# Shop Security



## sillac (Oct 31, 2010)

First of all I am new to LJ but in looking around for forums, blogs or information about, shop security, I have found very little on this subject and what I did find was a closed for further comment.

I am just buillding my shop and am very interested in shop security. I was ripped off once, remodeling an old house and the basement door was hard to get locked and I think a real estate person left it unlock after showing the house to someone, anyway I lost about $400 in hand tools, of course it was under the deductable.

What I wold like is if any of you have been ripped off, how was it done and how will you prevent it the next time. Also ideas on how to make the shop more secure.

A few things I am doing or will do are;

I have put lag screws/bolts into my door jams on the hindge side and cut the heads off so about 3/4 of an inch sticks out and a drilled hole in the edge of the door that lines up with the cut off bolt, (this hole has to be enlonggated for the door to close) so that even if the hidge pins are pulled the door still can't be removed. On the other side of the door is a good dead bolt that is keyed on both sides. I have done this on all of the shop doors.

The windows will have heavy screens on the outside (these may be in metal frams on hindges and bars on the inside.

All hand and small power tools will be out of sight in drawers or cabinets that can be locked.

I will install a motion detector for the inside of the shop with a 30 to 60 second delay for a code to be entered or both an inside and outside alarm will sound.

Record serial numbers and have photos of all tools.

Can anyone think of anything else? I hope this information can be of help to others.

Thanks for your input, Steve


----------



## Gregn (Mar 26, 2010)

Welcome to Lumber Jocks Steve,
I use expanded metal on my windows myself. If others will be allowed access to the shop signs posted to keep all doors and windows locked. Security camera's that have off site storage to possibly identify thieves. Oh ya one other thing a big shop dog. LOL


----------



## NBeener (Sep 16, 2009)

Somewhere, I got a BIG booklet, from the San Diego (California) Police Department on securing your property.

You may check online, or give them a call, and see if they'll mail you a copy. GOOD stuff.

They HANDED me the booklet when they CAME to my house to conduct a "security audit."

Maybe your local law enforcement folks will do the same for you ?

I thought it was time well spent. I thought I'd thought of everything, but they gave me a few very valuable pointers that I had missed.

*EDIT*: I found their web page, with all kinds of good info. I imagine the PD website for any major city would be FULL of useful tips !

http://www.sandiego.gov/police/prevention/homesec.shtml


----------



## Abbott (May 10, 2009)

I have photos of everything, insurance and of course decent locks. I also have 3 large windows in my shop that I don't feel like building bars for as I don't want to look at them. So I have my bets on photos and insurance. If I do get a break-in I hope that will be good enough to cover it.

Welcome to our forums!


----------



## sillac (Oct 31, 2010)

Thanks for the good comments. So Neil, what are some of the very valuable pointers that the security audit opened your eyes to?


----------



## juniorjock (Feb 3, 2008)

Photos and ser. numbers are great, like mentioned, but where do you keep these photos? If you keep them in your home and there's a fire, you've lost your photos. And if your shop is attached to the house, you've lost your tools too. I can't say too much about it, cause my lazy ass hasn't taken any photos or recorded numbers yet. Just like everything else, you need a back-up….. a safety deposit box or something…..


----------



## NBeener (Sep 16, 2009)

They

- asked me to put ply over our screened glass, within our back door
- suggested I lag some eye bolts into the garage joists and put a long security cable through the eye hooks and through the frames and wheels of our six bicycles
- told me that gravel and thorny plants, around the house, would both let me HEAR somebody milling around out there, AND make breaking into a window much less enticing,
- told me to use security deadbolt 'receivers' that were much sturdier, and install them with 3" or greater screws
- liked the lock I put on our back gate
- liked my solar powered, motion-sensing flood lights on the front of the garage, and the front of the house
- advised a video inventory of all our valuables-just walk and talk, with a camera, and explain what everything is
- suggested pin locks for all our double-hung windows
- obviously, if your shop is accessed via a hollow-core door, replace it with a solid-core/steel door.

Those are the majors that I can recall. It's been about 3yrs….


----------



## NBeener (Sep 16, 2009)

And … to *juniorjock*'s point …. storing those pictures in one of the online picture sites, and/or with a relative/friend … makes sense.

Or … a copy at the office.


