Weekend Break in at the Shop - SECURITY TIP

[nast70]

My shop in is in a group of business condos. On the weekend several of the condos yards were broken into. Lots of vandalism, one truck was stolen, and one tidy tank of fuel was also stolen. We had a truck window busted but thankfully nothing was stolen from us.
They broke into our yard by simply unbolting the strap our lock pin goes into on our chain link gate. It was by far the weakest link. Take time to look at your possible entrance points and find your weakest link and eliminate it. Then do it again, and again.

[Sooner]

Good tip. Sucks the punks keep hitting hard working people. Glad your not out too much $$$$.

[Zip]

Seems to me that there are way more thieves than there used to be, not a day goes by that somebody is reporting losing their stuff...is it just me or is this stuff getting outa control these days...
Zip

[Trochu]

Our yard probably gets hit about every two weeks.

Doesn't seem to matter what we do regarding the fence. Our experience is if you make it hard to get in, they'll just wreck something. So far they've climbed over, climbed under, cut the chain/lock, or simply cut the fence itself. As the fence is about $500 to fix, we'd prefer they simply crawl under.

[nast70]

Do you guys find that cameras may be a deterrent?
The neighbor that lost the truck had a couple cameras, only one caught bits of the act. The other was ripped off the wall.

[pikergolf]

Whatever happened to the good old yard dog? Maybe someone getting chewed up would slow the cretins down.

[Talking moose]

Originally Posted by pikergolf

Whatever happened to the good old yard dog? Maybe someone getting chewed up would slow the cretins down.

You’d probably be sued by the thief. Lol.

[dgl1948]

Camera do little good. Just about every picture you see they have fase covered. Security dogs work until they are bear spayed. Has any one tried the good old farm electric fence charger?

[Kurt505]

Great reminder, and thanks for the heads up.The sad reality is, if they want in, they'll get in. I know of a guy who had his sea can locked up with an unbreakable lock so they cut the hinges off the sea can. The more precautions you take, the less likely of a break in though.

[Jamie Black R/T]

Originally Posted by Kurt505

The more precautions you take, the less likely of a break in though.

This is how we always have looked at it....criminals are losers...if they werent, they would have jobs.

Harder you make it...less likely they even try.

[Sooner]

Originally Posted by nast70

Do you guys find that cameras may be a deterrent?
The neighbor that lost the truck had a couple cameras, only one caught bits of the act. The other was ripped off the wall.

Years back I did two Ins claims at the same ATV dealer in just over a year. Cameras, fence cut notification etc. Still lost atv's and damages done to others both times.

If they want in, they will do their homework to find the weak spots.

My friend has Containers on his property with his classic cars inside. He has bought cheap beater blocker cars and put them in front of the doors, then takes the batteries out and pulls one wheel off lol. There would have to be a lots of time needed to get into his stuff.

Other yard/property owners I know put blocker trucks or equipment across the inside gate every night when they go home for the day or if it's an recreation acreage, the week.

[Arty]

Originally Posted by Trochu

Our yard probably gets hit about every two weeks.

Doesn't seem to matter what we do regarding the fence. Our experience is if you make it hard to get in, they'll just wreck something. So far they've climbed over, climbed under, cut the chain/lock, or simply cut the fence itself. As the fence is about $500 to fix, we'd prefer they simply crawl under.

Razor wire loops, top and bottom. Fix the lower rzrw to the ground and tight to the fence with rebar bolted to the pavement. A second inner perimeter loop bundle of rzrw a meter inside the fence, stiffened with a strand of barbed wire along the top, and held in place with rebar stakes pounded into the ground.

Motion-sensor alarms for anything which gets into no-man's land

And for the gate use a piece of 3/8" wall c-channel, 4 to 6" wide to fit, a foot long, with 3 or 4 fingers/tabs on each web. Run hardened 1" billets through tight holes on each pair of tabs. Each billet has a cap on one end, and a 10mm hole on the other. Put an Abus disc padlock through each hole. Mount the back part of the c-channel to the enemy, with the locks on the inside of the fence.

Mount a jersey barrier onto some wheeled device; rails or dollies, to pull in front of the gate inside the fence every night. U-bolts on the barrier and ground to lock that into position.

Add a mean old dog which knows how to bark.

That should pretty much send the message that you take intrusion seriously.

[The Flint&Fly Guy]

Lol, I’ve seen something similar in a different country. It does look serious!

[ghostguy6]

Your best defense is this case would be lots of lighting and security cameras mounted in high hard to reach but obvious places. The yard should be clean kept with open fields of view. Thieves rarely want to be in the light for long. EPS offers a course called Security Through Industrial Design or something along those lines. I would highly recommend your manager or safety person take it. The reality is, no matter how high your security is, there is always a way to beat it. Your main goal is deter thieves by making someone else an easier target. There is also the stealth approach, keeping the yard full of rusty crap, beat up trucks ect but this may not be possible in a corporate setting.

They broke into our yard by simply unbolting the strap our lock pin goes into on our chain link gate. It was by far the weakest link

If you weld the nut to the bolt you will need a grinder or cutting torch to remove it. You could also heat the end and peen it so you cant not remove the nut. Not a fail safe but its going to take time or noise to beat it. Neither of which a thief wants in a populated area.

Razor wire loops, top and bottom. Fix the lower rzrw to the ground and tight to the fence with rebar bolted to the pavement. A second inner perimeter loop bundle of rzrw a meter inside the fence, stiffened with a strand of barbed wire along the top, and held in place with rebar stakes pounded into the ground.

Sadly razor wire is illegal to use in Alberta. You are permitted to run 3 or 4 (cant remember exactly off the top of my head) strands of straight, non looped barbed wire on top of your chain link fence provided it is to prevent the entry into the property. These would be angled out. Angled in to prevent escape from the property was a big No No in Edmonton, probably other municipalities as well. You can also weave a single strand of barbed wire through your chain link along the bottom to help prevent the lifting of the fence. You can also get clips you anchor to the ground with a hilti bolt that holds the fence down. These only work on cement of asphalt thought.

Jersey barriers with reflective stripes on the access points after hours that must be moved with a forklift is also a great deterrent. Store the forklift inside if possible but if you cant, store the keys inside a locked building. This may not be possible if you share a yard.

[Okotok]

These 12 guage alarms with tripwires and blanks will make them think twice.
http://www.pyrocreations.com/12-gaug...ter-alarm.html

[Arty]

Originally Posted by The Flint&Fly Guy

Lol, I’ve seen something similar in a different country. It does look serious!

The point is that massive smash-and-grab property crime has become socially acceptable here, with little to no stigma about being a criminal for many. To counter that you simply need substantial defensive measures now. Making it even worse, all kinds of refugees have been imported together with totally disrespectful attitudes to local property and culture. That all builds on itself, and together with soft attitudes amplifies and reinforces any inherent criminal behaviour already present in the local population. It becomes a race to the bottom for everyone.

It will not stop anytime soon and all has to be repelled and contained by the individual under attack. That applies similarly to miserable corporate or government behaviour just as much as gutter-dwellers.

So yeah, it's starting to look third world because that's where we are headed. It is what it is.