Do-it-myself alarm, I guess

[Leo Enticknap]

Along those lines of thinking, you could just leave music playing in the lobby over-night, and a light on somewhere. It might be just enough for them to assume someone is in the building and turn around.

As a low cost option, light switch timers are available, including ones that go on and off at random between specified times to create a "building in use" appearance from outside.

[Ryan Gallagher]

As a low cost option, light switch timers are available, including ones that go on and off at random between specified times to create a "building in use" appearance from outside.

Could also tie indoor lighting circuits to outdoor motion sensors during certain hours, but the random idea is cool too.

[Randy Stankey]

Alarms aside, it would also be a smart thing to put a bell or electronic chime on your front door so that anybody who comes in will be "announced." Just that, alone... the idea "somebody knows that I'm here" is a powerful force in changing people's behavior.

You don't have to have a chime or bell working all the time. You can turn it off (or disconnect it) during business hours. You can turn it back on when you lock up at night.

Also, a motion-sensing light fixture outside your front door is also a good idea, just for practical reasons. What if you or somebody else walk up to the door when it's dark outside? It would be nice to have a light turn on when you approach so that you can see to safely navigate your way. It's a bonus that the light can act as a deterrent, too. If you hook that light fixture up to its own switch you can control it separately from the rest of your lights and turn it off when you don't want it. Most modern motion-sensing light fixtures are made to stay on, full time, when you "double click" the light switch. That way, if you need extra light at the front door, it could be seen as a safety feature.

I'm only saying "front door" as a figure of speech. You can put chimes and motion lights on any door or doors that you think you should. You know the security needs of your building better than we do.

[Frank Cox]

I have lights that work like streetlights (on at dusk, off at dawn) over all of my outside doors, including the fire exit.

After investigation the current theory is that the guy who broke in came through the fire exit and the metallic banging that I heard wasn't from the lobby where I found him but from the auditorium when he was pounding something to open the latch on fire exit door. Accordingly, the reason nothing was taken or damaged is simply because I turned on the lights and found him in the lobby within a minute or two of when he entered the building and he hadn't had time to damage or steal anything yet.

Being a fire exit, the latch on that door is one of those push bar things and it's illegal to have a real lock on it. So I have now had an anti-tamper plate fitted on the outside of that door, similar to this one:

images.jpg

Apparently without that plate it was possible to force a thin piece of plastic or metal into the gap between the door and the frame and depress the latching mechanism enough to open the door. This is supposed to make it much more difficult to do that.

Now that there is a steel security door between the lobby and our living quarters the chance of us waking up in the night with an intruder standing in our apartment is greatly less than it was, so that part is a solved problem. It's still possible to break in here but it'll make a lot of noise.

My main issue now is somehow being able to see what's going on in the lobby without having to open that door. After much Internet research I ended up ordering one of these:

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I'll see how well it works when it gets here but it appears to do what I want to accomplish and for $150 it's about the cheapest solution I could find that looks like it'll work.

It's a Vtech baby monitor and it has noise detection and night vision built in. It's supposed to let you know if your baby is crying but noise is noise.

If it ends up not doing the job I can always get the more expensive solution later on. One of the fine fellows who posts here has kindly offered to source me the components to build a "real" surveillance and alarm system if it turns out that I need it, and for a damn sight less than $6000.

(You know who you are and thank you once again for making me that offer!)

[Randy Stankey]

There is also something called a "Z-plate" which replaces the strike plate on the door jamb. It has tabs that stick out to block any implement that might be used to bypass the locking bolt. Depending on your door hardware, you might be able to get a Z-plate which can go on underneath, the astrigal plate you have already installed to provide a one-two-punch to any would be burglars.

From your picture, the lockset you have looks sturdy. That would be the second place to look for security improvements. I don't know about the fire code in the Great White North but is it legal to install a deadbolt that can be thrown at night? Two locks are harder to pick than one.

The only other thing I might suggest for that door is to put weather stripping all the way around. That will help prevent somebody from dropping a string through the gap to activate the door handle from the inside.

Years ago, I used a ten foot long piece of movie film and slipped it through the gap, above the latch on the other side of the projection booth door. I made a loop, weasled it down and hooked it over the inside door lever then gave a tug on the film. The door popped right open! I only did it to prove to somebody that the door could be opened, from the outside, without need of the key or combination. There were proverbial chins on the floor when people saw how easy it was to bypass the lock on that door!

Point being, it pays to take a few minutes to look at your doors to see if there are security flaws that somebody could use to break in. If fifty bucks worth of supplies and an hour's worth of your time can prevent a burglary, I say it's money well spent.

BTW: The reason I suggest motion sensing lights is because they turn on when somebody approaches. The element of surprise or the feeling of being watched adds to the psychological effect on a potential thief. It also increases the likelihood that a passer-by will notice the light turning on at odd hours of the night. If a cop sees your security lights going on and off when they normally shouldn't, he's more likely to investigate.

[Frank Cox]

That picture isn't my door, it's just one that I found online that shows the anti-tamper plate.

My fire exit door (on the outside) shows nothing at all. Other than that plate, now. There's no outside door handle.

On the inside it just has a pushbar like you find on the doors at rinks and schools and such. You're not allowed to have any other type of latch or lock on your fire exit door.

[Randy Stankey]

If it's a traditional crash bar style lock, an astrigal plate is probably sufficient.

Do make sure your door jambs are sturdy. IF they are steel door frames set in a cement block wall, they probably are. I assume that the door has anti theft hinges that can't be popped out with simple tools. Yes?

I'm sure that you've already gone around and checked all your door hardware to be sure that everything is tight and nothing needs to be fixed.