James:
First thank you for your site; helping others and spreading the word of Jesus Christ. A few years ago I came across a company called Armor Concepts and their product Door Jamb Armor. After watching video on their site, I decided to purchase three sets for every entry door to my home. I’m 100% positive that no one will kick in my door – in fact, one of their videos shows how hard it is to bust the door in even with a police battering ram. I’ll admit it’s not the most decorative, but I can almost guarantee very effective. (I’ve never had anyone try to break in).
I should also note that we got into the habit of always locking the doors behind us as well. You never know when someone may just try to walk in and take you by surprise.
Thank you again, and God bless. – Kurt W.
Sir:
I am a Vet and retired policeman and I would like to add a couple of my thoughts to Susan’s recent blog post about her home invasion experience. First of all, I admire Susan’s decision to fight for her and her husband’s life. Most of these type of events occur very rapidly which leaves the homeowner very little time to respond. Therefore, having a plan to deal with an event like this is critical. Just thinking about what you would do in the case of a home invasion puts you way ahead of most people. Develop a plan that is suitable to your family’s situation and practice it. If you don’t have small children in the home it gives you more options for placing weapons in strategic locations. If you have children in the home maybe you can fortify one room in the house to act as a safe room to allow time to call the police and retrieve a gun from a safe or lock box. Most home owners have no clue how easy it is for a normal size person to kick in a front door to a home that hasn’t been reinforced properly. I have read many articles regarding home invasions and the vast majority of these cases involve the criminal kicking in the front door allowing him instant access to anyone in the home.
In addition to Susan’s conclusions she learned from her experience, I would like to add two additional items. First, install quality security screen doors made out of heavy agriculture aluminum or steel and make sure they have a least one heavy duty dead bolt. Two deadbolts are even better. These doors are installed in their own metal frame and attached to the house using one-way screws. These type of doors prevents a person from gaining rapid entry to your home because they can’t just kick these doors in since they are made of strong material and close inward towards the door jam. An invader would have to virtually pull the door away from the house to gain access. If the invaders were still serious about going through a security door, at least it would buy the homeowner time to arm themselves and call the police. When these doors are properly installed and locked, a home invader would most likely try entry through a window which takes longer and can buy you time. So, you must also lock your windows as well.
Secondly, I strongly recommend anyone planning to defend themselves in their home from any criminal, to choose the caliber and type of weapon they intend to use carefully. I have no problem with .22 [rimfire] caliber, but I
would never choose it for a defense weapon. I’m not writing this to recommend any specific type of weapon or caliber since that has been discussed many times on this and other blogs. However, I am saying to choose a weapon that is capable of doing the job with as few shots as possible. And last, don’t place the weapon in a drawer or safe and never practice with it. The more you practice, the more efficient you will be in the event you ever experience anything like Susan did.
It is amazing how proper training kicks in during stressful situations. I don’t believe Americans should be paranoid about being a victim of these types of situations. By arming yourself and with the proper
practice you can have the confidence to fight for your life and perhaps save your family from harm. Regards, – Steve P.
Sir:
I wanted to reply to the “Home Invasion Robbery” article that was recently posted.
I noticed that the “front” door gave way (IMO) very easily. Most doors are framed by 1 inch board so that they can be dropped right into the joist arch. This also means that even a steel door would only have a little wood to hold on to. I would address that problem (weakness) as I have with my own doors.
First, the lock latches – I would screw a steel 1/8 inch thick 2 inch wide strip stock 3 to 4 foot long onto the door frame with 3 inch screws. Use a chisel to remove some of the wood (1/8 inch) so that the steel strip is level with the wood frame. Center the steel strip to the door latch and deadbolt. Drill holes for the door latch and deadbolt to go thru. Use at least 5 screws positioned along the strip stock, try to put one between the door latch and deadbolt. Screws are cheap, use 6 or more if you want. This will “distribute” the brunt force over a much greater area and into the home framing as well.
Second, the hinges probably only have 1 inch screws for both door and frame. Replace all screws with the 3 inch length to go thru the door frame to the joists. Steel doors may have tapped holes and short screws – I would still put longer screws in (2 inch) because screws can strip. I would put in a 3rd hinge if I didn’t have that now.
I will not say that your door won’t be broken but, you will have added valuable seconds (at least) to your defense time for the cost of screws and a 4 foot long piece of steel. Mike C