Better Security for Your Sliding Glass Door

Sliding glass doors are a fixture in nearly every home.  They are beautiful, convenient and easy to operate. When open on a nice day they let in a lot of sun and fresh air. They connect the inside with the outside.  When the weather is nice opening your sliding glass door is probably one of the first things you do in the morning.

But there is a downside. From a home security standpoint, they are one of the weakest and most vulnerable points in your home.

Sliding glass doors have several inherent weaknesses.

•          Their larger glass panes are easy to break.
•          The glass is tempered, which is more vulnerable to breaking.
•          They are an easy point of entry to anyone willing to break them.
•          They can be lifted right off the track and removed if not properly installed and secured.
•          Most original door latches are weak.
•          Unless you have closed window coverings it’s easy to see into your home to see what you have.

Ways to secure sliding glass doors

Here at Metro Tint we always looking for ways to make homes and businesses more secure, safe and trouble free. Which is why, when it comes to home security, we recommend reinforcing and securing your sliding glass door. Next to your front door, if you are only going to reinforce a single point of entry, the sliding glass door is it.

Luckily, there are a few basic steps you can take to massively improve the security of your sliding glass doors. Here are some simple DIY things you can do to secure your sliding glass doors.

A Dowel Rod – Insert a dowel rod into the track of the door as a secondary lock. This prevents the door from being opened even if the lock has been broken. While you can buy fancy steel or plastic rods there’ nothing wrong with a regular wooden dowel. You can pick it up at your local hardware store, where they can cut it to length, or buy it online.  You can even pick up a bundle of dowels to outfit every window in your home cheaply.

 Be sure to fit the dowel rod to your door.  A properly fitted dowel should be only 1/2″ shorter than the track and thin enough to fit into the track effectively.

Total cost between $3 – $10

Sheet metal screws or washers – This is a cheap and easy way to prevent someone from simply lifting your slider off the track and out of the way. Simply insert a sheet metal screw into the top of the frame or into the track.  Just be sure to leave enough space so that it doesn’t impact the normal movement of the door. This will prevent the door from easily being lifted out of the frame.

Total Cost – maybe $2.00

Sensors and Alarms for your Sliding Glass Door

A Security Sensor –  This is a device that lets you know when someone opens the sliding glass door. Given that 30% of burglaries happen when someone is home having one of these installed is a smart decision – you don’t want to be taken unaware. These can be turned on and off as needed so they don’t drive you crazy when there’s a lot of going in and out.

Security Sensors like the Fosman Wavelink can be used to monitor every door and window in your home using wireless.

Total Cost – Roughly $25

Shatter alarm – This is an additional sensor that lets you know when someone breaks the glass or is trying to get in.  It detects both the sound of breaking glass and the vibrations made when someone strikes your window. It alerts you immediately when your sliding glass breaks. Great when you have sliding glass doors that somewhere out of sight, out of mind, like in a basement.

The Doberman Ultra-Thin Window Alarm is a good way to alarm your sliding glass door affordably and effectively.

Total Cost – Under $20 for two doors.

Reinforce the Glass in your Sliders with Security Window Film

The measures above will make your sliding glass door, and by extension your home, much more secure. Taking the steps we outlined above takes very little time, effort or money.  Heck, you massively improved the security of your home for less than $75.

There is another step you should take to secure your slider. It will cost you a bit more than the other steps, but it can make the difference between being a hard target and an easy target. You need to reinforce the glass in your slider with security window film.

The glass in your sliding glass doors is, by code, tempered glass. This is much safer than regular annealed glass – it breaks into small chunks instead of large jagged pieces – but it is very weak from a security standpoint.

How weak? Check out this video:

This is why, if you really want to secure your home, you need to reinforce your glass with security window film.

Security window film is a thin, protective sheet that can be applied to glass to make it harder to break through. While It won’t make the glass impenetrable, it does delay and deny entry into home by breaking the glass. When combined with an attachment system and glass break sensor it can make your home a more difficult target and give more time for authorities to respond.

For information on security window film for your sliding glass door or any window in your home contact the security pros at Metro Tint Texas. Call them at 800-297-3862

Secure Sliding Glass Doors = Secure Home

Sliding glass doors represent a larger security threat than traditional doors and windows. It doesn’t have to be that way. Taking the above steps go a long way to making your sliding glass doors more secure and safe.

And finally, be sure to check your sliding glass door and windows every night and when you leave home to ensure they are locked, dowel rods in place and all sensors on and active. Even the best security systems don’t help if you don’t use them.

Contact Metro Tint Texas for Home Security 800-297-3862