A lot of folks (myself included at times) tend to focus on the safe as the heart of the anti-theft system. The truth is, I DON'T WANT THEM IN MY HOUSE. We have some great stickies on camera systems, etc. but what about pooling some info on basic burglary deterrence?

My wife and I recently moved from my very small home town with essentially a zero crime rate out to the county outside the city where we both work. They just completed our new house and I've began to take measures to hopefully help deter a possible burglary. It is on a walk-out basement that backs to woods (with neighbors on the back side of the woods). The houses are fairly spread out so "nosey neighbors" (which I very much appreciate) won't be of much help I'm afraid.

Do you guys have any good resources for things I can do to make my house less break-in friendly than other houses? I've been researching with my google-fu but arfcom has some great resources that I'd like to tap as well.


Compiled list of tips from this thread, credit to all appropriate members. My additional comments are in italics.


Make your home uninviting or look like more trouble than it is worth.

Make it look like someone is home. Leave light(s) on, radio and/or TV to make some sound inside. Car in the driveway/garage help.

Have the house well lit on the exterior

Alarm system door and window stickers/yard sign and an alarm system if you can do it.

Don't showcase your wealth. Keep valuables out of plain sight.

Keep shady people out of your house. Don't let Craigslist strangers pick things up at your house if not required, I like to meet elsewhere if possible.

When you buy a new computer/tv/fancy thing, break down the box and put it inside the trash can, not on display next to the can for 5 days, waiting on pickup.

Get to know your neighbors. Ask them to be observant of anything strange and let them know you will too.

Landscaping against the house that is uncomfortable to work around and also won't conceal a perp.

Try to be random on your daily activities. Don't make your schedule too easy to figure out.

Dogs or the appearance of having them may help. Please see my post on 11/5/13 of this thread though.

Replace small screws in door hinges and strike plates with 3"-4" deck screws as a cheap way to increase door strength against kicks.

Upgrade locks, strike plates and related items. Doesn't have to be all at once, but do it.

Don't post that you are/will be out of town on social media.






Appreciate any input and think this could be a great sticky if we get some info from those in the know.

Tag. This sounds like a great resource to pool ideas.
 

Claymore's.  Lots and lots of claymore's


On a serious note, simple things make a difference.  
Don't showcase your wealth.
Keep shady people out of your house.
When you buy a new computer/tv/fancy thing.  Break down the box, and put it inside the trash can, not on display next to the can for 5 days, waiting on pickup.


If you look tidy and simple, there isn't much attraction for someone to rob you.

Park an RV, and a couple new four wheelers outside, with gun stickers all over your new F350 riding on 22's with a 10" suspension lift.  You are asking for it.

The key to home security is to make your neighbor's house more attractive to a thief than yours.



It is almost impossible to recover stolen items without a serial number. You can't prove to the cops that it is yours. Get your handy digital camera out and snap photos of the front of the item and the back serial number plate of all high value items you own. This is quicker (lazy) than writing them down, and you don't even need to turn the device around. Just put your cam on macro and shove it behind the box and snap.



Save this memory card in your safe, or off site safe-deposit.



Talk to your neighbors.  Ask them to be observant of anything strange and let them know you will too.  Nothing like having the car make, model, color and license plate handed to you of your insurance agent who sat in your driveway for 15 minutes when you forgot your appointment.  Same with the company car parked in the driveway for lunch one day.  I have good neighbors and I don't mind buying them a beer everytime I see them.  

Spray the inside of the garage windows with clear matte spray paint. You still get the light, but they can't see in. Costs you $2 and takes 5 min.
Unfriendly landscaping: pyracantha or other spiny bushes near the house, especially under windows. Let the bushes grow right up against the house, but keep them trimmed short.
Don't give anyone a hiding place where they can work on getting into your house, or unload all your stuff from your house without being seen. Can't do anything about the design or placement of your house at this point, but you can modify your landscaping.  

