How to Protect Your Property from Copper Theft

In a shaky economy, people will try to make money in some very creative ways. Unfortunately, some of these "ways" are also very illegal. For instance, copper theft is rising as one of the biggest forms of properly vandalism and burglary because copper prices are at an all-time high right now and copper scrap is bringing in premium prices. And because most modern homes use copper for piping and other essential utilities, it is a perfect opportunity for some opportunists to steal and sell the metallic material. One of the biggest threats is to vacant homes or homes that are in mid-construction, but no home is really safe, which is why it is so important to learn how to prevent copper thieves from destroying your home. Here is how to protect your property from copper theft.

One of the best ways to protect your property is to install security measures. These measures are especially important if your home is still being built. Not only do you want an alarm system - you also want security lights that are activated by a sensor. Many copper thieves would rather abandon their attempt if there are enough security measures - mostly because they bring a lot of tools with them; trying to pack up and escape can be too risky.

Also, it is critical to make it look like someone is home if you leave town. For instance, you want to stop deliveries for the time that you are away. You may also want to call on a neighbor to pick up any mail. Not only that, but you want to perhaps leave a single light on in a room inside your home. You probably don't want to leave an overhead light on, so an LED night-light should do the trick.

Another method to protect your home is to disguise your copper. Some police investigators and politicians are calling copper theft a national epidemic. As soon as thieves see that a home has an ample supply of copper, they will start planning. However, if you take measures to disguise your copper - you can paint copper pipes black and insulate copper wire with black rubber - you can make it look like your home doesn't have any copper in sight. If you are building your home, you may want to ask the construction workers to paint over any exposed copper - copper that is out in the open is the most attractive to thieves.

Combine a bad economy and the rising cost of copper by the pound and you have the makings a criminal epidemic. Most copper thieves use unique tools to detect whether there is copper around your home, so your best bet to deter them is to outsmart them. If you leave town, make it look like you are home. If you have exposed copper, disguise it to make it look like there is no copper in sight. In the end, you can wait for copper prices to drop, but in the meantime, you want to take measures to protect your home and property.