Tips on Burglar Proofing Your Sliding Glass Doors

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You know that sliding glass door that you are fond of because it is so big and allows so much natural light to come in? Do you know who else is fond of those doors? Burglars are. This lovely home feature is basically a welcome sign for countless burglars. You may be wondering why. According to information provided by a former burglar, here are a few reasons:

1. They are often left unlocked — according to his experience, oftentimes people forget to lock up their back sliding glass doors.
2. Their locks are simple to “pick”— even when the glass sliding doors are locked, most can be easily unlocked with a bit of jiggling the handle around.
3. The contents of your home are on display — it is very easy to see all of your awesome belongings through those large windows, however, burglars do more than window shopping.
4. They are in your backyard — this is an area where the chances of being seen by neighbors or passerbys are minimized.
5. They are made of glass — if everything else fails, glass is pretty easy to break. And there is a bonus for the burglars, tempered glass is used for safety purposes when making glass doors so they are not concerned about getting cut.

So, now that you are aware of this, what are you supposed to do? Must the sliding glass doors be permanently boarded up? Do they have to be replaced with large steel doors that lock? Although those two are options, they are not the best ones. Keep reading and you will learn the three ways in which burglars are able to break in through your glass sliding doors as well as how you can deter or prevent each method.

1. Bypassing Your Lock

What the majority of sliding glass doors include is a lock which is more of a latch. This is not something you should depend on to keep burglars out of your abode; remember all it takes is a bit of jiggling to unlock this mere latch.

What Can Be Done About It?

Install a lock on you sliding glass doors that is more reliable. There are many options but here are the most highly recommended ones:

• Security Bars: these are metal bars that are very strong and attached to one side of your door frame; they are then extended or folded back into place and braced against a glass sliding door so that it is locked into place.

• A Brace: It is easy to create your own, cut a piece of 1×1 wood or dowel to the width of your door tracks when they are closed then to “lock” your door, simply place the brace in the tracks.

• Traditional Locks for Sliding Doors: One of the most popular types of locks that sliding doors use is really just a bolt that is attached to the sliding door. When it is closed, the bolt will slide up into the door’s frame securing the doors. With the use of a key, the bolt is locked into position.

• Double Bolt Locks: This type of sliding door lock is a bit newer. A double bolt lock consists of two pieces, one which attaches to the door’s frame and another that attaches to the sliding door itself. When the door is shut, the piece which is attached to the door frame is nestled inside the piece that is attached to the sliding door. Metal bolts will then slide into the piece which is attached to the door frame, therefore, securing the door.

• Door Sensors: Although in no way a substitute for a proper lock, door sensors will improve the safety of your family, belongings, and home. If your door were to be opened, the alarm would be triggered and many times the mere sound of an alarm going off is enough to scare off a burglar as the last thing they want is attention being drawn towards them and their devious acts.

2. Lifting the Door Out of the Actual Frame

The second way in which a burglar is able to enter your glass sliding door is by actually lifting it. With the use of a crowbar, a burglar is able to lift the door up and move it off of the tracks and out of their way. You may be wondering how this is even possible, well it is. When the frame was made, this is exactly how it was put into it. All that the burglars will do is reverse this process.

What Can Be Done About It?

This may sound familiar; install a sliding glass door lock that is better. All of the above-listed options will work just fine and prevent a burglar from being able to simply lift your sliding door right out of its frame, with the exception of security bars.

3. Breaking the Glass

Even if you have installed the best door locks or sensors, a burglar is still able to break through your back sliding door by simply breaking the glass. You may be thinking that this would make quite a bit of noise, yes it may however if you are not currently home, they are still able to grab a good amount of loot and get out before anyone arrives.

Besides, even if you are at home, they could see something that they would really like and believe that they are able to quickly get in and out so they will simply break the glass, grab what they want, and leave.

What Can Be Done About It?

When it comes to your home security system, the glass will always be a weak point. There are however a few ways in which it can be strengthened, for example:

• Have Your Door Replaced with a Sliding Door That Is Impact Resistant — Many companies dedicated to doors and windows now provide impact-resistant sliding doors, also known as “hurricane proof” and these cannot be broken easily. They are however heavy, difficult to install, and quite pricey.
• Window Film — Security window film is a protective sheet that is very thin and can be placed over glass making it more difficult to actually break through. This does not mean that your glass sliding doors will be impenetrable, however, it will make your home a target that is not easy to get into and allow more time for the law enforcement of the area to arrive, especially if you pair this with a glass-break sensor.
• Glass-Break Detectors — with glass-break detectors, when glass is broken in your home, your security alarm system will go off. Much as with door sensors, many burglars are scared of the mere sound of an alarm. As a matter of fact, one burglar admitted in an interview that even seeing one was enough to send him to the next target. “When a glass-break sensor is detected, they are aware of how secure the home actually is and they steer clear of it.”

What we suggest is that you install dual-tech glass-break detectors. The more traditional acoustic glass-break detectors will sense the frequency of glass breaking and your security system alarm will be sounded. That being said, it could also lead to false alarms over something as simple as a glass breaking.

However, acoustic glass-break technologies as well as shock glass-break technology are combined by dual-tech glass-break detectors. What this means is that both the shock against the window and the frequency of glass being broken will be sensed by the detectors prior to setting off an alarm, this will minimize any false alarms.

4. Find A Good Locksmith

Locksmiths come with an array of home security services. They can install locks securely, check the security of other points of entry to your home, and install home security monitoring systems. Be in touch with a local locksmith for a home walk-through- they can suggest what can be done to secure your home.

Author Bio:  Americas Lock and Key, based in Tampa, is a licensed company with full insurance which provides locksmith services around the clock. 24 hours a day 7 days a week. No emergency is too much for this reliable, experienced, and honest company of professional locksmiths. 

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