# Prop Security. What do you do with little $$?



## silermes (Jan 3, 2008)

First of all I am new to the forum so I would like to say hello to all. This last season I regret to say that we had a life size wolf man stolen from our yard. It was one of a handful life sized props in our yard. 

I would like to know how everyone protects their props and displays and what are some cost effective ways of security. I would rather dedicate my budget to props and yard haunts rather than security but I feel that I better do something or next year will be worse.

Picts, cost, diargams, links would be helpfull.

Thanks in advance.


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## Frighteners Entertainment (Jan 24, 2006)

Your best defense is a deterrence. Motion activated lighting is you best defense.


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## silermes (Jan 3, 2008)

does anyone use cameras or some kind of alarm that triggers when a porp is lifted from the ground?


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## Adam I (Jun 16, 2007)

We have cameras up all year and motion lights.
I do add a motion light for Halloween and take it down afterwards

Here's a previous thread

http://www.hauntforum.com/showthread.php?t=8156&highlight=security


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## DarkShadows (Feb 6, 2006)

We had a few stuff stolen this year. I hacked up an old car alarm siren and a motion sensor. Faced it towards the house and plugged it in every night. IF someone was in the yard, it would trigger off the siren. It went off 3-4 times, but it probally was a squirell. We didnt have nothing stolen since.

And we also have two cameras on each side of the yard.


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## Frighteners Entertainment (Jan 24, 2006)

Cameras are ok, they at least help you after the fact. But the damage is already done. It takes more time and energy to prosecute.


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## ScareShack (May 26, 2006)

I do the following, seems to have worked for me for now.
Each prop gets wired down using mechaincs wire, a heavy wire, tided to rebar or other source. If tried to remove it will break before leaving, i'll fix a broken prop, rather then replace.
I have a few motion flood lights that get set out after hours, 2 of them, that we set down and turn on, these are hacked home made units that set in yard, but need to be set out, or plugged in after hours.
We also do run video after hours, but we have a sign stating under vid. survillance, may help may not.
for the most part our haunt/display is fenced in with cem. fencing, helps detere them some to.


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## silermes (Jan 3, 2008)

*cameras*

for those of you that use cameras what cameras do you have?
license plate cameras? And any idea on cost?


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## DarkShadows (Feb 6, 2006)

I got my Camera's from HarborFrieght.com


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## Front Yard Fright (Dec 23, 2005)

Just the other day I was looking around on different Christmas sites and I stumbled upon this:
http://www.christmasdisplays.net/videos/tripwirealarm.wmv
Seems like it would work...
.


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## Frighteners Entertainment (Jan 24, 2006)

silermes said:


> for those of you that use cameras what cameras do you have?
> license plate cameras? And any idea on cost?


You want real or fake motion activated ones?


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## Sickie Ickie (Jun 20, 2006)

This year I dressed as if I belonged as part of my graveyard, and handed out candy, too. Served double duty.


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## Richie (Jan 4, 2007)

We did use a wireless infrared camera this year and mainly used it to watch the action, but we didn't have the capability to actually record to a VCR. The bottom line for us, any of our life size props we felt would be extremely difficult to replace would be brought in at night. Besides, life size props we normally spend months making would no way be left out in the rain or excessive high winds. 

We also started to use some of the life size props inside the house in appropriately lit up windows which saved us a good amount of work not having to deal with them. Hope this helps.


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## silermes (Jan 3, 2008)

*Picts of the stolen*

I finally figured this photobucket thing out. I have attached a link of the wolfman that was stolen. 2007 was our first year making halloween decor so it sux that our first prop ever was yanked.

http://i250.photobucket.com/albums/gg261/silermes/DSCN0597.jpg
http://i250.photobucket.com/albums/gg261/silermes/DSCN0683.jpg

By the way thanks for all your help in this thread.


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## Sickie Ickie (Jun 20, 2006)

very impressive !


