Bars on your windows?

but it sure beats dying in a fire because you couldnt get out.
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That's already been addressed with quick releases inside the house. But in my childhood home dad planted something called Spanish bayonet plants under all the windows. they were very popular around here for awhile. They were very effective

My sister got one almost all the way through her hand and I carried the tip of one in my left bicep for about a month.

For some reason it happened to both of us right at 16 years old and neither could remember how it got there.
 
I've seen neighborhoods in Miami where bars are so common, you'd almost think they were required by code. As long as you're not welding something at home out of rebar and angle iron, they're safe and can be quite attractive.

Paranoid? Half the guys on this forum carry guns to Walmart, and they call you paranoid? :rolleyes:

Busted window easy to notice? on the back of the house?

Alarm system is great. Itr will keep people from staying long and taking a lot of stuff. The cops will show up and give you a report which you can give to your insurance company so you can get your money back less deductible and whatever amount is over your exclusion limits.

Rural areas with little crime are great as long as they aren't within 100 miles of a major city. In a rural area convenient to a big city the crooks will back a truck up to the house, knock down a door or bust a window and fill up the truck. Neighbors can't see it, dog barking or not.

Alarm systems, dogs, guns, cameras, and barred windows are all reasonable deterrents, IMO. All of them have their place. Neighbors will whine about bars, but their stuff will get stolen first 'cause they weren't "paranoid".
 
In my old house I put bars in the basement windows. It was a weak point in the house and I figured a daylight break in was more likely than a home invasion. We had a run of daylight break ins in the neigborhood, so I decided to install them. The bars I had were easily opened in an emergency but could not be opened from outside.

In my new house I'm considering barring the basement window. Alarms would cover it well but bars reduce the tempation a bit.

You can tell if your new neighbor is from the city. First thing they do is install a new screen door that is heavy guage steel with deadbolt locks. Then the alarms, then the bars on the windows.
 
Here's another consideration:

If yours ends up being the only house in the neighborhood with bars on the windows, isn't that a signal to would-be burglars?

"Hey, there's GOOD STUFF in here, stuff worth protecting with bars on the windows!"

-blackmind
 
its just like car anti theft devices.

there is no "thief proof" car out there. But if your car is in a parking lot and there is another one that is the same make model and everything, but yours has an alarm, club, or whathave you, it makes your car less desirable to steal.

Bad guys are just as lazy as you and I. Why go through 3 steps to steal a car (or break into a house) when there is another one just like it a few feet away that only requires 2 steps?

Nothing is 100%, all you can do is make your item (car, house, etc) less desirable than the ones around it.

Something is better than nothing basically
 
why not plant some sharp prickly things under and around the windows like large rose bushes? Works kind of like barbed wire, but much more pleasant to look at.
 
Bars aren't a bad idea in basements or lower levels of the house. Also, white bars seem to be less noticeable.

I generally keep the blinds closed where anyone can see into the house at ground level. It makes the dwelling more of a mystery box for burglars. I'm sure they'd rather take the stereo and big screen tv they can see in my neighbors house than go for the "mystery box". Not to mention, all they might find in my "mystery box" is a Browning Hi Power 9mm next to a very pissed homeowner who was disturbed while watching tv. Then there's trouble. I don't think that is a risk most burglars want to take.

A security system is a great idea. However, if you want to save some money, just put up a couple of "brinks security system" stickers on your windows. If you can't afford the system, might as well bluff the BGs into thinking your house is secure with those stickers.
 
Entry Bars

My home has decorative bars on all windows and doors. It came with the house when I bought it. Had nothing to do with the reasons to buy the house.
Now...four years later I am glad they are there.
The bars are just another reason for the bad guy to go look elsewhere and I may not have to kill anyone because they did. Just because I can does not mean I want to.
My family tells me they feel much more secure when I am not home at night too.
Add the fact I have an alarm system with it I have learned to like it very much. I also live in a neighborhood that should not require it.
But then those are the neighborhoods the bad guys look for...where they have something worth stealing. Like my room full of firearms........
The bars are just the first line of defense. Nobody gets hurt line of defense.
 
Might I suggest a dog. I have a dog that alerts me to anyone in the yard or pulling in the driveway. Small dog, BIG bark. No one is coming in without thinking they're gonna get mauled by some big dog. Also have Holly bushes planted by the first floor windows. Roses or thorn bushes work well too. Thieves want an easy in and out, they don't want to climb thru thorn bushes and get bitten by a dog.

There ARE alternatives to turning your home into a prison.
 
I lived in a house with bars over the windows for 3 years. After the first day, never thought about them again. Not one break in during those three years either, so they must have worked. :)
 
In case of fire, walk out the door. If the door is blocked by fire, remove the bars from the window and climb out the window. In fact, having bars that you can remove in case of a fire is preferable to climbing out the window onto a bayonet plant, rose bush or cholla cacti.
 
Agreed. Several designs of bars are easy to remove from the inside, but difficult to remove from the outside. My friend had bars in his apartment building, ground floor. They lock into place but can be unlocked(not sure how), pulled up and swung out of the way if he ever had to get out.
 
If you live in an area where bars are necessary, then you might consider moving.

If moving is not an option, Bars may be necessary. They allow sunlight in at least, but I think the Hurrican shutters are the way to go because bars are unsightly.

Consider this option:
Get a trained dog that will bark if there is an intruder. Less expensive than bars and more enjoyable. Spend the money that you would have spent on bars to buy a good floor safe, where you can store all of your valuables. Bars won't protect you from a fire, but a safe will protect from a fire or burglarly.
 
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