Locking up your house

[pg.]

We turn off the water to the house. We turn off the Hot Water Heater. We don't bother with lights. We do live in a pretty decent area,, with nosey neighbors all around us( we live in a cul de sac) so feel fairly safe .. We do have our mail picked up, and our paper stopped. We also have someone enter our house every few days to water my plants and attend to our pet. In summer , a friend comes by every other day and waters my patio garden.

 

I also take any of my stuff that is valuable to our bank and put it in a safety deposit box. I really don't care about missing a tv or computer as those are replaceable,, my moms earrings are not!

 

I wouldn't mind if somethings went missing( hideous Grandfather Clock my hubbys grandfather made from a kit.. ug a li.. LOL,, but I bet its the one thing a thief would leave!)

 

My real fear is fire. I would be so sad if my photo albums went up in smoke( some are very old,, filled with black and white family ancester shots from 1800's) they are too big for safety deposit box,, and irreplaceable. Also,, we have a cute adorable little pet hamster,, gosh ,, just typing about the possible demise of our little Joe( the second) is upsetting..!!!

[LHT28]

I certainly didn't mean to start an insurance spat, and I don't know what the deal is in Canada, but no American company that I know of requires such monitoring.

That is amazing they would not have to have some monitoring clause

 

I guess in Canada they do not want to pay if you leave the house unattended for several weeks/months & something goes wrong.

I still would have someone check on our place just because I like my things ..maybe I am a material girl :D

[boulders]

My insurance company in MN cancelled my policy after my house was vacant for 30 days. I still had a police officer entering the house every week as well as my realtor - usually multiple times a week. I also had a monitored security system. Didn't matter. Since there was no one actually sleeping there, they considered the home to be vacant and would not insure it. I did finally find vacant house insurance. It cost 3X as much as when I lived in the house. If you are gone more than 30 days or even a week, I'd check your homeowner's insurance to double check that you are still covered.

 

As a realtor, I heard of someone's (vacant) house where a pipe broke and caused $250K worth of damage. Insurance companies don't like to pay those types of claims out. If someone had been home, the damage would have been much less. I don't know if the insurance company paid out.

[StillPooh]

As a realtor, I heard of someone's (vacant) house where a pipe broke and caused $250K worth of damage. Insurance companies don't like to pay those types of claims out. If someone had been home, the damage would have been much less. I don't know if the insurance company paid out.

My dad was a snowbird, and was spending the summer in Virginia when a pipe broke in his Florida house. The insurance paid for the extensive damage to furniture and flooring.

[sapper1]

Wow, I've never even thought of many of these things like turning off the water to the toilets, washing machine, and ice maker. My sister comes every day to take care of the cats, and also brings in the mail and takes out the garbage. We live in a neighborhood where there are several seasonal residents, and to me the giveaway that no one is there is an accumulation of free local newspapers in the driveway, phone books, ads hanging on doorknobs, etc. as well as no garbage cans out on collection days.

 

We always turn off the water supply to the ice maker as we know people who had a major flood as a result of a malfunctioning ice maker. As well as turning off the water supply you have to raise the bar so the ice maker won't try to come on as the ice in the keeper shrinks. It will burn out the pump if it keeps trying to pump water that is shut off.

I know people have mentioned shutting off the washer taps but we also turn off the water supply to the dishwasher.

We also make arrangements to have the driveway ploughed and the walks shovelled to make the house look lived in while we are gone.

 

I have never encountered an insurance company in Canada that doesn't require a house check every 24 to 48 hours. If a furnace fails it doesn't take long for bad things to start to happen---like burst water pipes.

[Traveler353]

My insurance company in MN cancelled my policy after my house was vacant for 30 days. I still had a police officer entering the house every week as well as my realtor - usually multiple times a week. I also had a monitored security system. Didn't matter. Since there was no one actually sleeping there, they considered the home to be vacant and would not insure it. I did finally find vacant house insurance. It cost 3X as much as when I lived in the house. If you are gone more than 30 days or even a week, I'd check your homeowner's insurance to double check that you are still covered.

