How Safe Is Your Apartment Or College Dorm Door?

Are you concerned about criminals entering your apartment or college dorm unit? Many women that live alone or on campus are worried about this, especially when it can also lead to sexual assault as well.

Of course you can buy a lock for entrances, but locks sometimes break and criminals or individuals with sexual assault in mind, can sometimes kick in an entire entrance if they want to bad enough… So what can women do? We have a very simple and convenient way to take care of this dilemma...

It's called the Dual Function Door Brace, it's adjustable and made with strong 20 gauge steel. Entrances to homes and college dorms are usually pretty strong. Most of the time what breaks is the lock, not the door itself (especially if it's an exterior door). This brace is easy to use and prevents intruders. All you have to do, is snuggly place the "V" end of the unit, around the bottom of your entrance knob and slant the round section tightly on the floor. This will allow your apartment or college dorm unit to be secure, while your are inside. PLUS, this handy unit can also be used on SLIDING GLASS entrances and as mentioned before, it's length is adjustable.

Women, always place your safety first, when it comes to living alone in an apartment or college dorm. Preventive measures such as using a Dual Function Door Brace, is smart and can prevent criminals from trespassing, especially ones that have sexual assault on their minds, as well!

Safety Tips for Women Who Live in Apartments

As you know, at Women On Guard™, we try to help women prevent crime. Below you will see some common sense, simple self defense tips, that we all should practice when living in an apartment complex.

Apartments are like small neighborhoods, some people you know and some you don't... Plus some, you thought you knew! Remember to always be aware of your surroundings and keep the following safety tips in mind.

Getting Mail: Try getting your mail during the day. If you happen to work into the night, just get the mail in the morning. A couple of hours later, is no big deal... Take all your mail and sort it out at home. Don't start reading through it, while still next to the mail boxes. You can always return any envelope that wasn't yours!

Photo by Weidner Apartment Homes

Doing Laundry: If you don't have a washer or dryer, be very cautious when in the laundry area. Make a conscientious effort to see who is around you. If anybody looks shady, go back home. Remember, washing machines in laundry rooms are always noisy. Makes a good environment for crime, because the sound of the machines, can cover up a cry for help!

Going Swimming: Unless you are accompanied, never go alone to the pool at night. Try to apply safety measures by taking someone with you! Again, this is a perfect area for crime, because an attacker could be drowning you and all neighbors would hear, was water splashing.

Photo by Jaako

Club House: Another section of the complex where you need to think about these safety tips. Many times apartment dwellers go there at night to socialize, have a couple of drinks or watch a game on TV. Alcohol sometimes leads to aggression or violence, so beware! It's preferable, not to go alone.

Trash Dumpster: A corner of the complex that people mostly go to at night. Make sure that the place is well lit. If not, you should get a few neighbors together and request as a group, to the management, for better lighting! Be aware of your surroundings before approaching the area. If you have a dog, take him or her with you. It can actually be the last walk of the evening for your pet to relieve themselves and they can be a companion for self defense, as well!

These are all common sense safety tips. For more tips go here. Plus, as we like to mention, always carry a self defense weapon, and make it readily available!

Affordable Alarm for Apartments or Studios

People that live in big houses aren't the only ones that get robbed or intruded upon! If your home is in a small apartment or studio and needs intruder or burglar protection, this is your best solution.

Photo by Alicia Nijdam

A recent study has shown that a large portion of the American population, consists of single women and men, living alone. Both sexes can benefit from the Door and Window Alarm (4-pack). Let's face it, most people who's homes are small, usually don't have money to spare and it would be ridiculous to spend an arm and a leg on security. Especially for just a couple of windows and a door in a small apartment or studio! Women in particular will benefit because they, unfortunately, can get the sexual assault intruders, besides the burglars!

Package includes 4 units

These 4 affordable, WIRELESS, little alarms, have a magnetic sensor that will sound a 90 decibel alarm or chime (whichever setting you prefer), if a window or door is opened by an intruder. They each have an on/off switch if you, for example, want to open a window to let fresh air in. They're easy to install in your home for protection and no tools are required! This affordable product is great for women, men or small families. Which brings us to the topic of toddlers. They sometimes like to wonder out the front entrance! These small alarms, will notify you. Children can also get into drawers that might have a weapon in them, you wouldn't want your child going into it either! Needless to say, they're great for security and are practical too!

The Door and Window Alarm is affordable, includes batteries and is easy to install and use, in a small apartment or studio. Don't pay more than you have to for home protection or security!