Great idea! I might give that a try. Kind of like the frosting on some bathroom windows.

Yeah the house location, floor plan and general specs, except for finishes were all set when we found out about its construction. Otherwise I'd have made a few tweaks here and there. And agreed, I have no plans of large landscaping or a fence at this point to give perps a place to hide as they work.

Lights outside on or on motion sensors.  Lock doors and windows.  Alarm system (THAT YOU ACTUALLY USE!), be friendly with neighbors.  Try to be random on your daily activities.  Don't make your schedule too easy to figure out.

I have workmen in my house right now and had to give them a key.  You know what I did?  I put the old set of locks on the front door before I gave them a key.  When the work is done, the locks go back on.  I had a bad nanny experience and made sure the alarm code and lock box for the spare key were changed when we booted her.


Sliding doors are a PITA.  You can look into that 3M security film which makes breaking through the glass really hard.

eta: great thread idea.  Mods please stick

Just hide the DVR, or, have the video backed up off-site.

Put a couple of larger dog toys in the yard.

For the DVR.  Find an older, obsolete unit.  Plug in and connect unterminated camera wires.  Crook will destroy/take this unit.  Operating unit is hidden.

I've actually seen this done, except the customer used an old dead time lapse VCR that still lit up when plugged in. I got to watch the footage from the DVR when the guy went running out the back door, with VCR under his arm.

my friend installed a wireless camera in his van that faces the house, it transmits to his tv system and dvr, so he checks it out often. it attached just in front of the windshield rearview mirror.

put all your tools inside the house, and anything they can break a window with, unfortunately all the landscape bricks make a easy smash and grab weapon if they think noise is not a problem,

sliding glass doors are a weak spot for sure, just putting wood or a bar in the tracks is not enough. some of them if lifted slightly, give enough that they will pop out of the track. and then they can just slide them out of the way and they are in. 2 houses i lived in had doors like this. maybe installing a larger guard or something to keep the door from having room to move may help.

if you have jalousie  windows, the multiple glass panels that move, they are very easy for a thief to defeat, so either change them out, or put a metal protective screen on the inside of the door or window that  they would have to unbolt or cut through with something time consuming, strong enough that they cant crowbar out.

double doors or french doors that open outside should be reinforced, they are weak where the 2 doors meet

don't have any extra keys hidden anywhere around the exterior of the house, the pro thief will find them. keep them with a friend or neighbor if you must, or a spare hidden at work, lockbox etc.


don't leave any valuables outside, i used to park my bike in the backyard, it was fenced in and you could not see it from any of the neighbors houses, my guess is they wanted to break in the house, but my rottweiler made them think twice, but they took the bike.


its pretty much all common sense, but sometimes its just so simple you just don't think about it.


keep them coming people, i love the free ideas

locking the gate should be mandatory, but depending on the circumstances most of us don't


bad dog sign with the sheperds head or a shark or something is better than just the words, it has that mental image of getting bit, and are good even if you dont have a dog.

if you have vehicles not driven often, move them to different spaces to show someone might be home. i think half the crooks just random chance your house that day, and the other half are watching the area looking for juicy or easy targets. i read the police reports in the paper from time to time and you would be amazed at what people take, and how they did it.

if your house is 2 stories dont' leave ladders outside or on your work truck not chained up. or windows open, unlocked,,, many of them are great climbers




one other thing to add, in addition to hiding , cutting up tv boxes in the trash,, i see many people have large front windows and you can see that pretty gigantic tv plain as day, and at night it just is easy to see from the street. maybe the wife won't let ya close the blinds though.. but showing off of the tv can lead to it growing legs.

From this thread.



                         Things Your Burglar Wont Tell You


1. Of course I look familiar. I was here just last week cleaning your carpets, painting your shutters, or delivering your new refrigerator.

2. Hey, thanks for letting me use the bathroom when I was working in your yard last week. While I was in there, I unlatched the back window to make my return a little easier.