 

As a realtor, I heard of someone's (vacant) house where a pipe broke and caused $250K worth of damage. Insurance companies don't like to pay those types of claims out. If someone had been home, the damage would have been much less. I don't know if the insurance company paid out.

 

And I thought that our insurance companies were out of control down here. Yours sound just as screwed up. Since Hurrican Katrina my home owners insurance has gone up over 250%. It is going to go up another 18% next month.

I feel like just chucking the place and moving into a tent.:(

[LHT28]

I feel like just chucking the place and moving into a tent.:(

 

Would be OK in MS but not in the north country:D

[ikitravelers]

We are traveling internationally for three months. We do most of the ideas listed in the above discussion. Here are a few additions:

Change the auto insurance to comprehensive only. Disconnect the auto batteries. Install a steering wheel lock on each vehicle. Shut-off the water by the utility company and at the house. Close the telephone service. Then reserve current telephone number & schedule date for restarting service. As a preventive measure, we bait the attic & crawl space for insects and rodents. We also shut-off the refrigator. Before leaving we update "skype" with telephone contacts related to the house concerns. This includes the local reference libarian for phone numbers, & neighbor contacts. The gutters are cleaned (we live next to a green space.) All the yard entry gates are also "locked." We have a radio on a timmer in the garage. I leave a size 15 pair of boots next to the front entry door. While away from home I keep a list of reminders to do for the next trip that I learn from others like on this site.

[Traveler353]

Would be OK in MS but not in the north country:D

 

I hear you, I once spent two weeks in Alaska during the middle of the winter, -40F sleeping in dug out snow caves, for a Navy land survival school. Once was enough, thank you.

[BosoxI]

I leave a size 15 pair of boots next to the front entry door. While away from home I keep a list of reminders to do for the next trip that I learn from others like on this site.

 

 

It'd be my luck that some 6'6" 300# thief would break in an grab every vauable in the house PLUS my size 15 shoes.:D Fortunately, a security patrol passes our house frequently 24 hours a day and we have good neighbors, though there're empty lots across the street and on one side of us. Just a brief story about alarm systems and police. 15 years ago at 1:30 AM my wife accidentally hit the silent alarm on our system. That means that the call goes in to the alarm company no matter what. It can't be recalled. At 3:30 a knock at the door wakes us to 2 policemen. I said "Where were you? We would've have been dead had someone actually assailed us." Cops claimed they came immediately after the alarm company called them. Who knows? Makes me laugh when I see the ads for alarm monitoring that are on TV. Ain't worth a damn if the police don't show.

[bplazo]

We usually have a pet sitter who stays at our house. However, on our next cruise we will just have the sitter come in a few times a day and feed the babies, play with them and they said that they will check everything in the house.

 

After typing that I am growing a little concerned about leaving the babies by themselves because they sure love it when we are home with them. :(

[sjcruiser]

We have someone stop by everyday to feed and check on the dogs who are "locked up" but have access to a small portion of the downstairs and feneced in yard (through doggie door). They also bring in the mail. I unplug all non-essential electronics, turn water heater down, turn off faucets and unplug washer and dryer. Several of the lights are already on timer. I also let "close" neighbors know we're leaving, whose stopping by along with thier contact information and when we'll be back. We travel often and nover had a problem.

[sjcruiser]

Bosox I,

 

FYI due to the false alarms that the police frequently respond to, alarm calls are placed as a low priority by their Dispatchers, unless it comes from a bank or frequent domestic violence residences. That's why it takes so long for them to come, in most cases.

[PennyAgain]

To the folks who have their water shut off by the water dept. That absolutely means the house is unoccupied. If you need to file and insurance claim, it would take an insurance investigator 5 minutes to find that out and to also find out that your telephone was 'on reserve'.

 

Be careful!