----------



## sillac (Oct 31, 2010)

I remember in one of the blogs, that is closed to comment now, that the blogger or one of the bloggies, said that he had a gun to take care of the bad guys, then someone else said that he knew several DAs that know of people who get in a big pickle (not a good thing) from shooting unarmed bad guys. My comment is that if we want lower crime we should do as the country with the lowest crime rate does. Which would be….drum roll please…any guesses?.... Switzerland!!! yes where every household has a gun, and if the can't afford a gun they are issued you a gun and everyone is trained on how to use it and use it effectively. Now that would make the bad guys think twice!


----------



## NBeener (Sep 16, 2009)

Insurance IS a must. I totally agree with Bently, there.

The old saying, though, is that the goal is simply to make YOUR place LESS ATTRACTIVE a target than the next place.

But … the other old saying IS that you really can't stop a true pro.


----------



## NBeener (Sep 16, 2009)

Without taking this far afield, and in violation of the rules of this site …. Switzerland ranks 13th (#1 being the worst) in burglaries.

The US is 17th.


----------



## gwlewis66 (Aug 25, 2009)

i have a hidden switch outside of my shop for the 220 volts going to the door knobs and a sign that says keep out and caution for electric


----------



## sillac (Oct 31, 2010)

Ben, thanks for the comment, and of course your right. I hope we all learned a good lesson from your bad expereance.


----------



## sillac (Oct 31, 2010)

Beener: I stand corrected, I read that from someone else that didnt' know what he was talking about…LOL, but they are 20th in total crime and the best would be Yeman, but then it is not a crime to kill and cheating wife, in Yeman, or the guy she was with. Don't think I want to live there, really really don't want to.


----------



## MayflowerDescendant (Oct 9, 2010)

In addition to the many good points already mentioned …

1. Security decals visibly displayed on all windows and doors.
2. While it may be nice to openly display your tools, if that makes them too visible to passerby's (pedestrians or in vehicles), reconsider the concept or enclose / cover them when not in use.
3. Use of cable locks or on/off switch locks - Certainly, whenever you leave your tools unattended outside. Not only for safety sake (kids can't come along and start playing with your chop saw!!), but to make it more time-consuming for the thief (may re-consider or take less valued / unsecured items).
4. If you are already alarming things, consider adding motion-activated video monitoring.
5. Like Abbott above, I didn't like the thought / look of bars on windows. I had a friend who works at a metal fab shop custom cut and weld a metal screen on the inside of my shop window, behind the window blinds. From the outside - no trace (or bars), just window and blinds. The metal screen has adequate holes to let light in when I open the blinds, but not large enough to pass anything major through. It's welded to L-shaped steel that is pre-drilled and lag bolted into the window frame and studs - both from the side and inside. To see what I mean, check out my benchtop parts cabinet project … it's in the background … http://lumberjocks.com/projects/38573
6. Put your automatic garage door opener on vacation or lockdown mode. This dissables the ability to come by with a transmitter and open your door from the street. Sure, that includes yourself, but you can still operate by entering the garage and hitting the switch manually. The trade-off is worth it in my mind.
7. Don't let strangers come by / wander in the shop unattended. This goes for service folks, etc. I specifically meet unknowns outside the shop. You never know who they tell about your shop later.

If I think of anything else, I will append.


----------



## cabs4less (Nov 2, 2010)

locks are just there to keep honest people out. Insurances is the key I hate admitt cause I really dont care for industry but they are necsary evil. I keep everything out of view and let my hundred pound doberman sleep in the shop at night if all that doesnt work I live in alabama we make texas look like the aclu


----------



## KnotWright (Nov 6, 2008)

First I sure hope "greg" iis only joking about the 220 volts to the door knobs, its illegal and VERY hazardous to a firefighter if they are called to your place of business.

Habor Frieght has a DVR with 4 cameras on sale right now, I'm thinking of this, two cameras for outside and a pair for inside. Install the DVR in a remote location.

Most police will tell you that a good watch dog is sometimes the best deterrent. Both my dogs are VERY vocal, but not so aggressive as to concern my insurance company.

A timer on a light in the shop is also a good way to deter thieves , if you can find a random one that kicks in after dark, then its even better. When I was in Austin, I had it set up to turn a light and a radio on, the radio was tuned to a talk radio station.


