How to Stop Garage Door Break-Ins | Number One Way Thieves Get Into the House!

In this video I show you how thieves break into garages and then can ultimately get into the house. I also go over some of the best ways to stop those garage door break-ins from happening in the first place.

Items in the video:

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Blessings,
Adam

How To Home assumes no liability for damage or injury. How To Home highly recommends using proper safety procedures and professionals when needed. Our content is for entertainment purposes only. No information contained in this video shall create any express or implied warranty or guarantee of any particular result. Any injury, damage or loss that may result from improper use of these tools, equipment, or the information contained in this video is the sole responsibility of the user and not How To Home. How To Home will not be held liable for any negligent or accidental damage or injury resulting from equipment, tools, electrical, fire, electronics or any items contained in this video. Attempt projects and repairs at your own risk.

[HowToHomeDIY]

These techniques of breaking in are nothing new to the bad guys but hopefully this was eye opening to you the homeowner! If it was helpful please let me know and if you have some other techniques that you use, I would love to hear about them! 👮🏻‍♂

[TheSafecrkr]

As a former locksmith I have used some of those ways to let someone back in their house. Kudos to you for bringing this up we're all the homeowners to see.

[MichaelW]

Useful information. Let me add to the "not letting people know what you have" part. When buying new electronics - TVs, laptops, monitors, etc. - when discarding the box, cut the box into panels and bundle them with all the marking on the inside before setting it for recycling/trash pickup. That way it just looks like regular plain cardboard and not the box for your brand new 70-inch 4K TV.

[CavMom]

Those slide bar locks on the side are great! When we would leave for a trip, my husband would put a padlock 🔓 on it and of course…unplug the opener

[r.f.pennington]

Former LEO here, also. My experience tells me that the #1 way a BG came into the house was through an unlocked door between the garage and the home itself like you mentioned. There's only so many frequencies and at times BGs drive up and down the street pressing a half-dozen openers. When one actually opens, they'll sit and scout the area. Also, I'm remembering that the #1 reason a vehicle was able to be lifted from a dwelling was that the owners parked in the garage...but left the key in the ignition. This was a good vid and thank you.!

I've also found that you can't beat a neighbour for security when you're gone, like Christmas. The only problem is that we usually fail to get to know our neighbours. It's worth the effort, I assure you.

[sambailey]

Always nice to see people giving security awareness and tips without talking about thousands of dollars in equipment!

[krs]

Important for you to mention that the red string is not just a manual release for power failures, it’s an *emergency* release in case someone gets crushed and trapped by the door. Something to consider before removing the pull handle, shortening the string or removing altogether. Not advised if you have small children in the house. The bright red handle is intended to make it obvious in an emergency what it is for, for the surprisingly large number of people who don’t know that power openers even have a manual release.

[ReadTheShrill]

If you're installing a garage door opener: there are certain brands that have pulls that you have to pull straight down. If you pull it forward (toward the door), it doesn't release. You should look around for one of these.

[kathiehacht]

I’m an old 74 lady I found this very helpful. Thank you fixing it tomorrow.

[fisch]

Another tip for the glass windows in the door: Buy a can of window frosting and spray to conceal the view but still allow light penetration!

[rb]

Wait, people don't lock the door that leads into the garage??? I'm always astonished when I hear about all the doors that people don't lock. I grew up in a boring rural town in the middle of nowhere where nothing ever happened, but I was still taught to keep every door locked at all times. You walk in and you lock the door, you walk out and you lock the door. Same thing with my car, you get in and you lock it, you get out and you lock it. It's still automatic behavior and I'm 42.

[JoeFrickinFriday]

The note about windows embedded in doors is a good one. We installed a garage side door some years ago that had windows at the top. These were nice for letting daylight in, but we wanted to not afford a clear view for anyone from the outside, so we installed privacy film on the windows. This still lets light through, but blurs images, so nobody can really see what's inside your garage. Search your favorite home improvement retailer, this stuff is available in anything from a simple frosted look to things like rainbow/floral/stained glass, whatever suits your taste.

[LH-kjhj]

Retired police chief here. Excellent video and tips!

[trinidadmiller]

As a widow living alone it's good to have several options available. Thanks for sharing your knowledge of prevention to keep me safe at home or while away.

[chrissewell]

Another good tip is, with all the new wireless camera systems, place cameras outside the garage area (to see thieves sculking about) and place one inside the garage (to check if the door is up or down, while away from home! And get notified if the door goes up / down, when its not supposed to.)

[grntchstrmdws]

My first impression on viewing this was that it was a school for thieves. But I appreciate the low cost, low tech solutions you've pointed out. In my "gated" community, the garages are quite vulnerable with few windows facing them. And there have been several attempts by people who appear to have tried to open the door simply by using a pry bar beneath the door. The only thing they accomplished was to deform the metal a little. If you don't have a pool noodle handy, you might have some polyethylene foam pipe insulation on hand----paying attention to the foam diameter and the size of the garage pull. Also, the most valuable things I keep in my garage are bicycles. I secure them with cable locks to heavy equipment (drill press stand) or a cinder block. Finally, get to know your neighbors so you feel confident when you're away for extended periods that they'll have your back if anything suspicious is going on.

[wangofree]

I use a cut off broom stick to block the top of the door from opening while on vacation. Definitely recommend installing deadbolt on interior door into the house. Helps protect you if you accidentally leave your garage door open at night.

[northwind]

Before you even got to the pool noodle, I ran down to the garage and removed the pull-cord. I ran a split ring in through the hole where the cord had been and fashioned a wire hook, which I hung on a screw above my bike. You'd have to have seen the split ring to have any chance of catching it with a coat hanger. Thanks for the tips.

[BlondieSL]

This video is vital to watch! I for one, did not know that thieves could just use the old wire hanger trick to gain access that quickly! I'll be adding a shield today and remove the rope itself and make it a "clip on".

As for the report, I NEVER leave it in the car. I always take it into the house and I always put the steering wheel bar on and clock the doors. So no issue there.

*But as for the Smart Chamberlain garage door opener, HERE'S A WARNING ABOUT THAT!*

If you already have one and you haven't updated its App, PLEASE DO NOT UPDATE THE APP!

As a computer tech, I only "update" something if it has a problem that an update addresses/fixes.

The other day, the Chamberlain App was nagging to be updated, so for fun, I went to the App Store to see what the update was about and moreso, WHAT THE REVIEWS SAID! I have been avoiding updating it because it works perfectly and away from the home, I can confirm that the door is closed and if I wanted to, I can open or close the door. This is as it should be.

So I'm reading the reviews and not surprisingly, apparently Chamberlain has SCREWED UP THE APP!!!

Now, people find that they can no longer control their door WITHOUT PAYING A STUPID MONTHLY FEE! (to be confirmed).

First off, that's ILLEGAL and breaks the purchasing contract!!! When we purchased it, it had a lifetime warranty on it and the app was FREE to download and USE! They legally cannot just change that, so I'm expecting some legal action to happen there.

So if you do have the App, I'd highly advise to NOT update it! I hear that they now want $10 per INSANE!

Hope that helps.

[satinwhip]

You mentioned the unlocked door between the garage and the house. I grew up in an outer suburb of Pittsburgh, PA in the 60s and 70s that was basically crime free. We never even locked the house. Ever. I never had a house key the entire time I lived there. It's sad to see how society has deteriorated in the last 40 years.