Garage Security - advise on my plans

[Dangle_kt]

Hi Guys and girls!

Been a while! I've had my head buried in my 7 style kit car for the last few months.

The car is nearly done so I am looking to secure the garage better due to living in a rough area.

The garage is a nearly brand new steel up and over door, secured to a wooden frame.

attached is my plan, made from box section, secured to the walls. Top bar swings over the bonnet of the car, but it will stop the car being wheeled out due to the roll bar height at the back of the car - it will also stop the door being forced in.

The two bottom bars swing over the corners of the door to stop them being kicked in. I'm thinking of fitting something to these bars to stop the door being pulled open.

anyway - not sure if this is a good design or not.

I have two weeks to make it as the car is out the garage for a few weeks getting work done to it, so replies will be gratefully received.

 

[Jaeger_S2k]

I'd be inclined to add U shaped cups and weld/coach bolt them to the door at the same hight as the upper arm and the lower arms, then hook the arms into them - that'll make it very difficult to pull it out. For the bottom, a length of box section bolted along the floor, that'll resist kicking in. You'll be pretty solid with those additions to your plan.

 

[Shox Dr]

A mate of mine has up and over doors, I told him he might as well leave them open for what use they are.

So we made a cage in side from 15mm rebar mesh. Hinged at the sides and locked in the middle.


4 weeks later it proved its worth, the door was peeled open, but the mesh cage stopped them in their tracks, The problem is they now know what is in there, so Im going to be making a new door out of 2mm sheet zintec with a 40x40 boxsection frame.

They'll still get in if they really want to, but at least it will slow them down.

 

[madkayaker]

simple is often Best. What about a huge bolt ancure into the floor with heavy chain around the chassis as well as the bars

 

[chunkolini]

Does anybody remember the story from a few years back when a bunch of Low Life Scum (or should I say under advantaged socially deprived individuals in these PC times?) were after some biker's Harley. He had a shotgun on a trip wire. It worked. His bike was saved, sadly he was put away. But I did kind of like his style.

Up and over doors are a security worry, though that lot does look quite effective. One thought, try not to make it look to obviously secured, I have heard that these LLS will target the obviously secured garages as it shows they have something worth nicking in them.

Good luck, Chunko'.

 

[MrFluffy]

Does anybody remember the story from a few years back when a bunch of Low Life Scum (or should I say under advantaged socially deprived individuals in these PC times?) were after some biker's Harley. He had a shotgun on a trip wire. It worked. His bike was saved, sadly he was put away. But I did kind of like his style.

Two mistakes there, first he used shot in the cartridge. If you use rock salt it dissolved in the lls's leg and whilst incredibly painful at the same time disappears, tacks dropped into the mine barrel but with a de-shotted cartridge work too if your feeling really evil, as they could have just fell in while you was doing diy.
Secondly, if they did die, someone the police got involved instead of a digger.
My use of alarm mines has been well documented in the past

My advice in addition to the above is to get a silent alarm with a mobile phone link that pages your house, rings your mobile etc. Buy a few batteries and rotate them regulary because if you let it run out, sods law is that'll be when someone comes along.
If it just squarks everyone will ignore it, and if it squarks and pages the lls have time to scarper. If it silently pages you while all your other measures slow them down, youve got time to appear in person
Locks, strengtheners, cages, anchors are all good and the better they are, the more lesuirely/better organized drive you can have to your lockup, but they will only slow the most determined of theives down. You need to know so you can get yourself there (or the police if you don't want personal satisfaction).

 

[stormin]

Like your style Mr Fluffy. Don't think I'll be coming round your place.

 

[stormin]

As to the security plans, Mr Dangle.
How do you get in and out of the garage yourself?
Presumably not through the up and over door?
If the LLS get in another way and can't get their way (remove the car) they'll probably set light to the place.
If I was securing an up and over door I'd be lining the inside with ply. Only takes a can opener to get through the steel skin of the ones I've seen.