----------



## dbhost (Jul 20, 2009)

Trustworthy watchmen with BIG loaded guns and no fear of pulling the trigger maybe?


----------



## TopamaxSurvivor (May 2, 2008)

No need to repeat the suggestions above. Unfortunately, I have extensive experience in tool security :-((

220 is considered a set trap and premeditated murder. I did use an electric cattle fencer on the door of my work truck that had been hit numerous times in the early 90's. I think 3 slimeballs got bit by it ;-)) ) It is difficult to set up because a fencer doesn't have the capacity to energize a whole vehicle and insulating for 20,000 volts is not just a couple wraps of tape. It takes some effort.

Firearms aren't a very good idea for legal reasons. You had better be in fear of your life when you pull the trigger, plus the civil suit for wrongful death of a slimeball. I have wondered why there isn't a counter suit for not aborting a slimeball? Or allowing them to prey on the public??

One thing a 12 gauge will tell you for sure is if the slimeballs are drugged up. When they came back for a 2nd look at it, they definitely must be!! Or, totally insane!

Big dogs with a big bark seem to be the best deterrent IMO. I have too much experience in this fact of life. Abnormally slow moving vehicles at night have always been a indication of trouble to come. Usually, if they get a good look at an armed guard, they will abort the mission. If I see a suspicious character in the neighborhood, I snap a picture of them. That is usually the last time I see them.

People coming to ask about things for sale when you have no ads posted are just making an excuse for being at the door when some one answers it. I posted a sign during the 90s that said, "Nothing is for sale, leave while you still can." I couldn't believe the slimeballs still knocked on the door, claimed they didn't see the sign! Obviously they are up to no good when they are trying shield their face from being seen after they knock. They always have a look out/ get away driver waiting in their vehicle.

Nuf of that, I'm starting to get po'd ;-(


----------



## gwlewis66 (Aug 25, 2009)

i was only kidding about my door but just a thought my only hope is no one breaks in


----------



## randi (Sep 5, 2010)

Motion alarm if you have a shop that you can secure and no pets will be wandering in.
Simplest solution.
If you have high dollar tools you are protecting have it on cellular system to call out.
Phone line is first thing they cut if they know you have an alarm.

If you cant do motion, have all points of egress on points alarm system.

In either case have VERY loud audible horn that is not easy to disable.

If you are in a remote location, and your shop us unwatched for long periods, make EVERYTHING as hard as possible to take.
Locked tool cabinets, bolt down saws to benches etc etc…

Motion lighting at night.
Cameras are just a bandaid, I have seen tons of footage of people commiting crimes on camera…obviously they did not care .

Don't booby trap anything, huge liabilty risk.


----------



## TopamaxSurvivor (May 2, 2008)

greg, after loosing thousands of dollars worth of tools, I was surely tempeted )


----------



## yarydoc (Oct 16, 2009)

I had an intercom that was sound activated. One was in the shop the other was by my bed. Thunderstorm came through and it rolled my butt out of bed at three in the morning. This would have been funny but the wife was asleep next to the intercom. Got a dog. True story.


----------



## TopamaxSurvivor (May 2, 2008)

Speaking of upset wives, during the heyday of Slimeball activity, I wire up a system on my van to trigger the van alarm, turn on 3 - 500 watt quartz lights to provide instant daylight and turned on a radio full blast to surely wake me up. My wife absolutely hated the system, but it saved replacing my tools several times in the mid 90s. It was hard wired, fool proof and no false alarms.

Only one guy ever stuck around to see what happed next after the instant daylight. He was setting in his car across the street peering back and forth into those bright lights. They were placed optimally to serve two purposes; first to provide light in the correct areas for my maximum visibility and secondly to provide cover. It is difficult to see anyone standing near one of those lights in the dark. The guy that stuck around to see what was next after the system was triggered kept looking and looking. Finally, he must have spotted me as he spun his tires leaving without even turning his headlights on. I was standing below one of the lights behind our vehicles and a chain link with my 12 gauge pump.

