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Thwart Porch Pirates

I have a neighbour on my street who, it seems, has something sitting on his front doorstep every day. Sometimes the stuff is gone the next day. Sometimes it stays there for several days. I see cases of bottled water and packages from Amazon among other things.

Doorbell Camera Image of Porch Pirate

If ever there was a way to signal to someone there’s no one home, this is how to do it. I’m not certain how many times his house has been broken into, but I do know it was broken into once in broad daylight on a weekend afternoon.

But that’s not the only risk of having stuff delivered and left at your front door. Your stuff can also be stolen by a “Porch Pirate”.

According to finder.com, 1 in 4 Canadians had had a parcel stolen from their home after it had been delivered by an online merchant. For 1 in 10 cases, the loss was over $250.

Want to avoid being a victim? Here’s what you can do.

Basic Procedures

Require a signature for deliveries so packages are not left sitting outside where they’re visible. It may require you to re-schedule a delivery or to go to a pickup location, but that beats having your stuff stolen.

Arrange for online purchases to be picked up – either at a bricks-and-mortar store or a courier depot.

Ask couriers to deliver to a neighbour’s home. Be sure to let your neighbour know so they’ll be there and ready for the delivery.

You can buy secure drop boxes for your front porch that can be accessed only by combination lock. You can direct couriers to place deliveries in the drop box and provide them the instructions on where it is and how to access it. Make certain the box is secured to the house in some way; otherwise, the thieves will just steal the box and all its content.

It’s also possible to buy a porch pirate bag – a reinforced nylon bag that is secured to your front door or gate. These are good for documents and small packages.

Here’s a photo of the original Porch Pirate security bag.

High-Tech

Place motion sensor lights about your entrance. They act as a deterrent – especially for thefts after dark. Most thieves shy away from the spotlight.

Set up security cameras around the exterior of your home. Wireless versions are best, because determined thieves will simply cut any cable from cameras that are wired in. Be sure they cover the front entrance and will capture the face of a person approaching it. Be sure they can capture images in low light, as in at dusk or after dark.

Install a doorbell camera at your front entrance. These usually are very good for picking up images of faces of persons approaching the front of your house and have a wide field of view to be able to capture people approaching from different angles. You’d be surprised at how many porch pirates have been caught by doorbell cameras – even ones installed on nearby properties.

Security measures aren’t perfect. They’re not guaranteed to catch a porch pirate in the act. But having them in place can serve as a deterrent. And isn’t that all you really want?

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How to Prevent Frozen Pipes

Over the past month, a partner I work with and one of my nieces had pipes freeze and burst. The partner is based in Atlanta. My niece is in Raleigh, NC. Hardly areas where you’d expect super cold weather.

Here in Canada, frozen pipes are more common than we think and our cold winters are ideal conditions to trigger a frozen pipe. When water freezes, it expands, and this will stress the copper tubing in our plumbing to the point that it will rupture.

Frozen pipes are more than just a nuisance. They can damage possessions and furniture (usually) in your basement. Most homeowner insurance policies will cover at least a portion of the damage but, still, filing a claim just adds to the hassle.

Check out these suggestions:

  • Locate your main water shut-off valve inside your home and add a tag or label to it, so it is easy to locate and turn off quickly if pipes burst in your home.
  • Seal air leaks in your home and garage to stop cold air from getting in. Check around windows and doors, electrical wiring, dryer vents and pipes.
  • Insulate pipes in your home most prone to freezing including near outside walls, in the basement, or in a garage with an outside water supply. Use foam pipe covers available from building supply or home improvement stores.
  • Keep the house warm even if you’re away to prevent indoor plumbing from freezing, especially in the area near the water meter. 
  • When temperatures are below -15C for a few days, you can choose to keep the water moving in your pipes by running a pencil-thin stream of cold water from a tap in the lowest point of the house e.g. a sink or tub in the basement. Ensure the drain is kept clear of debris to prevent overflowing or flooding. However, if you choose to take this step, you will be charged for the water you use. 
  • One thing we tend to overlook is outside faucets. If the outside faucet is closed, and the water supply valve on the inside is also closed, sub-zero temperatures can cause the water in between the two valves to freeze and expand, which causes the pipe to burst. Best way to prevent this is to close the water supply valve inside and then open the outside faucet to allow any water to drain out, then keep the outside faucet open through the winter.

The City of Toronto has more suggestions on how to prevent pipes from freezing. Just visit toronto.ca/frozenpipes, where you’ll find all the details, plus a video to guide you through some of them.

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