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## CraigInPA (Sep 28, 2007)

Motion activated lighting is about the cheapest way to go. If you don't already have a fence around your props, that also greatly helps deter people from walking away with your stuff. Another option, abeit more expensive, is to get a big dog... 

Cameras are completely "after the fact". They won't stop your stuff from walking, and *may* help get it back if the camera is on, in focus, with enough light, and you can identify the thief or their vehicle.

I have a cemetary fence, motion activated lights, high tensile strength cables holding down the expensive stuff (would require a big bolt cutter to remove), and a pair of big barking dogs. 

If you make it attractive enough, some low-life *will* try to steal it. Assume that anything you put out could walk away, with the greatest potential to be those items closest to the street. 

Craig


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## turtle2778 (Jul 9, 2006)

Front Yard Fright said:


> Just the other day I was looking around on different Christmas sites and I stumbled upon this:
> http://www.christmasdisplays.net/videos/tripwirealarm.wmv
> Seems like it would work...
> .


FYF....That video was great...The ending was AWESOME!! Thanks, my husband will love making this.


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## CraigInPA (Sep 28, 2007)

Front Yard Fright said:


> Just the other day I was looking around on different Christmas sites and I stumbled upon this:
> http://www.christmasdisplays.net/videos/tripwirealarm.wmv
> Seems like it would work...
> .


That's kind of scary. He could have used a plastic electrical box designed for outdoor use, a gasketed switchplate, a plastic "code keeper", and wire with a ground and it would be "relatively safe". Instead, he's wrapped the box in a plastic bag and didn't bother to insulate the 110v connections at all. I hope he, at least, plugs it into a GFCI protected outlet!

Because the wire is a "trip" design, someone *could* trip as a result of walking into it. Hopefully, they won't sue you when they fall, head first, into something immovable. Your halloween display is an "attractive nuisance". Any lawyer could, rather easily, claim that his client was merely attempting to view the display more closely at night, in the dark, and injured himself as a result of falling over the trip wire. Even if you could show he was criminally trespassing (difficult), he can still sue you because your trip wire was there to catch people walking through the display.

Save yourself a headache and buy ordinary motion sensing light fixtures. Most can easily be modified to also turn on other 110v appliances. They aren't much more than building this hack and a LOT safer.

Craig


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## silermes (Jan 3, 2008)

when you say fake motion activated what does that mean? Do the cameras pan back and fourth? Or just turn a blinking red led light when motion is sensed?


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## Frighteners Entertainment (Jan 24, 2006)

They do both when motion is sensed.


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## NickG (Sep 12, 2006)

for the couple of evenings I had stuff out I had a hacked motion sensor from a flood light set in the corner of our yard such that if you walked into the yard it would trigger.. that was attached to a 100' extension chord thru a window into our bedroom wired to a small radio tape deck set to "play" - so if anyone walked into the yard it would start to play "Yes" (only thing I had on tape) and right next to that, was a pair of pants and my airsoft gun... It didn't go off tho.


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## halloweenguy (Dec 27, 2006)

The best security device I use at my house is my graveyard fence...It circles the entire yard and adds a very spooky touch. This makes it much harder to just walk up and pluck something off my lawn.


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## Front Yard Fright (Dec 23, 2005)

halloweenguy said:


> The best security device I use at my house is my graveyard fence...It circles the entire yard and adds a very spooky touch. This makes it much harder to just walk up and pluck something off my lawn.


I agree... It's definitely a big deterrent for thieves.
.


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## BlinkyTheHouse Elf (Apr 2, 2007)

What I do is when I make my props for me or other people I make the bottom half in 1/2 " metal plumbers pipe. For 2 reasons 1st it is stronger and the prop doesn't sag. and 2nd I put like a coffee cup style handle built into the frame. by the ankle of the prop that you can hide easily and run a chain through it.plus with light and stuff like the others mentioned it makes it harder for a dive by snatcher to jab your props.