After quite a few responses, I got tired of my wife locking me out of the house if she thought I'd been gone too long. I had a house key on a leather lanyard attached to the stock. I forgot too many license numbers, so I had a pen and paper attached to the stock. I lost too much time coming back for a car key when wanted to get a license number, so I had a car key on the stock with the house key. Of course, one should take a flash light just in case you need to look around out of the lighted area, so I had a flash light attached to it. It was pretty well equipped so all I had to do was jump up, grab it and respond. It was pretty well equipped with anything I could foresee needing. I do hope none of you have to go through this just to keep your tools so you can stay in business. This ordeal started in July of 1989 and ended in April of 1998. I suspect one of the neighbors was at the bottom of it. He wasn't reformed very well in prison. He hired teenagers, including trying to hire my daughter, to break into houses because they would get off easy if they were caught. I don't know were he went when his dad sold the family property. I suspect back to prison eventually.


----------



## RalphBarker (Oct 26, 2010)

Hire a vet, arm him/her well. ;-)

Seriously, I'm of the opinion that security measures depend on shop location and the surrounding environment. Having good insurance is the first step, as mentioned by others. Then, make security obvious, so your shop/home is the least attractive on the block to burglars. Motion-activated lighting, security cams, and the like, are good in that respect. Make sure that the security cams are of high enough resolution that the bad guys can be recognized, though. Remember that keyed deadbolts are only as good as your door jam. It's better to "harden" door jams with steel plates that are screwed into a stud.

A good alarm system (monitored) is a good idea, as well. But, make sure that it is configured properly. Too many "delayed-entry" points pretty much defeat the purpose. The burglars can be in and out before the monitoring company reacts and the police respond (assuming they will even do so in your area).

I also recommend supporting "Castle Doctrine" laws. Such laws won't deter drug-addicted burglars, but they help protect the innocent citizens simply trying to protect themselves and their property.


----------



## RONFINCH (May 24, 2010)

Trespassers will be shot, survivors will be shot again…...just saying.


----------



## mtkate (Apr 18, 2009)

We were robbed just over 10 years ago. At the time I had no valuable tools but they took everything music related. I had insurance so we recovered but we could not recover from the fact that someone so easily walked into our home and walked away with things we had worked so hard to afford.

We've never been robbed again. I really wanted to do the booby-trapping but know it's not legal so instead:
- Always have two large dogs who like the outdoors
- Built a really cozy dog house for them to "hang" while we are out
- Perimeter fence to protect the dogs from getting hit by a car if they run away; and protecting the more vulnerable areas. My shop is in my home and not a side building.
- Good doors with Medico locks
- Alarm system with the stickers shown
- Additional "panic room" inside with a steel door (I can't believe we installed it ourselves and it hangs right!!!) reinforced with thick plywood walls, etc. etc. to contain the tools that don't require a dolly to roll out of the house…. medico lock of course…. 
- Motion sensor lights outside for the evening
- Made friends with the neighbors so they know who we are.

Honestly, I think it's the dogs with he fencing that are the key. And the dogs are a great addition to our lives. Unfortunately, our neighbor facing us got robbed last year during the day. He only has small dogs in his home…. and all his tools were in a garage shop so whoever did it just rolled up, broke the lock, and rolled away. The padlock was his only security deterrent. It's simply not enough.


----------



## TopamaxSurvivor (May 2, 2008)

We had a nice barking dog who past on just before the lowlife slimeball attacks of the 90s. I got another just before they backed off.

In my case, motion lights didn't seem to matter. I began to believe it just made it easier for them to see what they were dong. Of course, my tools were in a van, not fixed shop. The instant daylight system wired to the van door latch made a big difference.

On insurance, at the time it was so expensive, I was money ahead to absorb the loss. Hobby tools are one thing, iour livelyhood is a whole differnt issue. Cops still treat it as "just" a property crime. Wehave annexed into city, so we have police protection now. We had none before. They were too busy patrolling the big money neighborhoods to do anything about real criminal actitity in the rest of the county.


----------



## TopamaxSurvivor (May 2, 2008)

BTW,I credit our 100# dog with 2 saves. One on the house. 2 of our neighbors were broken into and I have positive evidence she ran the lowlife off ) The other one was on out son's Mustang. A Slimeball had been dropped off in our driveway. The dog went off. I got out there just in time to see the drop off vehicle backup to pickup the slimeball running down the street. FYI, I knew better than to shoot him in the back or mark the vehicle with buckshot for later identification. There were a lot of cars in the news at the time being stolen by a group from a neighboring county with this same MO.


