Crime Safety Tips: Sliding Glass Door Security

Many homes built in Florida, if not all of them, have at least one sliding glass door. Sliding glass doors are particularly easy for criminals to defeat, and are frequently the main point of entry in a residential burglary. Standard sliding glass door locks often prove to be inadequate. They can be easily pried open or rendered ineffective once the slider is lifted off of the track!

You can help to deter forced entry to your home through your sliding glass door by making a few simple modifications:

• The easiest thing you can do is install a secondary or auxiliary door lock, such as a slide bolt, a security latch, a hasp, an anti-slide block, or a metal hinge bar (aka Charlie bar). Check your local hardware store and see what they recommend.
• To prevent the sliding glass door from being lifted off its track, you can install a 1-1/4 inch pan head screw at both ends of the upper track, so the door just barely clears the head of the screw (see Figure 1-A.)
• To secure sliding glass doors while in the closed position, you can install a pin lock by drilling a hole at a downward angle into the over-lapping frames of the doors center. Insert a pin with a clasp to secure the doors when closed. A pin with an additional locking mechanism will offer greater security. If your not sure about installing it yourself, have a licensed and insured professional install the pin lock for you. That way your covered if they accidentally shatter the glass during the install, instead of on your own if you attempt it (see Figure 1-A.)
• Apply a security film product over the exterior of the glass to keep it intact, should it ever become broken.