3. Love those flowers. That tells me you have taste ... and taste means there are nice things inside. Those yard toys your kids leave out always make me wonder what type of gaming system they have.

4. Yes, I really do look for newspapers piled up on the driveway. And I might leave a pizza flyer in your front door to see how long it takes you to remove it.

5. If it snows while you're out of town, get a neighbor to create car and foot tracks into the house. Virgin drifts in the driveway are a dead giveaway.

6. If decorative glass is part of your front entrance, don't let your alarm company install the control pad where I can see if it's set. That makes it too easy.

7. A good security company alarms the window over the sink. And the windows on the second floor, which often access the master bedroom-and your jewelry. It's not a bad idea to put motion detectors up there too.

8. It's raining, you're fumbling with your umbrella, and you forget to lock your door-understandable. But understand this: I don't take a day off because of bad weather..

9. I always knock first. If you answer, I'll ask for directions somewhere or offer to clean your gutters. (Don't take me up on it.)

10. Do you really think I won't look in your sock drawer? I always check dresser drawers, the bedside table, and the medicine cabinet.

11. Helpful hint: I almost never go into kids' rooms.

12. You're right: I won't have enough time to break into that safe where you keep your valuables. But if it's not bolted down, I'll take it with me.

13. A loud TV or radio can be a better deterrent than the best alarm system. If you're reluctant to leave your TV on while you're out of town, you can buy a $35 device that works on a timer and simulates the flickering glow of a real television. (Find it at faketv.com.)

14. Sometimes, I carry a clipboard. Sometimes, I dress like a lawn guy and carry a rake. I do my best to never, ever look like a crook.

15. The two things I hate most: loud dogs and nosy neighbors.

16. I'll break a window to get in, even if it makes a little noise. If your neighbor hears one loud sound, he'll stop what he's doing and wait to hear it again. If he doesn't hear it again, he'll just go back to what he was doing. It's human nature.

17. I'm not complaining, but why would you pay all that money for a fancy alarm system and leave your house without setting it?

18. I love looking in your windows. I'm looking for signs that you're home, and for flat screen TVs or gaming systems I'd like. I'll drive or walk through your neighborhood at night, before you close the blinds, just to pick my targets.

19. Avoid announcing your vacation on your Facebook page. It's easier than you think to look up your address.

20. To you, leaving that window open just a crack during the day is a way to let in a little fresh air. To me, it's an invitation.

21. If you don't answer when I knock, I try the door. Occasionally, I hit the jackpot and walk right in.


Sources: Convicted burglars in North Carolina , Oregon , California , and Kentucky; security consultant Chris McGoey, who runs crimedoctor.com; and Richard T. Wright, a criminology professor at the University of Missouri-St. Louis, who interviewed 105 burglars for his book Burglars on the Job.

Protection for you and your home

If you don't have a gun, here's a more humane way to wreck someone's evil plans for you. (I guess I can get rid of the baseball bat.)

Wasp Spray

A friend who is a receptionist in a church in a high risk area was concerned about someone coming into the office on Monday to rob them when they were counting the collection. She asked the local police department about using pepper spray and they recommended to her that she get a can of wasp spray instead.

The wasp spray, they told her, can shoot up to twenty feet away and is a lot more accurate, while with the pepper spray, they have to get too close to you and could overpower you. The wasp spray temporarily blinds an attacker until they get to the hospital for an antidote. She keeps a can on her desk in the office and it doesn't attract attention from people like a can of pepper spray would. She also keeps one nearby at home for home protection... Thought this was interesting and might be of use..


Wasp And Hornet Spray

On the heels of a break in and beating that left an elderly woman in Toledo dead, self defense experts have a tip that could save your life.

Val Glinka teaches self-defense to students at Sylvania Southview High School . For decades, he's suggested putting a can of wasp and hornet spray near your door or bed.

Glinka says, "This is better than anything I can teach them."

