5 Quick Tips To Help Secure Your Home’s French Doors

Our last post focused on exterior French doors and why you have more options than retractable screen doors. But we didn’t want to move on to other topics without providing you with advice on how to address the potential security issues french doors and other types of double patio doors can add to your Phoenix, AZ area home.

Everybody wants French doors leading to a patio, deck, or backyard. Turn on any home improvement network and you’ll find that so many programs feature people asking for patio doors where there was once a window or a wall. French doors look great and can make your home look more attractive to potential buyers, but they pose the same types of security risks that other glass doors do.

Plus unlike sliding glass doors, robbers don’t have to break the glass or jimmy the lock on most French doors. These doors have a weak point at the center and can be opened by sliding a screwdriver or drywall hammer into the center and unlocking the security bolts. Having unsecured exterior french doors can actually make your home a target for burglars.

Following these quick tips including installing custom security screen doors will help burglar proof your home and keep your family safe.

1. Lock Your Doors: In our post about securing sliding doors, we pointed out the statistics for how many people forget to lock their back doors and windows. Even if your home is surrounded by deadbolted gates, you still need to lock all the doors and windows in your house whenever you leave your home. Just doing this can mean a potential burglar will not bother with trying to break into your home. Consider installing a deadbolt lock on all the doors including French doors.
2. Install Extra Locks: In addition to deadbolting your French doors, consider installing better locks on the top and bottom of your french doors. Some people even have deadbolts placed at the top and bottom of the doors to secure them. If you are fine only being able to open one of the doors, you might consider permanently locking the other door by placing a screw behind the top or top and bottom locks to keep a thief from using a tool to open them, making the main deadbolt useless.
3. Replace Wood French Doors: We’re not suggesting you get rid of your french doors, but instead, replace them with fiberglass instead of wood. Fiberglass French doors look like wood, but won’t dry out, crack, or splinter like wood doors do, especially in the triple digit heat of a Phoenix, AZ summer.
4. Exterior Lights: Criminals love back doors because they’re often out of sight of neighbors, especially at night. Make sure you have adequate outdoor lighting around your home. Keep porch lights on at night whether you’re home or not. If having outdoor lights on all night is interfering with your sleep or against your homeowner association’s rules, consider installing motion detecting lights.
5. Install Security Doors: Yes, we make and sell security screen doors, but that’s because we believe in them and their ability to keep your home secure. Great security screen doors can actually make it so you can eliminate the need for some of the tips we’ve already suggested because they provide many of the security features already.

Good security doors have kickplates and double security doors have no weak points, lock with deadbolts and make it so you can open both of your French doors on pleasant Phoenix, AZ fall and spring days. Plus you can even have security screen doors installed that have no bars and removable glass panels. That way you can allow the breeze inside and keep bugs out or keep heat and air conditioning inside, all while keeping your belongings and loved ones safe behind steel mesh that’s as strong as steel bars.

So there you have it, our tips for keeping your Phoenix area home’s exterior French doors secure. We’d love to know what you think. Do you have any home security tips of your own for french doors? Comment below.

And if you’re considering security screen doors, call us here at Eco-Advantage today.