/diy/ - Do It Yourself

>>2000119
>finished basement
Your biggest mistake that will be the source of all your headaches. Basements should not be finished.

>>2000141
I live in a desert. I grew up in NY, so I get what you're saying.

>>2000119
I think you mentioned just about everything except getting an alarm, and sliding latch locks (for when you're home). Only real way to go further would be to put armor in the walls, and install bollards on your property, both of which cost quite a bit of money.

>>2000172
Oh how i would love to have lally columns 4' in the ground and spaced 6' apart along my front yard to-be.
>rent post hole digger (mounted to a bobcat or similar)
>sink, level, and support columns
>rent mixer
>order pallet of quikcrete
Seems like a 3-day project? I don't know how much lally columns are... Home depot doesn't carry them?

Is an alarm really that helpful?

>>2000186
>Is an alarm really that helpful?
It will give you early warning of an intruder, especially if there's more than one security door between you and the outside of your home.

>>2000119
"If you think I'm crazy, look at portland last year. look at DC this week. look at chicago and detroit since forever ago."

You just named a pile of some of the most gritty, crime ridden shitholes in the USA. It's not that you're crazy, but if this stuff is a pressing concern for you more than buying an ultrasafe vehicle or trying to hedge against economic/currency turmoil, then its because you're living in an awful place. I hope you find happiness, anon

>>2000119
Cactus at the base of every window, and Mexican fence cactus instead of an actual fence if you have the money.

>>2000119
>If you think I'm crazy, look at portland last year. look at DC this week. look at chicago and detroit since forever ago.
They don't want to break in to take your things, they want to break in and take your things because they hate you.
If they can't break in, they'll burn your house down.

>>2000119
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4YYvBLAF4T8S
So here's everything you need to know about door security. If you jump to 42:42 you can find his lock recommendations. This is a guy who's job is literally breaking in to places so he knows what he's talking about.

>>2000119
Make sure the cameras you get aren't IoT shit that's gonna get hacked and turned into a burglars spycam. Encrypted offsite backup and/or well hidden onsite storage. No automatic garage door opener. Make sure the door from the garage to the house is as secure as any other external doors. A dog, doesn't gotta be big or anything but something that'll bark like mad at a motherfucker trying to jimmy a window. Don't display political signs to avoid reprisals. Don't display NRA signs, stolen guns are good money it makes you a target for thieves. And it's not specifically house security but break down the boxes of any fancy new things you buy so they're not visible in your garbage.

Make good friends with your neighbours.
It goes a long fucking way.

>>2000119
The best defense is a good offense so get out there and kill those boogie boys or whatever the fuck they're called!

>>2000383
This!
It is as cheap as a cookout and it's more effective than the most expensive alarm. Neighbors who like you will call the cops if your house looks like it's being ransacked, if they don't like you they will join in.

>>2000119
get a doggo

>>2000424
Unless the burglar doesn't go around at night with a ski mask, but comes daytime while you're at work with a van, an overall, a toolbox and a friendly smile saying "good day" to your neighbours as he proceeds to take your stuff... (This accounts for a significant amount of burglaries)

>>2000119

Where do you live? Why so paranoid?

Just install motion lights, dead locks on the doors and buy a semi auto shotgun.

>>2000458
>Not installing a Seismic Buried Security System

>>2000186
Fuck a monitored alarm. Don’t pay some monthly fee so some useless woman can call the cops for you. Have a big dog and a gun.

>>2000424
>get a doggo
Nice try ATF
>>2000119
>A shotgun (semi auto mossberg), handgun (glock, they work great), and an SBR (which is technically illegal in the US I suppose so just get a legal bullpup or something, no idea, not in the US)
>A heavy heavy heavy safe to store that shit in, bolt it thru the floor preferably.
>Window bars
>Possibly create a saferoom

On a semi related topic, my fiancee wants us to build a bunker next to our house.

>>2000478
>my fiancee wants us to build a bunker next to our house
Nice. How are you planning to do it?