Glinka considers it inexpensive, easy to find, and more effective than mace or pepper spray. The cans typically shoot 20 to 30 feet; so if someone tries to break into your home, Glinka says, "spray the culprit in the eyes". It's a tip he's given to students for decades. It's also one he wants everyone to hear. If you're looking for protection, Glinka says look to the spray.

"That's going to give you a chance to call the police; maybe get out."

Maybe even save a life.

too bad they don't make wasp spray for joggers or carry lol. that stuff does shoot far

Good stuff so far fellas, let's keep this rolling.

The best two theft deterrents that I ever bought have been my 100 lb Rhodesian Ridge-back and our Great Pyrenees.  They have free roam of the house and take their security job very seriously!  They are very protective!  They supplement our security system wonderfully.

Door kick in are the number 1 forced entry to peoples residence.  I'm having this put in during our home improvement project.
http://www.homedepot.com/h_d1/N-5yc1v/R-202076114/h_d2/ProductDisplay?catalogId=10053&langId=-1&keyword=strike+plate&storeId=10051#.UGEZno2PV5o

Looking for a local installer to get a bid for the rear deck as well as 1 ground level window
http://solutions.3m.com/wps/portal/3M/en_US/Window_Film/Solutions/Markets-Products/Residential/Safety-Security_Window_Films/

Be a good person, be honest and bad things won't happen. Only if that was truly true, all i can suggest right now is lock your doors, chamber a round, and get some night lights for your house.

I like the idea of a decoy DVR on cameras and a decoy safe with some fake jewelry and worthless stuff in it.

Cheap gun locker cabinet in wheels that is the door to you safe....

On a more serious note. I know someone who had one of those cheap Walmart fire safe that they bolted down. Putcostume jewelery Along with a high point pistol in it. As an added bonus he shoved 4 or 5 Squibb rounds in the barrel And double charged a reload in the magazine.

His hope is that it will take 5 min to get onto that"safe" and they will think they hit they jackpot and leave.  Added bonus of finding a gun. He hOpes  they will try to Use their new gun shortly after and he can find them in the ER

This is America.  More lawyers than doctors.  Criminal will find a sleezebag to sue you for inflicting harm to his client.

Meh...

I can see getting sued for the bear traps and the spikes placed at the bottom of the Strategically placed holes in the yard......  But not for a malfunctioned Pistol. How can they prove it was done on purpose. Just a bad range day and i never cleaned or cleared the gun since......

Years back, a friend of my dad's had someone coming into his workshop through the skylight with a prybar, apparently shimmying up an oak tree nearby.

So he took a hammer and drove two dozen 45deg razor blades halfway into the tree trunk.

3 days later there was blood all over the tree and across the yard.  He followed it into the woods a couple hundred yards, but then decided he didn't really want to know...

Never had a problem again though...

Obviously alarm systems are good, i know the monitored ones are expensive but the unmonitored ones are cheap and can be just as effective, for a couple hundred dollars you can install a basic system that will make a bunch of noise if doors are opened or glass is broken. Then put some nice ADT signs in the yard and stickers in the window. A dog is a good as they will scare away most burglars. Also, a robber usually only breaks into a house if he knows you have stuff worth stealing, keep shades closed on all windows, and plant thorny bushes under windows so its difficult to stand in front of a window and peak in. Lots of exterior lights are good, make sure the home is well lit, a camera is nice but most robbers assume they are fake, even if they are real they can steal the recorder or just carefully put a bag over the camera without being seen. A timer for lights is a nice touch, also they have these really cool TV simulators, that will flicker a LCD light to simulator a tv is on but uses like 1/100 of the electricity of a tv. Just have that on a timer during the day while youre gone.

if you ever go on trips make sure you have someone pick up your mail, mow your yard, shovel snow, etc...

was just going to bring up the topic of FAKE cameras ––––- any decent brands that look like the real thing, and think they are worth putting up if leaving the house for long periods of time (days/weeks/months)?

