complicate the bad guys escape, our drive is a quarter mile long through rough and steep woods. Even if they did grab a few things, they would probably meet a deputy on the one lane drive.

I also have trail cams on the drive that capture plate numbers. Easy and cheap.

BTW, I feel much safer living in the boonies than any place urban. Also of note, recent crime stats indicate residential burglaries are WAY down, most probably due to the newer types of home security systems that have become extremely popular as of late.

 

[JTHunter]

However, IF it hurts someone, even accidentally, it could open you up to lawsuits - much like the guys who have booby-trapped their front door against intruders with crossbows, etc.
Lights, dogs, alarms, fences, locks, etc. are IMO your best defense (along with guns and a signal to the sheriff

Check out those links. They are supposed to use pepper gas, flares, or BLANKS. Little chance of hurting anybody.

 

[George P]

Little chance is still not NO chance. We have all seen/read articles about criminals suing homeowners that caused them injuries while they were committing crimes -and won! Best to err on the side of caution. Electrified horse fence, cranked up, can be a nice deterrent.

 

[Officers'Wife]

Lots of great ideas. Thanks for convincing me to stay put in the city.

Perhaps, yet somehow I can't see a riot starting among the cows in celebration of a basketball win. Come to think of it not one liberal tried to start a fight during the Trump/Hilary election. I won't even mention when my uncle was test firing one of his newly manufactured Gatling guns and the neighbor called the sheriff's office only to be told to call back when my uncle ran out of ammunition.

 

[SSN Vet]

I'm in the woods just outside a small town, second and last house down a long private drive.

I put in a wireless metal sensing driveway monitor that chimes when a car comes down the drive. Just to give me or my wife a heads up to look and see who it is. That way we're not surprised by a knock on the door.

 

[huntsman]

My cousin lives 1/2 mile from me, built his log home in the woods so no visibility from the road, he was hit twice, second time with alarm system.

Seclusion and isolation may seem comforting to you but to a thief it’s attractive for another reason, nobody will notice them. with response time of 1/2hr or more on low priority calls something as simple as a neighbor seeing a strange car in your driveway may be as beneficial as a security system.

Unless of course your real concern is home invasion.

 

[roo_ster]

...the bull with the sense of entitlement...

Were we to move to the country, my wife would no doubt build a mangerie of disparate critters. I will have to clue her in to keep an eye out for entitled bovine.

 

[George P]

In my original post I forgot to mention that this advice was, in fact, the exact same advice I gave years ago to folks concerned about their home security down here in the endless suburbia that is south Florida... Your best defense is not only good neighbors - but also you, yourself -- being a good neighbor (and if a bit of tolerance for minor defects of one neighbor or other is in order - I'm all for it).

I'm sad to say that at present I don't know all of my neighbors (fair number of young families moving into my neighborhood this past year or two... with small kids.... ) . Hope to rectify that sooner rather than later...

Hopefully, with folks with small kids; there will always be someone around. Where I used to live, it was the opposite - all retired folks, there were ALWAYS eyes and ears watching everything (and the nosy gossip that goes along with it! ); but my neighbors were great. One lady, now 92 still mows other peoples' lawns........

 

[boom boom]

Were we to move to the country, my wife would no doubt build a mangerie of disparate critters. I will have to clue her in to keep an eye out for entitled bovine.

If you go country, have her include guineas--NO ONE sneaks up on guineas without a lot of racket being made. See point 4 https://morningchores.com/about-guinea-fowl/

Geese also make a pretty good substitute and these are very territorial plus noisy.

 

[Fine Figure of a Man]

If you go country, have her include guineas--NO ONE sneaks up on guineas without a lot of racket being made.

That's true but I'm not sure if I'd rather listen to guineas or get robbed.

 

[boom boom]

My grandfather (and my father growing up obviously) had guinea hens around the home place and they do make a racket but they eat a ton of bugs of all sorts.

They also used ducks to clean out the weeds in the cotton fields. Add onry mules and goats and you have a complete menagerie that will scare off most unwanted visitors or animals. Ill tempered Brahmin bulls also work.

 

[George P]

I have seen peacocks used as guard animals, even llamas

 

[Keith G]

We have Guineas. They will guarantee that you never have a moment of peace and quiet.

 

[luzyfuerza]

We have Guineas. They will guarantee that you never have a moment of peace and quiet.

...and neither will your neighbors. Better have lots of land if you're going to use guineas as night watchmen.

 

[OneFreeTexan]

Guineas and peafowl both,, a little noisy,, but the males really look cool,, and no intruders....don’t find the guineas to be particularly noisy