Improving your safety at home with home locks

Your house should be a sanctuary where you feel your safest; where you can escape the world and retire to it with peace of mind knowing that no one can get in if you don’t want them too. Having this type of safety comes with the responsibility of making it a reality. Your first line of protection at home is your home lock. Without a strong lock you may find yourselves with some unwanted guests – no one wants this to happen – therefore, understanding what type of lock you should install is crucial. Many people do not know the different types of locks and why certain ones are better than others. Being educated on these matters is an important safety to having peace of mind that your belongings are safe and most importantly your family is safe. If you want to start this process today get in touch with an efficient lock smith service as this can really make the difference.

The different types of locks for commercial and residential

When we are talking about locks, there are many different types of locks and grades depending on the strength of the lock. First, there are residential locks, commercial locks and automotive locks. We will be looking at what type of locks are suitable for residential and commercial use so you can make a more educated decision when evaluating a lock to see if its needs to be changed. Locks are graded on an ANSI grading system. The American National Standards Institute (ANSI) established three grades for door locks to help identify the quality and durability of lock sets and deadbolts. Each lock must pass multiple tests, including cycles, door strikes and weight test. One cycle consists of the knob or handle turning completely to retract the latch bolt and open the door, and then it is released, allowing the door to re-latch.

The different grades are as follows:

  • Grade 1 – Best

This is the highest security available and meets commercial building requirements; it is available for residential uses via deadbolts. There are no standard knobs, handle sets or mortise lockset that will meet ANSI Grade 1 certifications, only commercial lever handles. To achieve this grade:

Knobs must withstand 800,000 cycles, 6 door strikes and a 360 pound weight test

Deadbolts must withstand 250,000 cycles and 10 door strikes (hammer test)

  • Grade 2 – Better

Meets light commercial building requirements; exceeds standard residential security and building requirements. To achieve this grade:

Knobs must withstand 400,000 cycles, 4 door strikes and a 250 pound weight test

Deadbolts must withstand 150,000 cycles and 5 door strikes (hammer test)

  • Grade 3 – Good

Meets residential building requirements only and provides minimal residential security. To achieve this grade:

Knobs must withstand 200,000 cycles, 2 door strikes and a 150 pound weight test

Deadbolts must withstand 100,000 cycles and 2 door strikes (hammer test)

Hopefully this gives you insight on what type of locks you should be using based on your needs.

Cost of course can play a factor in these situations but a little extra cost is a small price to pay for peace of mind at home. If you are serious about upgrading your residential or commercial locks contact ABC Locksmith, ABC is an efficient locksmith service that can guide you through this process and give you the security you need.

Why you should invest in a gun safe

With gun sales steadily increasing across the United States, safety becomes a priority with families that have guns in the house. More families now own guns as a means of self-defense. In case of an attempted break in or murder, having a gun in the house can save lives in these types of situation. However, just because you own a gun doesn’t mean you are safe from the power it has. It is a lethal killing machine and sometimes I think this is lost information to many people. Keeping it in a draw or under a bed really isn’t good enough to protect your family from its killing ability. There is a great responsibility that comes with owning a gun that must not be overlooked.

Owning a gun doesn’t mean an accident can’t happen

Once the gun is fired a bullet will travel 2,500 feet in one second. This means there is no going back after the triggered is pulled and the damage is done. Many homes that own guns have accidents occur all the time as the gun was easily accessible. Accidents can range from showing someone the gun with the safety off and it randomly firing, a young child thinking it is a toy and firing it, or even if a burglar robbing your house was to get to it first and use it against you. Whatever it is, there is no excuse to not have your gun kept in a safe place in the house. This doesn’t only mean hidden but in a protective environment, a gun safe is the perfect answer to this solution.