 

on another subject: I live hundreds of miles from the Gulf of Mexico but after Hurricane Katrina, my household insurance rates nearly doubled.

[StillPooh]

To the folks who have their water shut off by the water dept. That absolutely means the house is unoccupied.

Why would you have the water department do it? You can shut your own water off at the main valve to the house. :confused: And our insurance company doesn't deny coverage if you go on vacation.

[euro cruiser]

When the entire family is traveling together, and therefore no one is around to check on things, I pay someone from my church to stop by every other day or so.

 

After a bad experience many years ago, every house I have owned has a gang valve for the water to the washing machine, and it's only opened when the machine is in use. Over the years it has become a habit to turn the water off when the load is finished.

 

I had a pipe break on the second floor while I was at the movies several years ago; by the time I got home, only a couple of hours later, almost $10,000 of damage had been done to the walls and hardwood floors. Turning off the water supply wouldn't have helped, as the heating system runs separately.

 

Also, because I live in the woods and I'm very low priority for the local power company, I have a generator that kicks on whenever the power goes out. That's critical in the winter to keep pipes from freezing.

[relaxandenjoy]

I have pets and just feel better when I know someone is staying in the house. I always find a responsible 20ish who still lives at home and would enjoy the "treat" of having their own place for a while. These are always responsible people I know from volunteer work or my workplace. I give them a little "spending money" for food but otherwise they're happy to enjoy my home and I'm happy to know things are ok.

 

For those of you depending on alarm companies - I work as a 911 Dispatcher. Be aware they're not all that prompt. A couple of weeks ago we had an armed robbery. The victim saw the robbers coming and hit the panick button before they even got in. However, the alarm company didn't call us until 911 had been called and officers had already been on the scene for more than 5 minutes!

[Gablin]

I will shut off the water next time I'm gone! I never thought of that, although I've done a number of the other things mentioned.

 

I live in a really low crime rate area, but our local newspaper had a circulation employee who broke into several homes, with his friends. He got the addresses from people requesting suspension of delivery for vacations. He was caught, but not everything he stole was recovered. Fortunately, I had canceled my subscription a long time before that. (I read online.)

 

I leave a few lights on and a radio turned to a talk station. Neighbors pick up free newspapers, etc.

 

My mother's house is vacant (and, for sale) and the insurance premium on it went down, since we didn't have to insure a bunch of furniture and household stuff. I did increase the liability insurance portion, because strangers (potential buyers and agents) will be in the house. Even so, the total premium is lower than it was. Fortunately, the house is in my fairly safe neighborhood, so we are not worried about anyone breaking in to steal the stove or whatever.

 

Nearby, my brother and his wife have not locked their front door for sixteen years. They lost the last key and have not bothered to replace it. They have had no problems at all.

[Treven]

I stop the mail as well as the newspaper, & take my dog to the vet's for boarding. I live in an apartment so a lot of the extra things I don't deal with. Also use a timer for my bedroom light.

A few years ago I was in the hospital and then a "nursing home" for a couple months. Fortunately I only live a couple blocks from work so my boss would come over a couple times a week & collect my mail - which she would bring out to me. It worked out quite well.

[wallygator]

After reading all this I do agree with many of the comments. But with the bad police men, postal workers, neighbors not to trust, pipes busting robbers, OMIG I use to call my alarm company and tell them to treat any alarms based on I was away from date/to date. Now they know to break in. Also I must have screwed up by telling my banks and credit card companies that if they get a transaction from my accounts from Euorpe or China, Russia during these dates I would be away so it’s ok it to break into my home now I'm away, Our grown children all who live close and who have all the codes and keys should we worry? Can we trust them?

 

OMG my job knows wally is on away on vacation they are certainly tied of hearing about it by now. And they have my address.

 

All these worries I understand and for good reason.

 

So tonight I addressed these thoughts for the safety of our home to the wife.

