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Keep thieves out of your garage!

A simple, inexpensive method to add a little security

by Steven Chae on July 12th, 2014, 6:03 am PDT. This Ivia has been viewed 7,017 times. Last improved on July 12th, 2014, 2:54 pm PDT.

Garage door openers are popular and convenient but also provide a relatively easy way for scumbags to break in. Using a wire hanger or similar device, the thief wiggles it inside the garage and grabs/releases the emergency catch on the opener and voila! -- now there's only a grease spot where your $5,000 carbon fiber bike used to live. 

Here's an easy remedy: thread a thin plastic cable zip-tie through the opener's catch. It will be strong enough to foil the hanger method, yet can be easily pulled apart with direct pressure in the event of an emergency/power outage. 

Here's a video that provides more detail: 

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VAN Truong 9 years ago

Thanks for this Ivia… I just secured my garage from the all too easy potential break in.

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Zachary Adam Zell 9 years ago

Great Ivia, garages hold some of our most valuable possessions and it could be fairly devastating financially to lose them. The Zip Tie method is a great method for a quick fix.

I would like to see garage openers be somehow synced with a phone app so you can open your garage with your phone, and also know when it is being opened. In the case of the garage being opened with out you or any of your family doing so, then police or neighbors could be contacted to check on the situation.
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Rachael A Zell 9 years ago

Zachary Adam Zell wrote:

"I would like to see garage openers be somehow synced with a phone app so
you can open your garage with your phone, and also know when it is
being opened. In the case of the garage being opened with out you or any
of your family doing so
, then police or neighbors could be contacted to
check on the situation."

Check out: https://www.dropcam.com/

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