A gun safe is a great place to keep a gun

Once you start using a gun safe it is very hard for anyone else to have access to the weapon Only trusted members should be given the code and this way less fatalities will occur from accidental incidents around the house. No children or unknown visitors would be able to access it once it is locked away and this is for the best. When you are deciding what type of safe to get installed in your home, there are a few different options you have. First, you would either be looking at getting a large gun safe or a small gun safe depending on the size of your gun. This is a rather self-explanatory feature of the safe as if the gun doesn’t fit inside then it becomes pretty useless! Another great feature is an electronic key pad, it provides much quicker access than a dial lock which is manual and can be prone to human error. If you are being robbed no one will wait for you to fiddle with the lock. Many trusted local locksmiths that can provide you with good information and install the type of gun safe you want. If you are serious about keeping your home safe then Locksmith Sarasota could be your answer. They will guide you through the process and install whatever gun safe you eventually decide on. Keep your family safe today and do the right thing!

Abuse across all social backgrounds – time for a drug and alcohol assessment

Sometimes it is a common mistake to assume that only the poor and misled can have alcohol and drug issues. There are countless examples of the children of wealthy people and wealthy child actors falling victim to alcohol and drug abuse. Drew Barrymore’s story is one which highlights the idea that social background plays no part in your likelihood to be an addict, it can happen to anyone, and you always have to have an ability to say no. Drew began acting at a very young age and saw great commercial success thanks to projects like “E.T.” However, following her success, something quite the opposite of what you could imagine happened. After attending many parties with Hollywood celebrities and American elites she was led down the wrong road at a very early age. By the age of nine she started smoking, by eleven she was drinking alcohol, and at thirteen, she was using cocaine and marijuana. Drew begin attending rehab at the tender age of fourteen, during these years she quit and almost committed suicide, although some that experience she went back to rehab, finished the course and has remained sober since. This just shows you that no one is above alcohol assessment, and definitely not above using a drug and alcohol rehab center to help you. They are there for support aunt here is nothing wrong with attending one to help get you back on the right track.

Signs of alcoholism

It is always better to catch addictive behaviors before they start to grow. As time goes on the cycle of addiction becomes more ingrained in their daily lives, making it much tougher to escape when the time comes that they decide they want to quit. This means that seeing some of the signs early, whether for your own good or a loved one, is a very important factor in how smooth the recovery process will be. Some signs that alcohol consumption is getting out of hand are:

You are budgeting more money for alcohol each month

Your drinking is hindering your performance at school or at your job

Arguing frequently with friends or family about your alcohol consumption

You have lied about the amount you consume to family members

You have chosen to drink over various other activities on multiple occasions

If any of these signs are present in your life or someone you know, it could be time to start intervening and trying to put a stop to this addictive behavior. The longer you leave it the cycle of addiction only becomes stronger and therefore is just tougher to break. If you are unsure about yourself or someone you know take this free online alcohol assessment provided by the Dunes at East Hampton. It can aid you in determining if you or a loved one has began to develop dangerous drinking habits!

The misconception of drug and alcohol rehab centers

As Drew’s story showed, sometimes giving yourself over to a drug and alcohol rehab center can not only help you through the recovery process, but also save your life in the process. Many people think drug and alcohol rehab centers are run down, nasty places where only the lowest of the low go. This is not the case at all! Some are even luxury rehab centers where the atmosphere is pleasant and the scenery is beautiful. This can be a great option for anyone looking for a push to get their recovery started!

College students and common street drug abuse

College campuses across the country have to battle the many issues that come with students who are abusing their drug policies. Not only is drug use on the rise, but it is at one of the highest points it has ever been in American history. This means that if there was ever a time to get clued into what your son or daughter is up to at college it’s now! It can be very stressful when you first send them off to college and begin to wonder what they are up to. However, it is probable that many high school students are secretly engaging in illegal behaviors that their parents have no idea about. In a recent survey that was taken approximately 1 out of 16 high school seniors admitted to daily marijuana use, and 60% had admitted to having tried alcohol. These figures speak for themselves showing the prevalence of common street drugs in our society, starting as young as high school. I am sure that not all of these parents knew that their child was actively using marijuana, however if they did there would have been serious consequences. So the first question we need to answer is, “How are so many young adults getting away with illegal drug use in today’s world?”

