Remote Building Security

   / Remote Building Security #1  

ilander

Member
Joined
Nov 30, 2012
Messages
40
Location
ND
Tractor
Case IH DX25E, Case 444, JD440I, JD510
This thread is a spin off from:
Urgent, need security help - Page 7
Where I participated in discussion for security help regarding people stealing stuff from remote properties. This thread details what I discussed there.

Beginning about 1989 we put up two buildings back in the woods in a very remote location. Theft started right away and simple gates, door locks and no trespassing signs were useless. We stored a small Case tractor, implements for it, tools and building materials at the start. Fortunately they never swiped the Case 444.

We made several security efforts that worked for about 15 years. First was to double gate the property with the second gate several hundred feet down the trail. They never got past this gate for it had steel pipes as posts cemented in, the gate was chained to each post at each end with a lock.

Thieves in the area were using chain saws to bypass doors on wooden buildings and tools to take metal siding off metal ones. So we glued steel siding to the OSB sheathing as well as the screws. We put bars on the windows and blocked looking in with plywood on the inside. See picture.
1 Building, doors, bars, LB.jpg

I made glued laminated doors consisting of 2x4's, OSB, expanded metal, plywood, then corrugated siding. Door latches were just the simple keyed entry ones you find on household doors. Now comes the special door latch.

Both buildings had doors close to a corner. At this corner I came up from the ground with plastic conduit glued to a LB type junction box. The other end of the LB was pointed to the door. Now to the average person this was nothing more than a simple electric service, but in fact no wires were in there. Removal of the LB cover exposed the head of a bolt.

On one building this was a bolt that screwed into the door and served as a hidden dead bolt. Backing the bolt out about 20 turns allowed this door to open. See pic.
2 Small building.jpg

The other building is the one first pictured; it had double doors with a very complicated hidden lock.

Removing the LB cover exposed the end of a shaft that actuated the more complicated mechanism. See pic.
3 LB's bolt head.JPG

This picture shows the other end of that shaft, and the shaft in the door in engages to actuate the mechanism.
4 Mechanism, door open.JPG

The other door locked with four hammer driven dead bolts that hold the reinforced door solid to the frame. See pic
5 Side door bolts locked.jpg

When both doors are closed, a special keyed wrench is inserted into the LB, engages the shaft, and a quarter turn locks the second door to the door frame and other door. See two pics.
6 Door key.JPG
7 Doors closed, mechanism actuated.jpg

In 2005 thieves bypassed both gates through neighbors property, pried the small buildings door bit by bit until the bolt was discovered, then used a wrench in the LB's to easily open doors of both buildings, stealing over $5000 worth of stuff. Afterwards hex heads were replaced with special automotive-keyed lug nuts, in 2010 skids were put on and moved. See two pics.
8 Skid.JPG9 Moving Building in 2010.JPG

Thieves are like politicians, they will redistribute your wealth no matter what you do.

For those wanting to try this, you do not need to use a LB type fake electrical service. Be creative, anything that looks normal will work, such as running a threaded pipe through to the door with a water valve screwed to it. The valve would be fake, unscrew it would expose the mechanism.
 
   / Remote Building Security #2  
Very clever but quite an undertaking.
 
   / Remote Building Security #3  
Thanks for sharing! Some great ideas.
 
   / Remote Building Security #4  
Here in the Chicago area it would have been a lot cheaper to put out a hit on these guys. I learned a lot reading your ideas.
 
   / Remote Building Security #5  
Good designs and very well thought out. It is a shame that some people just don't stop.
 
   / Remote Building Security #6  
A determined thief will circumvent any protective measure except insurance. Get it and be done with it
 
   / Remote Building Security #7  
Those thieves were pretty determined and managed to get around most of your ingenious measures. Did your neighbors have trouble, and did any of the locals suggest who the thieves might be?
 
   / Remote Building Security #8  
I had all my stuff in a 20ft shipping container. This worked very well and its secure. I paid $1350 for the container including delivery and you can't build a secure shed for that money.
091115-beetle105.jpg
Now I have a metal building with security and cameras.
 
   / Remote Building Security #9  
went to a guys place one day, and he had a solenoid attached to a door bolt, and I think he had what looked like a loose nail and could push in on the nail which pushed a push switch which activated the solenoid which would pull the bolt back, and the door would be open, I think he had a pin or some thing to hold the bolt open on the inside,

but it was a very simple key less entry system, kinda like the bolt in the LB box,
 
   / Remote Building Security #10  
Very clever but quite an undertaking.
girl.jpg

beaty.jpg
 

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