Our local Menard's has some fake cameras that look good for fakes. They aren't the "beige box with a circle on the front" they look like a nice bullet camera.

I'm a cop in one of America's 20 largest cities.  I'm a detective now, but during the 10 years I spent on the street in the smallest, most gang and drug infested precinct, I probably responded to over 1000 burglaries.  Most of that was to take reports, with less than 10% being in progress calls.

The vast majority of burglaries happen during the day when the resident is at work.  Burglars seem to want to avoid confrontation.  That said...

Many times, burglars go to the kitchen and grab a knife which they then carry with them through the house.  I think this is so they don't have a weapon on them if they are stopped by us outside the house, but are armed while inside.

The best deterrent is a large, loud aggressive dog.  I have not seen a successful burglary (but have seen attempts) on a house that had one.  I haven't been on one in which they killed the dog, but I do remember a couple in which the dog was caged in the house, so they couldn't do anything to the burglar.  None of the dogs cooperated with us.  

2nd best is an alarm.  Even if they get in, they know we are coming.  They will grab the first thing they see, live tv/ dvd players, game consoles, and for some reason cable boxes.  They will have only a few minutes, and won't have time to get to the bedrooms where the irreplaceable heirloom stuff is kept.

With no dog or alarm, the burglar will have hours to go through your house.  They can be very thorough and destructive.

As noted earlier, the vast majority of entries are through a door.  Sometimes they will break a window on the door so they can turn the dead bolt.  Get a lock that requires a key from both sides.  I recall only one attempt through a locked window.  The other window entries were through windows that had been left open.

The only in progress calls in which we made an arrest were called in by neighbors.  There may have been one from an alarm, but I'm not sure.

One key is to make your house look harder and less desirable than others in your neighborhood.

ETA: as noted above, serial numbers are key.  I have photographed valuables and recorded serial numbers.  I have a copy at work, and my brother has another copy.  I update them regularly.

Thanks for your insight!

Yes some good info.

This is against fire code/building codes and could lead to the injury or death of a loved one, in the event of a fire.  I do not recommend this.

What about as a 3rd lock for when you are out of town for awhile using an entirely separate key that would be left in when you are home?

+1 on the pictures idea.  I even simplified it by getting the photobucket app on my android phone, snapped all inventory pics and videos from it and they automatically uploaded to photobucket for effective off site inventory. Periodically, I copy them down to the pc for the backblaze backup.



++1 on vigilant neighbors. We even have an email distribution list for those that want to keep up on the goings on, including alerts from the county sheriff.



I also like the idea of a few good strategically placed game cams to have evidence should a break in occur.

Have a key hanging nearby, but out of reach and sight from the window.  If that doesn't work, go out a window.  Problem solved.

Please link to this

There may be places (local level) where it is illegal.  I found no such prohibition in either the building or fire codes where I live.

Let me dig up my failed home inspection report...............



And there is this:



The National Fire Protection Association’s (NFPA) Life Safety Code 101 says that in general every person within the building must be able to exit all doors in their path to the outside without "the use of a key, a tool, or special knowledge or effort for operation from the egress side” (NFPA 101, 7.2.1.5.2).



How many of you want grandma or a two year old struggling with a key or breaking a window?  

Sectional garage doors are an especially easy entry point for thieves.  We had several instances in our neighborhood where a thief would push in on the top section and use a coat hanger to hook the quick release and pop it loose.  From there, the garage door will open right up.

A quick fix is to zip tie the quick release so you can still open from the inside with a sharp pull, but a coat hanger hook from the outside becomes next to impossible.  This tip also works well with the tip mentioned earlier to frost your windows if you have them.  Makes it that much more difficult to grab the release.

