We recently checked out the new VTech VC931 HD wireless pan & tilt camera—and recommend it for the high-definition video quality, night vision, and pan and tilt camera control.…
home security/
Our home security makeover starts with a clean set of Kwikset double-cylinder SmartKey locks.…
Smart home security systems are awesome but they usually cost a ton of money for the equipment as well as the labor to install them. VueZone has created a system that you can monitor from your smart phone and…
Now that it’s officially autumn and fall projects are finishing up as the cooler weather sits in, it’s time for a reality check. Before you know it, winter and the holiday season will be upon us once again, and…
When it comes to home security, you can easily invest a lot of money in a high-budget alarm and monitoring system. Yet there are also several budget-friendly things you can do to boost your home’s protection. One of your…
Living in an urban environment sometimes means sacrificing some personal space. Houses are closer together, square footage is minimal, and neighbors don’t have to work very hard to be nosy with their windows practically lining up with yours. Privacy…
When it comes to protecting your home and your family, the exterior is just as important as any interior security features you may have. The best thing about most of these suggestions is that they’re relatively budget-friendly, too, and…
We stumbled upon this little interesting little tidbit stemming from this year’s CES and thought we’d share with you: how’d you like a pet robot dinosaur as your home security? Back in 2002, Japanese robotics company TMSUK developed the…
People often think home security systems are only useful when they’re not at home — say, going on vacation or even just the day-to-day of going to work, driving the kids around, eating out and the like. But home…
Home security camera systems don’t have to be outside your budget. For $300 you can pick up this system from Logitech that is easy to setup and provides many of the features you’d find on a security system many…
High-tech alarm systems, motion detectors, motion-activated lights … there are any number of devices and gadgets that will help protect your home from break-ins. But when it comes to home security, you don’t necessarily have to spend a lot…
Because cold winter months prompt increased heat usage, it’s no surprise that home fires and carbon monoxide poisoning tend to spike during the season. The U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission and United States Fire Administration have issued a home…
While we’re busy waiting for flying cars and self-cleaning refrigerators, the masterminds at Apple may already be transforming home security. The tech behemoth was granted more than 550 patents in 2010, and although specific products haven’t yet been announced,…
We’ve previously talked about what you should consider before getting a guard dog for your home. But were you aware that there’s a camp of thought that uses the illusion of dog ownership as a home burglary deterrent? The…
There are many home security systems to consider when laying out your plan for home protection. The advancements in these systems grow by leaps and bounds as technology changes and prices drop. Real-time monitoring systems are now all expected…
Automatic floodlights are one of the best investments for home security as they’re active 24/7 and cost very little to install and maintain. Home Depot offers a few options in the PAR38 standard floodlight size from Halogens, CFL’s and…
We’ve arrived at one of the busiest travel weeks of the year. While you’re off enjoying a healthy dose of holiday merriment, take heed of some of our favorite home security tips to give you the peace of mind…
They’ve been nearly inescapable the last couple of weeks, unless you’re (lucky enough to be) living under a rock. Commercials touting the latest holiday retail deals are filling airwaves and print media with declarations of stunning bargains, one of…
DIY home security the way to go if you are traveling next week for Thanksgiving, take the time this weekend to make sure your house is in order so you aren’t scrambling last minute to secure your home. Follow…
That wonderful day of eating and giving thanks is a mere week away! You’re probably busy planning your menu (and devising your grocery store plan of attack), but if you have any spare time, consider one (or several) of…
Getting to know your neighbors. can be one of the simplest ways to keep your home safe and secure. But what happens when your neighbors aren’t willing to cooperate? That photo is of my backyard, which shares a fence…
Oh, the holidays — such a magical time of year! And unfortunately, the latter half of November and December generally see a rise in home burglaries as a result of more people traveling out of town and the temptation…
Installing smoke alarms throughout your home — and keeping them in proper working condition — is one of the most important things you can do to protect your family and pets. The National Fire Protection Association estimates that nearly…
Installing your own home security system no longer requires the expertise of a skilled technician. You can still invest in a full-featured system from one of the leading home security firms but you now have more choices when it…
Here are six questions you should ask yourself before deciding to buy a gun to protect your home.…
For two people who don't own a truck, 1-800-GOT-JUNK was a perfect solution to our very time-sensitive problem.…
When we moved into our century-old home and began our then-minor-now-major renovations, we realized something slightly terrifying about our original to the house solid wood door. Moreover, the picture window in the door. Somehow at inspection, we had failed…
6 steps to protecting your pets from nasty winter weather…
Everyone has a father but clearly not everyone is a dad. We’ve rounded up some projects that non-dads will enjoy that are best achieved sans kids. Weed Burning – Break out the torch! Moving Appliances – Heavy and awkward…
Anyone who’s caught the first season of The Walking Dead on AMC knows that the CDC played a vital role in handling the zombie pandemic of which the heroes of the story are trying to survive. The show is…
In addition to installing smoke alarms throughout your home, you may opt to keep a couple of fire extinguishers on hand in case of an emergency. Yet fire extinguishers, like most other things in your home, need to be…
While some people prefer a very in-your-face style of home security presence, there are others who lean more towards a subtle, multi-purpose approach to ensuring their home’s safety. One way to accomplish a more low-key, yet attractive level of…
A little known secret in the home security world is that the appearance of security is about 90% of the actual benefit of having a home security system. Meaning, if it looks like you have a system, potential intruders…
Coming home with a large bag of groceries and fumbling with keys to open a back door can be a frustrating experience, so can having your kids forget the keys but need to be let inside. These small frustrations…