 

[MBConfuse]

Just a thought. Whatever you do end up doing, possibly best not to post details on the web, just to be safe.

 

[Dangle_kt]

Thanks guys, the diagram will be removed in due course. I'd welcome some more comments about ideas for improvements.

I liked the cup/hook idea to resist being peeled open.

I have a door at the back of the garage which is integral to the house.

I just want something that stops them getting off with everything in there.

I am dealing with LLS not organised criminals. If I was I wouldn;t even bother trying to secure it, as I know they would have it away.

Cheers

 

[rtcosic]

First question:

1. Do you want the security to be visible from outside in order to deter forced entry in the first place? (and if so what would be aesthetically acceptable in your location?)
2. Or, do you want discreet internal security in order to foil/delay a forced entry, without having drawn attention to the added security in the first place?

Second question:

1. Do you use the door frequently and therefore need simple operation, but need to accept complex design/fitting?
2. Or is it used infrequently and you can get away with simple design/fitting, but can accept complex operation?

Third question:

1. are you responding to opportunistic local Pikeys
2. or are you responding to 'pros' who have specifically targeted your property

I read between the lines that you normally access the garage from the house via a separate door and you use the garage more as a workshop, so don't use the external up and over door very often. You are not being specifically targeted and so accept the inherent insecurity of an up and over door. I haven't worked out what might be aesthetically acceptable.

If so, and depending on your decisions on these three key questions, a simple option is to fit robust hooks to internal masonary walls with rawlbolts or similar and simply drop box section locking bars into the hooks - rather like the upper bars in your drawing. But have at least two of them, the lower replacing your relatively complex pivoting bars.
Then make two matching bars for the outside. Drill through external bars, door and internal bars. Weld bolts to external bars, pass through door and internal bars and pop on wing nuts. Or use muckle great bolts and drill through to add padlocks if you really must!
Unscrew/unlock lift off and 'store' bars when not in use.
Rather tedious single handed task as you need to walk around to the outside to lift off the external bars.
It may be possible to mount some kind of bracket to the external reveal to bolt/padlock the external bars for an even more robust installation.

If you have enough clearance to the side of the door then rather than simple hooks you could use section of the next size up box section and 'thread' the bars through one side at a time.

Repeat the number of these horizontal 'sandwich' bars as often as you like!

Painting the external bars the same colour as the garage door and matching their location to any horizontal design features of the up and over door would reduce the visible 'intrusion' of this.
Extensive negotiation with The Ultimate Authority would probably be essential!

Depending on your house/garage layout and the area in which you live, adding PIR detectors inside the garage wired to a simple alarm system is pretty cheap - for what it's worth!

 

[Pete.]

I'm with stormin - the first thing I'd do is ply-line the door. Will make it a bugger to lift but at least they won't bend it open.

 

[Dangle_kt]

sorry, just realised - i never specified where this was going.

Its going on the INSIDE!

On the outside it would just attract attention.

I really like the idea of hooks - good thinking!

There are those hooks you can get with threaded bar and the adjuster, I could use them to stop it being peeled open.

I will only be using the car a few times a year realistically (two kids under two years old!) so it being a little awkward isn;t so much of a problem.

I really want it so that if some scum try to break in after seeing me drive in there, they will quickly discover its more hassle than its worth, The car is only worth a few grand and next to impossible to sell on due to unique nature of kit cars - so i would be dealing with chavs who want to joy ride and then burn it out. makes me sad just thinking of it!!

 

[dannyweld]

what about two gate posts, that will stop the door swinging open as well. with any door its important to make sure there are no gaps where the rats can stick a nail bar or heavy screwdriver.

 

[Pete.]

Trouble with garage doors is they can be cut open with tinsnips. My door weighs about 3cwt - no-one's getting through it without dislodging the frame.

 

[Bobtail4x4]

Better a security post in front of the door, not hi security, but they will have to get the car past it first.