Most people don’t consider that someone would want to steal their patio furniture. If you recognize yourself in that statement, it means you haven’t encountered this issue many folks around the country have already dealt with. Those unlucky folks know that patio furniture theft is pretty frequent. Therefore, you should secure patio furniture from theft in the proper manner before something goes a bit awry.
Don’t panic if you don’t know how to secure your home properly. We’ll equip you with all the information you need to secure patio furniture from theft. Hopefully, you’ll soon have a better picture of what needs to be done to rest assured knowing your stuff’s safe!
Why would anyone want to steal patio furniture?
Stealing patio furniture doesn’t necessarily need to be a carefully planned heist. It can represent an easy crime of opportunity. Here’s the thing: patio furniture is usually lightweight, unguarded, and, most importantly – expensive.
You’d call it a piece of cake for many criminals lurking around your neighborhood. Anyway, what a thief needs to do here is hop your home’s fence and toss the furniture over it. The following day you will wake up to an empty patio, wondering where your furniture is or why this surprise yard sale didn’t turn out to be profitable (here’s how you’ll organize s successful one).
Ways to secure patio furniture
Now that we’ve explained the “idea” behind this type of robbery, let’s see how to secure patio furniture from theft.
Lock up your furniture
First, let’s tackle an obvious solution you’ve probably thought of yourself. You can always obtain a steel cable with a lock by visiting your local hardware store. Many commercial businesses secure their patio furniture with this method; you might’ve seen various cafes throughout your town using it.
That’s because this method of security is simple and effective. You can run the steel cable through your patio furniture’s frame and affix it to something heavy. Alternatively, you can connect a couple of pieces just so that thieves lose their optimism once they see that it’s impossible to carry everything.
Steel cords are durable and resistant to cuts and slashes. Even if thieves try to steal your belongings without cutting the cords, they’ll find it almost impossible to haul everything away at once.
Get a guard dog for your yard
If you already have a dog, you might want to let your pet out in the backyard at night. That way, you’ll have nature’s alert system to assist you in handling a messy situation, such as when thieves try to steal your patio furniture.
Even small dogs can help keep your home safe by alerting you to the presence of unwanted trespassers in your yard. Of course, don’t forget to reward your trusty pals with some treats later.
Raise the fence
Another thing you might want to do to secure your patio furniture from theft is to raise the height of your home’s fence. That will most probably deter thieves from getting the idea of sneaking into your backyard. They’ll see that it’s practically impossible to haul furniture over such a fence. And keep in mind that this isn’t the only advantage of “sporting” a tall fence. You’ll also enjoy some extra privacy which is always a good thing. A high hedge or fence can deter nosy neighbors from peering over to your backyard.
Security cameras to the rescue
Cameras are one of the most obvious ways to secure your patio furniture from theft. If thieves notice your home’s security system is backed by cameras, they’ll think twice before they try to do anything. Besides acting as theft prevention, cameras can capture footage if a crime does occur.
After all, video evidence isn’t something you’d want to mess around with if you were a thief. Now, of course, installing security cameras might turn out to be an expensive investment.
However, you’ll need to imagine how much you’ll save by keeping your patio furniture safe and sound. Cameras can also give you peace of mind, which you can’t put a price on.
Let onlookers know your home has a security system in place
Once you’ve secured your home with cameras, you’ll want to ensure that everyone trying to break into your property knows you’ve protected the whole place. Okay, even if you haven’t got the funds to cover the installation of security cameras on your property, it’s still advisable to put up a sign saying that your home’s secured in such a manner.
That will most probably scare any potential intruders. It’s a bright and cheap solution, and what more could you ask for?
Rent storage for your patio furniture
Let’s say you’re planning to head off to your vacation home during the year’s hottest months. In other words, you won’t be there to monitor your stuff.
Thankfully, there’s a simple solution: you can rent out storage space. There are plenty of short-term storage solutions, and preparing furniture for storage is easy: you can disassemble patio furniture or stack lawn chairs to they don’t take up much space.
Then it will be easy to keep it safe inside the place of your choice. Also, furniture that has been prepared for storage is much easier to transfer.
As your neighbors for help
Here’s something else if you’re planning to be out of town for an extended time: see if you can ask someone to stop by your place and check if everything’s in order.
It can be one of your friends or neighbors. Knowing that there’s someone to watch over your stuff will probably save some nerves you’d otherwise spend worrying about whether or not someone will break into your yard.
Neighbors are great for protecting your property since they can immediately act if they notice anyone sneaking in while you aren’t there.
Install motion sensor lighting
Another great idea to secure your patio furniture from theft is to equip your yard with motion sensor flood lights.
In other words: you’ll want to install the lights that will come on if a thief (or anyone else) was to step into your yard. One can imagine that such backyard improvements would scare potential intruders away since they’d probably get the idea that the homeowners have just woken.
What to do if thieves steal your patio furniture?
Now that we’ve talked about ways you can prevent such a scenario, we would also like to cover what you need to do if someone was to steal your patio furniture. Here’s what we suggest:
- First of all, you’ll need to contact your local police department and file a report. Usually, theft of items worth more than $500 is considered a felony, and you’ll be sure the officers at the station won’t take your case lightly.
- If you still haven’t installed security cameras, ask your neighbors if they might have some footage to show you. If their cameras catch anything, the material will help you identify the intruder. Also, ask your neighbors if they might’ve seen something strange or unusual on the day the incident happened.
Lastly, don’t forget to share the info you’ve picked up today with your trusty neighborhood folk. It will make everyone in your neighborhood well aware of the security risks that might be present nearby. Speaking of which, here are some additional domestic security options for your home. You can never be too safe, and prevention is better than the cure.
The bottom line
We’ve covered the most effective ways to secure your patio furniture from theft. Hopefully, this article will help you prevent potential incidents that no one looks forward to. Keep in mind that being a little extra cautious is never a bad thing.