I went to the NFPA web site, and it looks to me like they have no enforcement authority.  I did see links offering copies of their code and memberships in their agency for sale.  Maybe I missed it, but they don't appear to be a governmental agency.  I admittedly didn't spend much time there.  My guess is that they are firefighters trying to make extra money by shilling copies of their code.  It looks like the fire version of CALEA (Council for Accredidation of Law Enforcement Agencies).

That means suggestions, not laws.

I don't have anyone in my house who would have a problem using a key or opening and going out a window.  I have my kids practice doing that with a rope ladder.  In my area burglaries are more prevalent than house fires, and I bet that is the case in most areas.  Do what you think is best.

Correct, NFPA is recommendations only. (but they do set a precedence for safety standards), National building fire code does not cover single family dwellings, but do cover apartments, condos, commercial property, etc.

I leave the key in my double deadbolt lock while I am at home.  When I leave, it is on a shelf just inside the door, out of reach from the door.  During a fire, it could be difficult to see the keyhole.  Ad in panic from the smoke and fire, and it could be a recipe for disaster without having the key in the door.

Get rid of the sliding glass doors. Replace them with French doors that are secured by throw bars into the floor and transom. Sliding glass doors cannot be made secure. Put a light coat of white spray paint on the windows of the garage door. A camera system should record to the cloud or email pictures to an off site file. My camera system emails photos to my smart phone so the police will get a phone call from me reporting a burglary in progress, instead of an alarm call from a security company. Your camera system should have a battery back up and send the emails via a dedicated cell phone so that cut wires do not disable it.

Sounds like a nice plan.
Would you link me in the direction of this system, please?

Keep a vehicle parked in the driveway.

Sliding glass doors are the #1 point of entry.

Most residential burglaries happen during the day when people are at work.

Burglars use rental vehicles under their baby mama's name.

Don't use cheap safes.  Get good expensive safes that are bolted to the structure at multiple points.

Most dogs are worthless... you have to have the right "type" of dog (mean and aggressive).

Alarms work.  We get the call and respond.  Most of the time, the property lost is minimal.

Lock you fence gate because most points of entry are sliders which are at the rear of the residence.

thats all i got for now

I padlocked my back gate earlier this year figuring a random thief may choose the path of least resistance (neighbors).

That is very true.  

Also more on sliders.  90% of the time they just smash the slider.  They also tend to use something close by to break it like a brick, shovel, chair, or anything else in your back yard.  I have not seen a burglary where they lifted the doors off there tracks.  A more common method (other than smashing the glass) is to pry it open.  It is actually really easy.

I recommend getting a french door with impact glass or 3M film with a commercial grade lock and good frame.  If you have a patio that is screened in, lock the patio door.  It is another obstacle that they have to get through.

Try to make the home look occupied.  Be friends with your neighbors.

And about the dogs... I've been to a lot of homes that were broken into where they had big dogs.  These burglars are scumbags and will terrorize the dog (they will use a bat or stick to hit it with).  Most of the time, the dog cowards away and craps on the floor.  You need to have a batshit crazy guard dog for it to work.  For what its worth I have  a lab and a border collie and I know they will not be able to defend my home :(

ETA:  This stuff is applicable to Florida where our homes are built a certain way.

Let me help everyone understand something. If it is written in a NFPA publication, it is more than a guideline or a recommendation, it is a national code (read that as law). PERIOD.  
Ask your local fire marshal, life safety inspector, electrical inspector, where they get their codes and laws from. NFPA sets the standard minium code and requirements.
Your local AHJ (Authority Having Jurisdiction) can go above and beyond, can modify but has to stay within the origional code, they can never allow less than what the NFPA code books stipulate.
NFPA is not an authority, they don't run around and slap people on the wrist or write tickets and fines for not doing what they say. They are an orginazation of builders, electricians, fireman, plumbers...etc. That all get together and discuss how and why things should be installed, used, and treated properly. Then they make it a NATIONAL code.
Can you break this code, sure.
Will you get into trouble, not until you sell your house if your inspector finds it.
Can it cause injury and or death, absolutly and that's why these code books exist for your safety.
NFPA sets the code, your AHJ enforces it as a law.

wildearp, I know what you were trying to go for but, the section you quoted about free egress does not apply to residential dwellings. That's a commercial and multi-family dwelling code.
But i agree, having a deadbolt with a key on both sides is risky in the event of a fire. When you have a wall of flames behind you, little johnny and your wife are clinging to your legs, do you think you will be able to find let alone operate the key????      
Just a thought.