Different names for common street drugs

The first answer to that question is that many of these drugs have street names that have no relevance at all to the substance they are using. There are many slang terms for drugs that students may come across over. As an example drugs like cocaine and codeine are currently being called by other names such as blow c, coke, freeze, sizzurp, purple, and lean. Another example of different terminology being used to describe a drug is when Adderall is referred to by addy, study buddies, dexies, zing, pep pills. Finally, another very well-known street drug such as marijuana has many different names like weed, pot, herb, broccoli, green, and many more are used throughout high schools campuses. In my personal opinion broccoli seems the most suitable fit, because at the end of the day everyone needs their daily dose of green right? (That’s called irony). It might seem light-hearted but it really is a serious issue. The college use of drugs has grown 11.8% and will continue to rise if nothing is done about it. Therefore as a parent or older adult it’s very important that you become aware of some of the highly used slang phrases for these drugs. It can protect you from dangerous activity going on in your area and give you a better idea of how to detect if these drugs are being used by a loved one who doesn’t want you to know. Finding the full list of illegal drugs and street names online can be a good starting point to use as a reference.

How to combat drug abuse

College campuses are always the hardest place to stop the distribution of common street drugs; they are readily available and too easy to come into contact with. With the current situation, there is a good chance that more than one of your son or daughters friends has access to such drugs and may even be using them. Therefore equipping them with the right information before and during school can always have a major impact on the decisions you make. This means it is extremely important to continue to educate yourself on the drugs that are out there and the effects they can have. With that being said there is only a certain amount you can do as a parent to keep your children safe, as the saying goes, you can lead a horse to water but you can’t make them drink it. At the end of the day, if they want to find drugs and use them on a college campus there is no way of truly stopping them. So in that case, using a drug and alcohol rehab center may be the best decision for you. If you feel unsure about what to do, giving a specialist a call is never a bad option. There are some warning signs that drugs are present in your son or daughter’s life, these can range an increase in aggression, abnormal sleeping or eating patters, unusual scars or bruising on the body or a constant need for money. If you feel they are demonstrating some of these signs then it is never too early to give a drug and alcohol rehab center a call. Common street drugs can be life threatening and the sooner this issue is treated the better.

Family and substance abuse

Family and substance abuse – A reason for drug and alcohol intervention

Drug and alcohol abuse can lead anyone down a grueling road in life. They can become very dependent on these substances making them helpless in breaking the cycle. Seeing a friend or close relative go down this path can be tough to deal with, it not only affects them but can also impact your life depending on the situation. Even though it may be a lengthy process, confronting them about the problem and starting on the road to recovery is always the best move. Although in some instances, family and friends let the addict become comfortable.

Reasons why family don’t get drug and alcohol intervention sooner

It may seem obvious that family members should be the first to respond to these situations and help them quit. However, sometimes the addict is unable to get the help they need from these family members. Sometimes they are unaware of what is going on or even the extent of the situation. If you are not constantly surrounded by this person you may not know how much they are abusing. Another reason is that some of these family members may also be abusers. In low income neighborhoods this is sometimes a likely case, and therefore your first line of protection -family- is unable to help you overcome these issues and point you in the right direction. Finally these loved ones may feel pressured by concern, fear or guilt to put off ending the enabling behaviors. In reality, delaying a family-member or friend from entering rehabilitation will only make the problem worse. In cases like these, the support of a professional interventionist can make all the difference. If you feel having this support could help your situation with a loved one, Family First Intervention is a drug and alcohol intervention center that offers goal orientated step by step guidance for your family. They will help you and your loved ones accept the situation and willingly undergo treatment, but also to provide your family with closure in regards to your loved one’s addiction.

