Garage Door Locks - additional security for your garage

Locks for your garage door? Yep! These great locks are not only available; they are affordable and can make a big difference in your security situation. They work for both home and business garage doors and by the time you finish reading this post, you’ll probably want some!

You may be thinking; what’s inside my Marietta, GA garage that anyone would want? You’d be surprised! Take a look around your garage interior and what do you see? Grab your calculator and add up what you’ve spent on your cars, bicycles, lawn mowers, ATV’s (all-terrain vehicles) motorcycles, golf carts and lots more! All of the above is just transportation; now what about the rest?

Wait; there’s more!

Just like the commercials say, “there’s more!” Add up other costly items like water heaters, water softener system, garden supplies, benches, tools, shelves, storage cabinets, boxed items and who knows what else? For a burglar; gaining access to your garage’s interior is like sending a child to Disneyland! They not only get immediate access to your property but they can also gain entry to your home via the enclosed privacy of your garage! Many people don’t lock the interior door leading from the garage into the house itself – they trust their garage door to act as a security barrier that can prevent unwanted entry. What they DON’T count on is someone prying your garage door open and then shutting it after getting inside. They cover any windows, flip on the light and are now free to walk into your home or at least pick the lock on the door in privacy.

What Can You Do?

Actually, there is a lot you can do to protect your property! Start by making it harder for crooks to gain access to your home or business interior. You can add a porch light or one over your front door or garage entrance. For a few pennies more you can get motion sensitive lights that turn on when there is movement. While this doesn’t guarantee your protection, lights like these go a long way in showing would-be crooks that you are at least being cautious.
Next, trim hedges, tree branches and bushes on your property. Many a crime has taken place after the victims were watched by someone hiding behind shrubbery or foliage that gave them perfect opportunities to observe their comings and goings.

Garage Door Locks

Here at Marietta Locksmith we recommend that you consider adding locks to your garage door. Start by going online and doing some research. Check with local Marietta, GA lock shops and home improvement stores. Ask questions. Check reviews. Inquire about installation costs and warranties. If you start to think that getting locks for your garage door is a needless expense, go back to your calculator and see what you added up in the way of tools, vehicles and other valuables stored inside – you’ll see that a few simple locks are certainly worth it!

Ask Questions!

Marietta Locksmith offers free consultations along with free price quotes on all products and services. Many other lock and key shops do too, so don’t be shy – ask questions about pricing, installations and usage of your garage door locks. YouTube has dozens of videos on the subject and you can get valuable tips on purchasing, do it yourself installations and user experiences by simply watching a few videos. Home improvement stores, your local Craigslist, and online stores like Target, Wal-Mart and Amazon also can be a wealth of knowledge and purchase options.

The Best Garage Door Locks

The best locks for your garage door are the ones that fit your garage door system including opener unit, alarm system and remote control. Be sure that your closer has a safety device that allows it to stop and reverse course if anything or anyone gets in the way of its closing. Be sure to check if the garage door lock you like can be used with an opener system as some are specifically designed for roll ups and tilt ups not operated by an automatic opener. A garage door T-Bar lock is a very common type of lock. It requires the operator to use a key to turn the handle, thereby unlocking the door. Please be aware that these are only for garage doors that open upward toward the roof. There are also cylinder garage door locks that are slightly higher in price but stronger and offer greater lock protection. For those that don’t want to spend a lot on garage door locks, you can opt for a padlock option that makes use of a small metal box that attaches to the side of the garage door. It makes use of a slide handle that slides through the track and locks it down with the addition of the padlock. Be aware that once the padlock is put into place and locked, you cannot open the garage door from the inside or outside without using your key or entering the right combination first to unlock it. Be warned – don’t attempt to use your opener unit once the slide lock is in place and locked; you are in for some damage if you do!

More Tips

If possible, try and get recessed handles on your garage door. You know the ones; they are released when rotated. Burglars hate these locks as they are recessed when locked and are much harder to smash off or pry off using a crowbar as the handle is indeed recessed.

Does your garage door have windows? Be extra careful if it does. Windows are easy to smash and the burglar has only to reach inside and release the garage door latch. Remember that we mentioned well-lit garage door spaces and motion sensors? Remember the trimmed hedge and tree branch comments? It’s much easier to spot someone burglarizing a garage door if the area is well lit and cleaned of foliage and debris! For more helpful tips be sure to contact our Marietta Locksmith shop and speak to our helpful and pleasant staff!