My proposal was to cope with all the possibilities it would be in our best interest to take turns travailing,

 

So I suggested we vacation separately that way we had everything covered.

 

Can’t tell you what she said.

 

 

Smiles to all it's good to be thoughtful keep doing it and be thank full you woke up on the right side of dirt today. Safe travels and to all a very Happy Holiday Season.

 

Smiles:):cool:

[beachchick]

In addition to all the other good suggestions (many of which we do as a matter of course), I highly recommend that you turn off the power to your automatic garage door(s), if you have them. Criminals have been known to go around neighborhoods with garage door openers hoping to find one that matches their frequency. If your garage is attached to the house, they then have a much easier way in (and privacy to do it after they close the garage door they just opened!).

 

beachchick

[sparky-elpaso]

In addition to all the other good suggestions (many of which we do as a matter of course), I highly recommend that you turn off the power to your automatic garage door(s), if you have them. Criminals have been known to go around neighborhoods with garage door openers hoping to find one that matches their frequency. If your garage is attached to the house, they then have a much easier way in (and privacy to do it after they close the garage door they just opened!).

 

beachchick

 

My in-laws learned that planes flying over can open your garage door too - although that was quite a few years ago and they may have improved the openers now. They got home from vacation to find their garage door open and the installer asked them if planes routinely flew over when they checked with him to find out if something was wrong with the door. So after that they turned the power off whenever they left.

[BosoxI]

In addition to all the other good suggestions (many of which we do as a matter of course), I highly recommend that you turn off the power to your automatic garage door(s), if you have them. Criminals have been known to go around neighborhoods with garage door openers hoping to find one that matches their frequency. If your garage is attached to the house, they then have a much easier way in (and privacy to do it after they close the garage door they just opened!).

 

beachchick

 

Our neighbors in Florida do that routinely when they go north for the summer. Good idea, as once when we were in residence during a severe electrical storm, up went our garage door. Probably much less frequent occurence in the rest of the country, but not in SW Florida.

[BND]

I have a question for anyone who turns off everything in sight when they go out of town due to fear of leaks, fire, etc. Do you do the same thing when you go to work in the morning or leave home for more than a few hours? It doesn't take long for any of these things to happen and they're no more likely to happen when you're out of town for a few days than if you just leave the house for two hours. A lot of damage can happen in an hour due to leaks. Also, anyone breaking in, stands just as good a chance of getting everything they want in a few minutes. I just think people have a false sense of security because they turn off the water or a few appliances while they're on vacation. It's more about making you feel better than actually making a difference. There's nothing wrong with taking sensible precautions with security, but as for turning off stuff, your odds are the same whether you're in town or not.

[Keith1010]

I have a question for anyone who turns off everything in sight when they go out of town due to fear of leaks, fire, etc. Do you do the same thing when you go to work in the morning or leave home for more than a few hours? It doesn't take long for any of these things to happen and they're no more likely to happen when you're out of town for a few days than if you just leave the house for two hours. A lot of damage can happen in an hour due to leaks. Also, anyone breaking in, stands just as good a chance of getting everything they want in a few minutes. I just think people have a false sense of security because they turn off the water or a few appliances while they're on vacation. It's more about making you feel better than actually making a difference. There's nothing wrong with taking sensible precautions with security, but as for turning off stuff, your odds are the same whether you're in town or not.

 

It's all about the odds. Yes, when we leave the house to go out for a few hours there is a risk of a leak by not turning off the water or even say the washing machine faucets.

 

However, when we go on an extented vacation such as the one that the original poster mentioned we think taking some good precautions make sense and that includes turning the household water off, the ice maker off since the household water is off, keeping the temperature at an adquate level to keep pipes from freezing, putting automatic timers on lights to be sure that it looks like people are in the house, stopping mail, and a few other precuationary methods. We don't do each and every item that has been mentioned but we think the odds do increase the longer you are away.

 

Like everything in life it's all about balance and reasonableness.

 

Keith