Are you serious about your home security? If yes, then take this as your reminder to regularly maintain your gates and fences. Maintaining the fencing around your property, or gated entrance ensures that they will continue to operate in a good working manner and provide a good level of security.
Thieves typically target homes or buildings that look vulnerable. To prevent opportunistic thieves, here are some simple things that you can do to ensure your gates and fencing aren’t vulnerable.
How to Maintain Your Home Security Gates and Fences
Let’s take a look at the different types of materials that are used to make security fences and gates, as well as the different ways you can protect and maintain them.
Iron Gates
Inspect the Condition of the Paintwork
The first thing you need to do is check the condition of the paintwork on your iron gates; in particular, looking for any signs of rust.
After inspecting the paintwork, if you notice any areas that need to be treated, make sure that you complete this right away. This will help prevent the issue from spreading further.
When putting treatment on, you can simply paint the solution on (a wide variety of products are available on the market) and leave for the required period. After this is done, any touch-ups that are needed can be carried out with suitable exterior grade paint.
Faulty or Worn Hinges and Latches
Next, you can take a look at the hinges and latches on the iron gating. It is important to make sure that they’re not worn or loose. To check they are not loose, observe the weight of the gate and see if this is causing strain on any of the fixed points.
If you notice that the hinges and/ latches aren’t performing as they should, you can retighten them or replace them, where necessary.
Lock or Padlock Condition
Take a look at the condition of the lock or padlock; over time, this can become prone to damage or general wear and tear. If these don’t look secure, they should be replaced with the most secure lock that you can afford to spend.
Wooden Gates
Signs of Damage or Decay
If your property has wooden gates, make sure to look for any signs of damage, rotting or splitting to the wood. If any of these issues are the case, then this needs to be rectified immediately.
Gates that have rotting timber need to be cut out and filled with an appropriate filler. When repair work has been completed, you can sand the entire surface of the gate. This can then have a fresh coat of stain or paint applied to transform the gate and make it look as good as new.
Secure Gate Posts
Another important gate maintenance element is checking whether the gate posts are secure and in good condition. If they aren’t, then you can carry out the essential repair work that is needed, or replace the gate entirely.
Fixtures and Fittings
The last element to check with wooden gates is the fixtures and fittings; this includes taking a look at the latch and hinges and checking for signs of wear and tear or damage.
Metal fencing
Do you have metal fencing around your property? Then, in order for it to continue operating as an effective boundary, you need to treat it in exactly the same manner as an iron gate. This means inspecting the condition of the paintwork, checking for any faulty or worn hinges and latches, as well as checking the condition of the locks and any padlocks.
Contact Matrix Fire & Security
Matrix Fire & Security can help meet your home security requirements and we’re specialists in security fencing. If you would like to find out more about access control for your home or business, give us a call on 01296 614 440 or fill out an online contact form.
