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PORT PERRY STAR -- Thursday, December 28, 1969 -- 29 PORT PERRY STAR sl BR N & CLASSIFIED ADVERTISING VOL.1 No.15 - FIRST CHOICE REAL ESTATE - THURSDAY, DECEMBER 28 1989 Published weekly by the Port Perry Star FEATURE HOMES OF THE WEEK CENTURY 21 GUIDE REALTY LIMITED . - : pe s 5 ry HES ; : 3 . WELCOME TO R.R. 2, NEWCASTLE This executive home sits on 3.67 acres with potential for future severance. The home is 2000 sq.ft. with a 2 car garage which is drywalled and insulated, has commercial type door opener and securi- ty locks. Basement is completely finished with upgrade carpet and includes a 4 man jacuzzi tub in a sealed cedar room. Water system has purifier, bacteria killer and includes a water softener. Heating is FAE with heat pump, also central air, central humidifier, central dehumidifier and central vac. Large eat-in kitchen, sunken family room with woodstove. 2% baths - extra large with oak walls and floors in master bath with Roman tub and separate shower. Still more extras!!! Call Pat Symons today for full details, 723-5281 or 985-8229 res. TO VIEW THIS PROPERTY CALL ... 723-5281 The Poof Perry Sar An Award Winning Community Newspaper J Serving Port Perry & Scugog Township since 1866 ) Keep your home safe from thieves and intruders There are a lot of things homeowners can do to minimize break-ins and keep their homes safe from intruders. "Most break and entries," says Andy Gyorffy, vice-president of marketing, Ramtron Pre-Entry Alarm Systems Inc., '"'occur through basement windows or patio doors. Installing bars to basement windows and good locks on doors is a good first step. 'So is making sure that there aren't too many shrubs or bushes close to windows or other possible points of entry. This makes it easier to spot prowlers." Lighting is also important. And if you're not home for a few days or even for an evening, he adds, ask a neighbour to look out their window from time to time to make sure things are all right. "Neighborhood Watch is another great idea -- and a very effective deterrent to criminals. The problem is that your neighbors can't see in the dark and won't be watching 24 hours a day -- and likely won't be at those times when most break-ins occur." Beware also, says Gyorffy, whose firm markets one of the most sophisticated -- and effec- tive -- home security systems available today, of being lulled in- to a false sense of security because of these things. "A lot of criminals come disguised as someone who has a right to be at your home -- the TV repairman who drives up to your door and walks away with your TV, stereo or VCR...or the mov- ing van that 'moves' you while the family is at work or on ehdays No one really thinks twice about seeing two or three men in coveralls who appear to be check- ing your eavestroughs or win- dows. As far as your neighbors are concerned, it's just someone who is doing repairs on your home. "So right there, under the nose of your neighbors -- even with a Neighborhood Watch program in effect -- your home is being robbed." The average break-in takes six to eight seconds -- even with a good lock. It's as simple as put- ting a car jack between the door frame and giving it a good crank or inserting a screwdriver or small crowbar between the door and door jam and giving it a push. Both will do the trick. "Locks," adds Gyorffy, "are for honest people." Window bars also offer a false sense of security. They are usual- ly installed by 'people whose homes have been broken into through a basement window. 'The sad part of it all is that the person who installed those bars is thinking that if the intruders come back, they'll be stopped by the bars. Not so. If the intruder does return, he will simply take the path of least resistance and enter by one of the main floor windows. "And no matter how good your window locks are, never forget the fact that glass is not difficult to break." About 30 percent of all break- ins, he notes, are through doors and the balance, either through a basement or main floor window. Once in a while the entry will be made through an upstairs window -- but that's rare in residential break-ins. "This is why a home security system is needed to ensure that your home -- and the people in it -- are safe." Even then, he notes, be sure that the system you choose meets your needs. Most conventional "hard wire" systems, so called because they require your home to be wired in order to work, of- fer only partial protection. '""The problem with these systems is that if you've guessed wrong and the intruder enters through an unprotected area, it's almost useless." In most cases, says Gyorffy, they incorporate a technology that was developed about half a century ago for commercial and business applications. "They are not meant for people who come home every night at 5 o'clock and have to live in that en- vironment. The result -- usually plenty of false alarms." The Ramtron system, which is helping to revolutionize the in- dustry, works on a different con- cept, called audio harmonic sound discrimination - an ultra- sensitive audio detection system which constantly monitors sounds in the home, 'listening for sounds' caused by forced entry. Whenever Ramtron's sensors detect any of these sounds, a signal is relayed to the main unit which immediately activates the alarm -- lights go on and an in- side and outside siren go into action. 'No burglar sticks around when that happens." The Ramtron system also, of course, has central station monitoring capabilities. BEES