Tuesday, March 4, 2014

Protect Lawn Decorations From Theft

Many homeowners take great pride in caring for their lawns. Many people spend lots of time planting various types of colorful plants. Others spend a significant amount of money on decorations to dress up their lawns. If you enjoy decorating your lawn, whether for different seasons or just the holidays, you may become a target for thieves. Fortunately, there are steps you can take to protect your lawn decorations from theft.


Instructions


1. Choose heavy items for lawn decorations. For example, stone statues, rocks and wrought iron furniture will make it difficult for thieves to make a quick getaway with these types of decorations. Use thick rope to tightly tie down any lightweight holiday decorations on display in your yard. This may deter or at least slow down any thieves who attempt to run away with your inflatable Santa Claus.


2. Install outdoor lights around your house. Place lights around walkways and driveways. Install a motion detector that will turn the lights on if someone enters the yard. This will surprise intruders and may cause them to flee. Choose outdoor lighting that can also serve as accent lighting for decorative purposes.


3. Place home security signs around the outside of your house. Position your security signs near your outdoor lighting. This combination will likely discourage thieves from choosing to steal ornaments from your property because of the fear of a more sophisticated security system around the corner.


Place various types of prickly plants around your yard ornaments. Planting a cactus or sticker bushes around your decorations will provide a natural deterrent against thieves. Invest in electric fencing around your decorations. Electric fencing will give the thieves a nice little shock when they try to steal your property.


4. Adopt a dog. Adopt a homeless dog form your local animal shelter. Protect your lawn decorations by training a great guard dog. Dogs not only make loving companions, they will protect their owners and home. Thieves will be less likely to approach a home that has a barking dog.


5. Join or start a neighborhood watch group. Create a neighborhood watch team to serve as extra eyes and ears against thieves who might like to steal your yard ornaments. Make sure all members of your group are aware of any thefts in your neighborhood and what actions to take if they encounter a robbery in the future.


Tips Warnings


If you don't want to adopt a dog, you can still give thieves the impression that a dog lives there. For example, set out a big dog bowl or dog collar that looks like you own a large dog. Also, consider displaying beware of dog signs around your lawn.


Police presence is not always available when lawn theft occurs. Since the police don't consider lawn theft a top priority in comparison to other crimes, don't display any items in your front yard that are of great value or significance to you.