>>2000482
No fuckin idea desu, probably dig a big ass hole under our yard, gonna be hard because we are in the suburbs of a city. Pour a fuckton of concrete over rebar, connect to the house by busting through a basement wall.
We have other stuff to do right now tho. I inherited a house from my grandparents. Needs quite a bit of interior remodelling. I also need to rebuild the garage doors and tear down an attached old house. The yard isn't big (650 m2 footprint with the house) so I'll regain a lot of space because the attached house covers around 120 m2 of it.

>>2000119
remember to protect yourself from those pesky rodents anon

>>2000498
some of them can grow really big

>>2000370
If they can't break in, and you have aluminum siding with reflectix behind it, I'm not seeing how they'd be able to burn down the house either. It'd require stuff that your everyday retard just doesn't have access to.

>>2000119
>window laminate
Enjoy burning to death when emergency services cant access your soon to be beef jerky body.

>>2000468
Not him but I live in So. California, so this shit would just be going off 24hours/day :(

>>2000141
Why

>>2000119
Get this, the greatest weapon ever made.
You will thank me later.
Also /DIY/ FEAR THE STEEL CHAD.

>>2000119
Zip tie your garage door release so it can't be pulled with a coat hanger. Don't use a remote keypad. I also cut scrap 2x2s to fit vertically in the middle of each bottom section to prevent the door from buckling if it was pried. I dunno if anyone even attempts entry like that but whatever.

>>2000172
>bollards
Just throw some tetrapods around.

>>2000119
>window laminate
Thanks, Bro.
I've got a couple big windows on my garage that I've been worried about ... it's like a thief's display case for the tools and whatever I have out there.
I was thinking about something mirrored or frosted, but I hadn't thought about strength.
Just did some googling and found a frosted security laminate that I think will help deter thievery.

Thanks for reminding me to look into this!

>>2000478
SBRs aren't illegal they're just "regulated". In other words you have to pay the big man $200 and give him your fingerprints so he fucks off. Or don't and just don't wave it around like a retard.

>>2000119
Large decorative planters
>2-3ft of sand in base
Bulletproof

>>2000186
>Is an alarm really that helpful?
You can make a non monitored one, mount in attic. House already had window/door sensors from previous. Just wire up

>>2000119
>What are some good ways to secure your home?

White neighbors.

>>2000141
Basements in modern homes are build with better understanding of how water penetration works.

>>2001425
No they just changed what the definition of basement is. Modern construction method is to stockpile a mound of dirt in the front, have steps to front door when you didn’t need to, so that you can have a walk out “basement”. I’d rather have them grade it for a slab and level 1st floor all around. An actual basement is 4 walls beneath ground and is usually not a good idea unless your groundwater never comes close to that elevation and you have non clay soils since you aren’t installing drain pipe to magically put water away from it. And yes it’s a bad idea to finish an actual basement, that doesn’t have the advantage of drain pipe to somewhere downhill

>>2001278
I guess it’s more decorative than sandbags and it’s drive by proof.

>>2001290
This is the correct answer.

>>2001438
Saying basements can't be nice and dry and that all basements elevate the 1st floor is ignorant.
Making a basement is a question of money. Cities are full of basements because the land value is high.
Water table is less important than you think, most of the basements for new buildings I have worked on have been near the coast where the water table was above 3/4 of the basement depth.
When you build on clay you don't have to backfill with clay.

>>2000119
Why don't you just buy a house in a 1st world country?

>>2000750
I’m not sure if you’re trolling or not.

>>2001529
Not trolling, there's no reason why a house that has aluminum siding and a non-flammable insulation would catch on fire if the fire starts outside.

>>2000119
>>blackout curtains drawn from day -1
Yeah, fuck natural daylight.

>>2000141
>>2001438
My house was built 40 years ago with a half basement.
I ripped out some walls this fall, and there's no evidence of water or even excessive moisture.

During that time (some years ago) we had a "one in 1000 years" rainfall in this area ... and my basement appears to always have been dry, so I'm not worried about some imminent water problem.

I'm not sure where your "finished basements are bad because basements should be damp" idea came from.

>>2000119
don't have anything worth stealing
if someone still robs you, it's easily replaced

all your ideas basically advertise "MONEY HERE, ROB THIS PLACE, LOTS OF LOOT"

If I had a basement without windows I would double down on securing that.
Any room above ground with windows and a wooden door is so easy to enter.