Let me help you understand something.  The NFPA does not write laws and has no enforcement authority.  They are not an actual government agency.  Unlike Congress, state legislatures, and city councils, the NFPA is not a law making body.  If it is written in an NFPA publication, it is a "concensus code, " (that is the NFPA's term) which means a recommendation and most certainly is not a law.  PERIOD. (your term)

I'm sure it is true that many jurisdictions follow the NFPA's recommendations, and copy the NFPA recommendations into laws that have saved many lives, but my brief research has shown me nothing that requires any jurisdiction to use the NFPA concensus codes.  I noticed that the NFPA sells copies of their concensus codes, but doesn't allow people to print pages from their code sections or copy and paste them.  A quick look at the United States Code (that's the formal name of US Federal law) shows no "Fire" Title.  (Title is the term for a section of US Code) If I am wrong, please post a link.

As far as being able to operate a key during a fire, that's like saying, "There's a criminal in front of you, little Johnny and your wife are clinging to your legs, do you think you will be able to find, let alone operate, a gun?"  

Just a thought–– Train and rehearse like your life depends on it, because it might.

Did you not read what i wrote carefully enough? I clearly stated that they are not an agency with any sort of power.
The National Electric Code book 2011 edition (NFPA 70) is 870 pages long, It's no wonder they don't have a online searchable PDF file for it, it was designed for Professionals and Government agencies on state, county, or local levels. Not for the average homeowner to read.
If you would like me to find a section and type it out for you let me know, i have a copy sitting right on my desk, i also have a copy of NFPA 72 (National Fire Alarm Code) an NFPA 101 (Life Safety Code)
And if your curious as to why i am so adament about people understanding that if it's in these books, you might as well follow ot to a tee, cause chances are it's the law in your area anyway.

Don't believe me? Call your local permit office and ask them what edition of NFPA 70 (NEC) they follow, Call your local fire marshal and ask what edition of NFPA 72 (NFC) they follow.

My reason for having spent the $80 bux per book? Well when you are a certified Low Voltage MASTER electrician, And are Certified by NICET in fire alarms (level 2 for those that know what this is), you have to read and understand these codes more than you want to.

Again, the NFPA is not a law making body, and their "concensus codes" are not laws.  If I ask where the local FD and others get their laws from, as you suggest I do, it won't be from the NFPA, as they are not a law making body.  You admit yourself, "chances are" that they are like the NFPA.  That means to me that there is a chance they are not like the NFPA codes.  The local laws here may even be exact copies of the NFPA concensus codes, but the FPA does not make laws.  Only legislative bodies like Congress, state legislatures, and city councils actually make laws.

Laws are specific things, passed by specific legislative bodies, and you don't seem to realize that.

*facepalm* Apparently you are not understanding my point. NFPA is not a law until your AHJ or local government decides to use the codes and standards the NFPA has written and adopt it as their code. And if they adopt the NFPA they will mandate that it is followed as written, if you do not then you may be breaking a LOCAL law in your area. I never said you could go to your local FD and ask them about laws, I said go and call your local Fire Marshal. That is a totally different department in most cases than the local FD.
Are there places that do not adopt the NFPA codes? Sure, but I would bet they are far and few between.

Please don't derail this good idea for a thread and make it into a pissing Match that stops people from posting more good info in it ...

There is a reason Rhodesian Ridge-backs are popular anong the Africaners in South Africa.

This is true for hunting but they mainly use the Boerboel for guardians.