Home: Security Alarm

Being a somewhat absent minded individual at times, I forgot to lock my door one day after I set the alarm on my way out. I got a call from my alarm company that there was an "event" at my house. Turns out someone tried the door, and when it opened they ran it and grabbed my TV and split before the alarm siren went off. Sure the alarm cut down on the amount stolen but it would have been better it they hadn't been able to get in the first place.

What I did was move the magnetic contact switch from it's place in the door frame and put it instead at the far back side of the deadbolt hole. Then I drilled a coresponding hole in the end of the deadbolt the size of the magnet (removed magnet from it's plastic housing first to minimize it's size), and epoxy'd the magnet into the hole. Now instead of simply requiring the door to be closed to arm the alarm, the deadbolt has to be all the way into the hole for the magnet to get close enough to the contact switch to close it. I don't know if this is done by anyone out there already. I did see a locksmith once put a microswitch inside a lock for the same reason, but he drilled and tapped and had to modify the door to accomodate it. My idea is much simpler and probably more reliable (magnetic contact vs. microswitch) too.