Trash Buddy Dogs

I bet you are wondering what the title of this post means. What do dogs and trash dumpsters have in common? Well in my home, my dogs take turns escorting me out to the trash dumpster every night. What better way for them to relieve themselves before bedtime and at the same time protect me from strangers!

Photo by DBduo Photography

If you live in an apartment complex or a condo and you have a dog, try taking him or her with you when taking out your waste to the trash dumpster. It doesn't matter if they are a large or small breed, either way they will attack or make a lot of noise! Small dogs are often the most fearless and most vocal! Most people like to take their trash out at night and people that live in buildings are more likely to be assaulted when walking through their complexes in the dark. I also carry pepper spray with me. You never know if a stranger with bad intentions will show up or a mean Rocky the Raccoon might want to defend it's delicious trashy meal! Your dog and pepper spray also come in handy when checking your mail at one of those mail box booths most complexes have.

This routine is an opportunity to bond more with your pet and feel safer at the same time!

Apartment Safety Tips for Single Women

As a woman that has lived in apartment complexes for many years, I thought I would share some safety tips for apartment living.

An apartment complex is like a small town where you have your friends, people whose faces just look familiar and some people that are complete strangers. There are places in the complex where you are more likely to gather with others. Some of these areas are; the office for the apartments, the club house, the laundry room, the pool/tennis courts area, the mailboxes section and the trash dumping area. Below is a breakdown of the different locations and the precautions you might consider:

Office Area
This is usually the safest place of the complex because there usually is more than one person present. It is where some checks are dropped off by renters or someone is complaining about their kitchen sink, etc. You still need to keep your guard up, in case someone for some reason gets angry, but usually the anger is targeted toward the office employee.

Mailbox Area
This area is one of the most dangerous and you should always keep your guard up! Criminals keep a close eye on mailbox sections of an apartment complex. Why? Because people are pretty predictable as to when they check their mail. Attackers like the fact that if they observe you for a few days, they can pretty much predict when you are going to check your mailbox. Usually people go to this section when they drive home from work. When you approach your mailbox, look around you. If there are a few people present, it is safer, but if you are the only one there, please be very cautious, especially at night. Always prepare your self defense product and have it in your hand and prepared to be used, prior to approaching the mailbox area.

Club House Area
Some complexes have club houses to rent them out for parties, but others have indoor recreational things such as pool and ping pong tables, pin ball machines, video games etc. Club houses can be very popular, especially on the weekends and in the evenings. Many times you will encounter people who are drinking alcoholic beverages that they brought from their apartment. It is always wise to go to club houses with a friend. Once in a while you will encounter a sore looser at a card game, for example, that can become violent and take it out on whomever is nearby. If you meet a new person, be careful on giving out your apartment number. Be aware also if someone is following you back to your apartment. If you are in fear of being followed, go to a friend's apartment, if you know they are home.

Tennis Court or Pool Area
The tennis court is pretty safe because you usually are accompanied by a tennis partner. The pool area is also pretty safe since it is very open and everyone is in plain site. Even when you are alone, an attacker will avoid an area that many people can see easily. Just make sure that when you leave the pool area, you prepare your self defense product ahead of time, prior to walking back to your apartment. This is important, because, since you are in plain site, that also means that a potential attacker or stalker could have also been looking at you. Keep in mind, that if you are going to the pool on a regular basis, try to go at different times of the day. This will make your schedule less predictable. If you are alone, try NOT to go at night.

Laundry Room Area
Here is another section of an apartment complex that is very dangerous. For one, it is noisy because of the machines. This noise can easily cover up someones scream or cry for help. For some reason, people feel they need to chat with whomever else is doing laundry. This can be a great tool for an assailant to get more information from you that you shouldn't have given to him in the first place! Be careful what you tell a complete stranger. Even if he is the cutest guy, and my, so meticulous with his neatly folded laundry! Impressive right? NO! Potential attackers play a caring role to make you feel comfortable and therefore letting your guard down. Again in this situation make sure you have a self defense product readily available.

Trash Dump Area
This area is of much concern because most people dump their trash at night, after dinner. If you don't want to wait until morning, please be very careful about this. If your trash dump area is dark, ask the apartment complex manager to install some kind of lighting around it. This may prove to be difficult but it is worth a try. You might want to consider asking a few female friends, that live there, to join in your request. Always take your self defense product with you and prepare it to be used. Always move cautiously toward the site and look around carefully as you approach. If you see someone that you do not recognize near it, maybe leaning against their car or smoking... Just turn around and go back home. You can always try later. It is better to be cautious than hurt or killed. If your trash is heavy, just set it down somewhere temporarily, where you can pick it up later.

If you want to include more helpful tips, please add your comment on this post!