Security doors used to have a pretty bad rap. They’d decrease your property value, make your neighborhood seem sketchy, and worst of all, were ugly. Screen doors, however, were praised far and wide for creating welcoming entryways, adding style…
Kwikset has taken notice of our home security blog and have asked us to join their Kwikset SmartSquad to help educate homeowners about effective and proactive steps to help maintain the safety of their home and family. We thought…
For those of us with the ultimate DIY projects running around (that’d be kids), sometimes it’s hard to figure out the best way to make your home safe while encouraging curiosity and healthy boundaries for your littles. While there…
Being able to remotely control your home’s security system is one of the perks of continually evolving technology. But if you need something more comprehensive, consider ADT Pulse, a whole-home automation system that’s customizable to your needs. ADT Pulse…
Unless you’ve been hiding out in a bomb shelter in fear of Cold War nuclear attacks, you’d know the biggest possibly-irrational fear in the post-modern world is the zombie apocalypse. From TV shows to survival guides to the actual…
The FBI has cataloged the areas of entry that burglars will target into a home. Take these statistics and protect your home accordingly. 81 percent of residential intrusions occur through the first floor. 34 percent of burglars entered through…
We ordered our MACE pepper spray gun last month and finally got around to testing it. Included in the package is the gun, one canister of pepper spray, and one canister of water loaded for testing. The gun feels…
File this project under “ingenious.” Have some small valuables or cash that you want to conceal? If you have a hollow core interior door, you can use a few tools to create an inconspicuous hiding spot. Guys (and ladies)–this…
With Daylight Saving time approaching for most of the country this weekend, we thought we’d give you a few tips of things to check around your home while you’re switching your clocks and smoke alarm batteries. *Change the batteries…
You may have noticed that we’ve got a case of spring fever here at C&H. In much of the country, however, warmer temperatures also bring a higher threat of severe weather. Although tornadoes tend to peak during the spring…
When you have a home security system, often times you’ll be asked to create a “safe word” — the point of it being that if your alarm goes off, you have to give the safe word to the security…
The non-lethal personal protection industry continues to grow and Mace remains at the forefront of delivering interesting and effective products. Recently Mace has taken gun form factor and turned it into a simple delivery method for pepper spray in…
A lawn tractor can be a handy tool to keep your yard looking great. As with any tool, you must respect its power and use caution during operation. For lawn tractors, these precautions are especially critical if children are…
In today’s digital world, creating passwords, identifying questions, and security codes are required in nearly every aspect of your daily life. From voicemail to ATMs to security systems, one of the most common forms of security codes are the…
The NightWatcher is an outdoor security lighting system that separates itself from the pack of other security lighting systems because it not only turns on when it sense motion, but it will also track an intruders motion within it’s…
If you’re looking for a keyless-entry solution for your home or office but are concerned about electrical failures locking you in or out, we have quite the gadget for you. Korean designer Jaeseok Han has masterfully married the basic…
In sociology, there’s a school of thought that defines urban areas into circular zones. There’s the center-most, financial center of a city, then outwards from the center (much like rings on a tree) the zones are defined by the…
The recent tragic deaths of five Florida teenagers is a stark reminder of how dangerous carbon monoxide poisoning can be and how important the need for carbon monoxide monitors is. The colorless, odorless gas can be emitted from a…
Believe it or not, the kitchen is one of the safest places in which to store valuables while you’re away from home. According to a post by Lifehacker, the kitchen is often overlooked in favor of other rooms such…
Motion detectors are a popular choice for homeowners seeking additional security. They can be installed in a number of places, including throughout the exterior of your home to active floodlights. And thanks to improved technology, many motion detectors are…
We want to shed some light on a little known danger in the kitchen. Recently a one-year old child was killed when he climbed onto the open door of a stove and the range tipped over and killed him.…
Because so many people spend Thanksgiving Day cooking large amounts of food, it may not come as a surprise that the Red Cross reports that the holiday sees more than double the number of home cooking fires than a…
A pile of trash stacked on the curbside. Seems rather innocent, doesn’t it? Yet you may want to monitor what’s in the trash before you haul it outside. Now is the time of year for gifts, and often, that…
Craigslist can be the virtual mecca for DIY enthusiasts. Whether you’re looking for the perfect vintage dresser, discount kitchen cabinets, or gently used children’s wares, the free online classified posting site is ripe with deals to be had and…
We trust your clocks are now one hour behind (the extra sleep is glorious, the early darkness is not!) Daylight Saving Time is also the ideal time of year to swap out the batteries in your smoke detectors —…
Bed bugs are becoming more of a nuisance in New York City and elsewhere around the country. You can be your own bed bug exterminator if you’ve already confirmed that you have bed bugs (bites, seeing bugs or droppings).…
Your neighbors are the best source of home security possible and organizing them helps everyone out. Neighborhood Watch programs are the best place to start and they’ve got some great ideas for how to build your own neighborhood watch…
Forget expensive security gadgets and high-tech alarm systems. Sometimes the best crime deterrents are the result of environmental design factors, which include a careful survey of your property and home to spot potential problem areas. In a video tutorial…
I live in a smaller city near the largest Air Force Base in the nation, the intersection of two major interstate highways, and about a million college campuses. So despite the fact that I by no means live out…
A couple years ago, I went on an architectural tour of a mid-century home that had a nuclear fallout shelter in the backyard. I kept imagining how tense and uncertain the Cold War atmosphere must have been for people…
Craigslist can be a DIY’ers dream. Just about everything under the sun can be found for purchase, and usually for a decent price. On the flipside, selling unused or excess items from your home and projects can be an…