----------



## rhett (May 11, 2008)

Nothing is fool proof.

My shop is on my property and I'm in the country. I have the normal motion activated lights, visible security cameras and an infared sensor that goes off should someone come up the drive. My 200# English Mastiff is good for the night watch.

I do alot of target shooting out by the shop and don't bother to pick up the brass, this way the riffraff know I care enough to be accurate. No need to have two sides to a story…...

KY is a castle state so anyone on your property that you feel puts you or your family in danger is fair game.


----------



## TopamaxSurvivor (May 2, 2008)

WA is not really a castle state, but I have seen a few cases in the last few years I thought the victim might have been in trouble but the prosecutors have declined to prosecute. I have had too much experience with these issues and I hope I don't get any more.

One thing we can all do is ask our selves if this person logically owns something when we buy a good deal off Craig's List. If there is no market for stolen property, there will be no theft.


----------



## Steve_B (Oct 30, 2009)

I'm a firm believer that locks are for two things. Keeping honest people out and insurance. I had a friend who bought an actual bank safe door, installed it in the basement to create a gun room. His step son bragged to his friends about it. Next thing you know he came home and there was a hole chainsawed in the floor upstairs and the room was emptied of it's 300+ guns. Solid door's with the dead bolts cut around open quite easily. Not to mention a chainsaw through the side of a house will gain entry really fast. The ways to get into your house are many, the ways to protect your stuff so few.


----------



## Maggiepic (Aug 26, 2010)

I 'll add another plus for dogs. Even though my dog is only a couch potatoe beagle, she woke us up at 4 in the morning, pacing like crazy. Believe it or not, she rarely barks. Our bedroom window faces the shop and my wife looked out and said someones out there. You want to talk about instant adrenaline. I was out the door with a six cell mag light and seeing red. Chased him down the back side of the shop, down the street, and tackled him in the neighbors driveway. My wife had called the police and they were there in less than a minute. I know this was not the smartest thing to do but I guess rage took over. The one night when we had forgotten to do a lock check at the end of the day was when he tried robbing us. My truck was unlocked and the shop. There was a rock lieing next to my wifes truck so we assumed he had thought of smashing her window. It was locked. He had taken items from my truck, gone through our camper and was just going into the shop. After his arrest, it was discovered he had worked over the entire neighborhood. He was charged with 7 felonies. The sick part is, even with 7 felony charges he only received 5 months in jail. He was released 2 months ago. The kicker is he lives 2 blocks away. I just keep spreading the rumor that next time I'm coming out with something I don't have to chase him with.

Got my blood boiling just typing this. I will agree that insurance is the best protection. Even the best locks can be beat, especially if you forget to lock them…..I kick myself for that one.


----------



## TopamaxSurvivor (May 2, 2008)

You are very lucky you had police you could count on coming. When I went to the local precinct captain to raise h*%&, he said he would look into it. A week later, I got a letter asking what my complaint was? They listed 2 of at least 30 911 calls I had made about lowlife in the pervious 2.5 years. I have never gotten any kind of explanation why their 911 system is not making a record of that many 911 calls.

I had contacted the US Attorney's Office in Seattle about King County's lack of fiduciary responsibility in the south county. They agreed to accept my complaint. With this new information, I knew I was screwed. The only record was the notes on my calendar. With the county denial of fact, there was no way an honest citizen could get any meaningful results.

The county was trying to get rid of unincorporated areas between recently incorporated and existing cities. I suppose there was some sort of manipulation of the 911 records to deny the existence of the problem even though the citizens were well aware of the problems. I had similar problems with speeders in a 35 mph zone doing up to 75 mph. There is no way to prove it without confession by honest political operatives in the county government.

I am thankful we finally annexed into the city with responses in minutes instead of years. It is the pits when you realize you are all alone in those situations and there will be no response until after shots are fired.


----------



## TopamaxSurvivor (May 2, 2008)

A friend of mine got a salvaged bank vault door to install on his gun room. He found a vial of clear liquid in it after it was installed. Another friend identified it as nitroglycerin. He ws very lucky to get the door moved and installed without it blowing up!! They used to install it to keep thieves from braking through the vault doors. I suppose the door opened, but there was no one left to retrieve the contents of the vault. Of course, that is socially unacceptable now days.


