Everyone knows it is a good idea to have spare keys to your home. It means that you have options if you lose a key, get locked out, or need to lend a key to a family member. However, finding places to keep your spare key can be difficult. Should you hide them outside your home? Leave them with a friend? Or keep them in your spare drawer?
If You Need to Leave Access to Spare Keys
It could be that someone needs to have access to your spare keys, but you don’t want to give them away. This could be the case if you have babysitters, dog walkers, or carers who need access to keys. In this case, you are going to want a safe place to leave them outside.
Do not leave them under your mat.
Everyone looks under the mat first, you will be making it easy for criminals to gain access to your home. The same goes with leaving your keys in plant pots near the door, it is expected so people look there.
So what about fake rocks and other hidden outside places?
The trouble with these fake hideouts is that most of them look fake. When a burglar knows what he’s looking for, a fake rock is a dead giveaway that will only make their jobs easier.
Try this instead
Leave your keys in a lockbox attached to your home.
Lockboxes need codes to gain access to the keys. The best of these lockboxes are very secure and durable. You can even get smart lockboxes with video monitoring equipment that links to your phone for high security.
Alternatively, why not use a keytainer.
These are not as secure as a lockbox so you don’t want to leave them hanging by your door. One suggestion is to leave it by your neighbor’s door, because who would suspect that the key hung on your neighbor’s house belongs to your home. Obviously, get the neighbor’s permission first.
If you Don’t Need Access to the Spare Key
If you are keeping keys just in case you ever get locked out you have more options. You can:
- Leave the spare keys with a family member or trusted neighbor.
- Use a safety deposit box.
- Hide them in your car.
What you don’t want to do is leave the spare keys in your house. That will not help you get back in if you ever lose your keys.
For more information to help you keep your home and your keys safe contact Quickly Locksmith on (305) 984-9922, or through our contact us page.
