Something goes bump in the night. It wakes you up and you hear noises outside your home. You could take any number of actions but I’d like to share one tactic that may not readily come to mind.
Bad guys don’t like attention or noise when they’re trying to accomplish nefarious deeds. That’s why dogs, even tiny ankle biters, are such good home protection assets. Through barking and running around they sound the alarm by creating noise and commanding attention.
You may or may not have a dog, but the vast majority of you have a very loud, and obnoxious, battery powered alarm sitting in your driveway – your car.
In my home, we have two drivers and two cars, each with two keys. I keep the key to my car and my wife keeps hers. We store the second set of keys in our bedroom near our bed.
The reason I keep our extra car keys in the bedroom:
Should something happen in the middle of the night: teenagers playing in the street at 3am, neighbors arguing, animals invading our garbage cans, or someone attempting to break into our home, we can quickly and easily hit the panic button on the key and set off the car alarm – creating noise and calling attention to whatever it may be.
Is your car alarm something that will deter 100% of things you don’t want outside your home? Probably not, but it is a very simple step you can take to add one more layer of protection and utilize an asset you already have.
What if I don’t have an extra key?
I can hear the keyboards clicking away: “But I like to keep a key to both vehicles on my key ring and therefore don’t have an extra to leave in the bedroom all the time.”
To that I suggest you hop online and order an extra programmable key. For my 2013 Honda the blank key costs around $30 on Amazon.
Then do a little sleuthing with a search engine and find a step by step tutorial on how to program the new key to work with your vehicle. At this point it’s a blank key, only the buttons work, ready to store next to your bed.
If you want to get this third key cut and make it fully functional you can get that done at the dealership or your local locksmith.
How do I keep the extra key accessible?
We hang our keys via a small hook I’ve screwed into the headboard. You could also take the binder clips that you’re using in your pantry and clip the keys to your bedside lamp or bed frame for easy access. Using zip ties, twist ties, Velcro or Command strips, you have endless attachment options.
Just make sure to secure them somehow; searching in the dark for the key you knocked off the bedside table isn’t going to help you much when you need the alarm to be making noise and commanding attention.
Additionally, test your keys before you need them – depending on where your bed is in relation to where the car is, the transponder may not reach that far. Fresh batteries may also help to maximize your range.
It’s simple, cheap, and effective.
I’ve used this simple hack in two different houses and thankfully have yet to need it. It’s a simple change you can make with equipment you already have and adds one more level of security to your home.
What are you waiting for? Get those extra keys next to the bed and give yourself another line of defense.
Is this tip helpful? Could it be helpful to someone you know?
Do me a favor and pass it onto them.
Share it on your neighborhood facebook community page – a well prepared neighborhood benefits everyone!
Don’t forget to pin it on Pinterest for future reference.