Russell griffiths Posted October 13, 2022 Share Posted October 13, 2022 Just watched last nights grand designs, where they had a site break in. Damaged three large sliding doors to steal some power tools. so I thought I would just add a bit of my philosophy from running a business in London for twenty years. Our yard used to get ransacked regularly, windows smashed on trucks to steal the change from the ashtray, the answer was to leave the trucks open, we still got ransacked but they took £4 in loose change and it didn’t cost me £70 for a side window. My house site is the same. My front door is unlocked, the back sliders are open with a very visible gap, there is nothing in the house apart from my radio and a chop saw, I don’t take the chop saw out because it is screwed to a bench and I cannot be bothered. So if a scrote comes on to site, he can walk in freely and take the radio, if he’s feeling really clever he can unscrew the saw. Total stolen £400. Damage caused hopefully £0. If some scumbag sticks a crowbar down the side of my front door it’s going to cost me at least £2500 to pull the frame out and replace, loads of agro with the insurance company. So the doors unlocked. Just my way of dealing with it. 2 2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
markc Posted October 13, 2022 Share Posted October 13, 2022 @Russell griffiths I couldn’t agree more. Been saying and practicing this for years. Yes deter the scrotebags but if they are determined to get in they will. better to loose a few bits with no damage than suffer the damage which is often many times the value of goods taken. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
handyman Posted October 13, 2022 Share Posted October 13, 2022 Pal of mine used to do this with his car when he lived on a 'rough' street. Lost a stereo and a window the first time. After than it was just two stereos lol! I don't suppose anyone steals stereos any more for some reason... Long been thinking that some tools should be sold with restrictions/registrations/etc. Cordless mini grinders for one. I mean if a baseball capped, joggers wearing, gold chain totting 18 year old scrote turns up at the local B&Q to buy a cordless grinder, it's not rocket science to figure out he's not into DIY... I've often been quite inventive when securing my tools in sheds and the like. Fabricating elaborate physical mechanisms independent of the padlock. Sometimes it can be simple though, a hidden sliding bar from the side, which pins the door and frame together, even if they cut the lock. I treat it as a challenge to keep them out 🙂 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Canski Posted October 14, 2022 Share Posted October 14, 2022 This is why I don't have vans. I have people carriers that I can remove the seats in 5 mins if we need to load up with plant / materials. Ive never had one broken into but nearly everyone I know who owns a van has had it broken into. Only this week a mates van was broken into and they gave chase but had to pull back when the thieves started going round roundabouts the wrong way etc. It's coming up to Christmas and from my experience this is when most sites get broken into. Also van insurance is expensive. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Nickfromwales Posted October 14, 2022 Share Posted October 14, 2022 My mates Vivaro got emptied the other day. 3mm hole made around the sliding door handle. Surgical precision, near zero damage, not even noticed until the penny dropped. Luckily not his whole collection in the van that time…….. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ProDave Posted October 14, 2022 Share Posted October 14, 2022 Not common up here, but during the early stages of our build, one night 3 of the builders vans in the same village got broken into and most of the power tools nicked. They came to site but told me not to touch the vans as crime scene were on their way to fingerprint them. That is not common up here, but plod reckoned it was a gang from down south, working their way down the A9 calling in at all the villages adjoining it. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
saveasteading Posted October 14, 2022 Share Posted October 14, 2022 On 13/10/2022 at 09:56, Russell griffiths said: So the doors unlocked Agreed. A 'secure store' on site is guaranteed to be broken in to. Better left unlocked and it is not the half bag of cement and a shovel they want. On 13/10/2022 at 10:35, handyman said: I treat it as a challenge to keep them out Ah yes. Obv not barbed wire and broken glass, but some surprises can help. In my experience they give up when things are not going to plan. Perhaps superstition, perhaps having the wrong tools. Eg when the door is opened a light and siren lock in. Or my usual mess of stuff won't untangle. The opposite logic applies when making a building really secure. So when a well equipped thief cuts through metal cladding but then needs a stanley knife and then to cut another layer of metal or block or board...they give in. £1,000 damage but very expensive contents are safe. Have had that with several old clients. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ProDave Posted October 14, 2022 Share Posted October 14, 2022 My first car, I fitted a DIY car alarm, but I was not interested in flashing the lights or sounding some siren, no, it had a huge set of air horns under the drivers seat. The theory was not to attract attention of passers by, but to make it physically painful to remain inside the car if they set the alarm off. 1 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
joe90 Posted October 14, 2022 Share Posted October 14, 2022 When I lived on a small holding we heard of farms having chickens and ducks taken (just before Christmas) so I rigged a game keepers trap (a shotgun cartridge filled with magnesium linked to a tripwire. It worked, but, it was early one morning I heard it go off to look out the window to see my wife with her hands over her ears stumbling around the yard. I had to remove it 🙄 1 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Canski Posted October 14, 2022 Share Posted October 14, 2022 4 minutes ago, ProDave said: My first car, I fitted a DIY car alarm, but I was not interested in flashing the lights or sounding some siren, no, it had a huge set of air horns under the drivers seat. The theory was not to attract attention of passers by, but to make it physically painful to remain inside the car if they set the alarm off. I did the same in one of my early vans. I couldn't get the key out of the ignition or lock the doors so I had some musical airhorns fitted on a switch. When the ignition was turned on they went off. All was OK until I got stopped by the police one day with a barn door strapped to my roof through the windows. After a gentle telling off for a dangerous load the policeman was walking back to his car and I accidentally set the horns off with my knee. He wasn't impressed. Moral of the story. Allow for the frame when rebuilding an opening to re use the doors. 1 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
freshy Posted November 7, 2022 Share Posted November 7, 2022 I've barely started my build and we had our first intrusion. Couple of guys attempting to steal a hired 13t digger, annoying bit was they smashed up my 4 ring camera's in the process. So my tip is, place CCTV out of reach, higher than you think! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Recommended Posts
Create an account or sign in to comment
You need to be a member in order to leave a comment
Create an account
Sign up for a new account in our community. It's easy!
Register a new accountSign in
Already have an account? Sign in here.
Sign In Now