----------



## TopamaxSurvivor (May 2, 2008)

I am sure my experience sounds preposterous to many of you. Of the few 911 calls the county PD had in their records, there were calls missing for incidents which I had case numbers. How did they know to come, investigate and provide a case number? Osmosis? The only way to contact them for reporting criminal activity or fire is through the multi-agency 911 system.


----------



## TopamaxSurvivor (May 2, 2008)

I just happened to think of a little humorous thing that happened for this thread. Back in the early 90s, all the security cameras and monitors we have today were rare and expensive. I found a model at Home Depot with 2 cameras and a monitor for around $200. I installed it and it worked very well. I went back a few months later to get another camera to add to the set up. There were none to be found. I asked where they were? I was told HD no longer carried them. They were such a hot shop lift item, they lost so many they couldn't afford to sell them any more. It is getting pretty bad when even the thieves were concerned about thieves and security.


----------



## bigk (Jul 9, 2009)

I strongly recommend that if your shop has an overhead door with an opener that you put the opener's plug on a switch with a power indicator (switch glows red when power is on). A stray radio signal can trip the garage door opener, and viola! wide open shop. Some manufacturers actually set all of their remotes to the same code; fairly common for idiots (thieves) to drive up and down alleys actuating opener remotes looking for this.

My two cents about window security bars-after a while you don't see them any more. But even better if you close the window blinds every night. The idiots will not break in to see if there is something worth stealing, only break in if they see something worth their time.

It is my personal opinion that the idiots are idiots because of two reasons. One is that they are lazy. Make your shop harder to break into and they will go somewhere else where the pickings are easier, i.e. faster. Time is the idiots enemy. Think layers of deterrence and they will hopefully go steal from someone else.

Of course there are the obvious things that you can do to beef up your security: replace some of your hinge screws with 3" deck screws, better quality double-cylinder dead bolts, motion-sensor exterior lights, lots of lighting for the driveway, just to name a few. Best of luck with this.


----------



## sillac (Oct 31, 2010)

Thanks for your input, no i don't have overhead doors


----------



## TopamaxSurvivor (May 2, 2008)

The newer openers, last 15 yrs or so, have digital signals with a large vareity. Infinitely more difficult to happen on to the correct signal. The old analog only had about 10 different signals total. It was common for lowlife to go through a neighborhood seeing what they coould open.

This happened to me during the lowlife decade of the 90s. I was in the garage working one night when the garage door opened. I looked around thinking my wife of one of the kids had opened it. No one was in sight, but I had heard and seen a pickup driving by out of the corner of my eye. I went in and asked my wife if anyone had been out trying to get my attention? No one had been.

I went back to doing what I had been. About 15 minutes later, a pickup with 2 men in it drove by real slow shining a spot light on al the houses. Apparently they had driven through the neighborhood with a signal generator or a variety of openers and were coming back to see what they had opened.

I installed a switch to the power that was convenient to turn off when we weren't opening or closing the door. Later, I disconnected the remotes and installed hard wire switches.

There seems to be no end to the imagination of the lowlife community. I have worked in occupied jails a few times. Those bas*-/+s having nothing but time on there hands can invent ways to screw the rest of us that is beyond belief for me. If they put their unfathomable efforts into constructive effort, they would be millionaires.

It should probably be mentioned, since the issue of firearms has been raised above, their use is for the protection of life only.


----------



## Sarit (Oct 21, 2009)

I always thought about making a sort of honey pot trap, where instead of harming them, you merely trap them inside until the authorities arrive. Like you could make a walkin spraybooth with self closing doors and put in a fake portable safe. If someone tampers with the safe, the doors automatically lock you in. Of course the walls would be have to be framed in steel bars or concrete blocks. Be sure to leave some water in case they break in over the weekend. And might as well put a sign on the door that says "One may enter. None may leave". If someone says I'm illegally trapping someone, I'll say look at the sign, they trapped themselves.


----------



## TopamaxSurvivor (May 2, 2008)

You would be imprisioning and setting a set trap. Ask for a jury of your peers. There are not 12 shop owners in the world who would convict you, but who gets a jury of their peers. You get 12 people who aren't smart enought to get out of jury duty :-((


----------