Reasons you should intervene sooner

If you have convinced yourself that they will be able to stop on your own and getting involved is not the right thing to do then you should think again. The dangers of these types of addictions are something that cannot be stressed enough. There is never a good enough excuse for you to not try and get in the way of their substance abuse. It takes a lot of support and encouragement to battle such an addiction and usually takes a push to get started in the right direction. If you are unsure of some of the clues here are some tell tail signs that they are becoming an addict:

 

  • If you have found them hiding drugs.
  • If they are going to the doctor to get more of their prescribed drugs than normal.
  • If they have been stealing money to buy more drugs.
  • If their sleep patterns do not seem normal.
  • Or if they have bloodshot eyes or bad breathe more than usual.

All of these are signs that your friend or loved one is becoming an addict and you should seek help immediately. There is no time like the present to cut off someone from an addiction, and the longer you leave it will only get worse. Hoping for them to stop is not the right answer. To see if it’s time for you to stand up to the situation and put an end to their addiction take the free family first intervention drug and alcohol intervention quiz. It will give you more information pertaining to your situation and will advise you on the best options for you.

Some Rules Of Search Engine Optimization

Why is Search Engine Optimization Important?

When it comes to the online world, there are many key concepts that make the difference between having a highly visible web page and one that people rarely visit. Achieving a high ranking on Google search results will prove to be worthwhile when it comes to website views; in fact Google accounts for 90% of all searches ran through a search engine. With this, 60% of website clicks comes from the first five hits on the first page, and only 3.7% comes from the next five, thus having a highly ranked page is vital to breaking into and keeping your place in a certain marketplace. Search engines decide webpage rankings based on an internal algorithm, and Google uses about thirty-five different aspects of a webpage to calculate what it should be ranked when related keywords are typed into the search engine. This means search engine optimization, or SEO for short (the process of creating and altering a web page to best suit these algorithms) is almost necessary if you want to maximize views to your site.

Man working with modern devices

On-page versus Off-page Optimization

Off-page

When Google runs its internal algorithm, it takes into account what is on your site, and compares it to similar sites. This initially is a strange concept to grasp; the fact that your web page rating can be influenced by factors that you have no control over. This is called off-page and it is related to your site’s domain authority. Put in simple terms, the amount of times your webpages are linked to by other trusted sites will increase your domain authority and improve your ranking. When you think about it, it makes sense: if you have a lot of good information, then other sites will definitely want to draw from your web page and give their audience a way to easily access your site. Hence, Google will reward you if other sites have links to your webpage as it shows you have relevant information pertaining to your field and therefore warrants a high ranking.

If you are struggling with this concept but want to improve your off-page ranking on your own, this can be a daunting task as it’s tough to know where to start. Using a full service digital marketing company could be a worthwhile investment for you as they can specifically target your off-page ranking and help you improve it. Eminent SEO has a very professional approach to search engine optimization and can substantially improve your ranking. With great knowledge of the internal algorithms, Eminent SEO is able to pinpoint certain aspects of a webpage and get the results you need.  

Snail on a laptop

On-page

When it comes to your site’s on-page SEO, this is pretty self-explanatory. This means the algorithm takes into account what is on your webpage in order to administer a web result ranking for it based on the keywords searched in relation to what your site is about. Even though it’s an easy concept to understand, it can still be difficult to build your website to suit these algorithms. So what does it factor in? Great question: there are many important aspects of your web page that will eventually be used to calculate your ranking. One of the most important ones that can drastically decrease your ranking is having broken links on your webpage. If Google finds a link that takes you to a site that has either moved or been taken down, your ranking will automatically go down. This can be solved easily with the right tools. Eminent SEO has a free link extractor tool which will scan your webpage for any broken links and bring them to your attention right away. It’s a simple tool to use and can save your skin when it comes to search engine optimization.

Hope this information helped anyone who was looking to understand a little more about how search engines decided what results were most suited to your search query!