Dark Shadow I would Love to know how to hack a car alarm tho, would you write a How To?

PS: I'm sorry your wolfman was stolen I had a small one sitting in a tree and had him screwed down, but they got him away..
I didn't make that prop of mine but it still made me P.O.ed . here is a pic of the one that was stolen from me too . I guess wolfman are very IN


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## BlinkyTheHouse Elf (Apr 2, 2007)

Front Yard Fright said:


> Just the other day I was looking around on different Christmas sites and I stumbled upon this:
> http://www.christmasdisplays.net/videos/tripwirealarm.wmv
> Seems like it would work...
> .


FYF do you know who made that alarm system I want to Thank them its cool.what is their user name?


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## scarymovie (Feb 14, 2010)

Sorry they stole your wolfman silermes you should bring in your most expensive props in every night or just display the expensive ones a few days till Halloween!


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## pagan (Sep 9, 2009)

CraigInPA said:


> Because the wire is a "trip" design, someone *could* trip as a result of walking into it. Hopefully, they won't sue you when they fall, head first, into something immovable. Your halloween display is an "attractive nuisance". Any lawyer could, rather easily, claim that his client was merely attempting to view the display more closely at night, in the dark, and injured himself as a result of falling over the trip wire. Even if you could show he was criminally trespassing (difficult), he can still sue you because your trip wire was there to catch people walking through the display.
> 
> Save yourself a headache and buy ordinary motion sensing light fixtures. Most can easily be modified to also turn on other 110v appliances. They aren't much more than building this hack and a LOT safer.
> 
> Craig


I plan on filling the lightbulbs with gunpowder and hot-glueing ball bearings to them!  If you wanted to be very technical you could argue the same thing about a sudden flash of light from your motion sensor light blinding them and causing a fall, thus injuring themselves, or that a sudden siren startled them and caused a fall or injury or "severe emotional distress".


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## fritz42_male (May 5, 2009)

How about those cheap personal attack alarms - when the pin pulls out a siren goes off. You could attach the alarm to the prop and the pin to a stake in the ground. They normally cost about $3-4


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## billman (May 3, 2006)

Motion sensor lights and this bad boy:

Driveway Alert System








http://www.harborfreight.com/cpi/ctaf/displayitem.taf?Itemnumber=93068

Put the receiver in your room. If someone comes by, it will wake you up. Then, you can catch them red handed!


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## jaege (Aug 23, 2009)

I use motion sensor lights and chain the down the items that I figure are the most likely to walk. I have never had a problem, myself, fortunately.

I don't know that I agree with Craiginpa. If someone is in my yard at night, without my permission, he is trespassing.

tres·pass   [tres-puhs, -pas]
-noun
1.
Law.
a. an unlawful act causing injury to the person, property, or rights of another, committed with force or violence, actual orimplied.
b. a wrongful entry upon the lands of another.
c. the action to recover damages for such an injury.
2.an encroachment or intrusion.
3.an offense, sin, or wrong.

That seems to be the definition of trespass, right?


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## slicerd (Nov 13, 2009)

billman said:


> Motion sensor lights and this bad boy:
> 
> Driveway Alert System
> 
> ...


I might have to pick up one of these. I also plan on using some motion spot lights next year. I had my fcg stolen this year but at least they left my rig just stole the ghost part.


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## SKAustin (Dec 12, 2009)

fritz42_male said:


> How about those cheap personal attack alarms - when the pin pulls out a siren goes off. You could attach the alarm to the prop and the pin to a stake in the ground. They normally cost about $3-4


I was thinking the very same thing.

Bottom line is motion lights are great, driveway alerts are fine too, but the reality is, by the time you respond to the alert, your prop could be long gone with the perpatrator. A personal security alarm secured to your prop in an obscure location with the pin cord secured to something like a dog leash tie-out stake is a great and inexpensive idea. once activated the alarm (and your prop) will scream out, drawing attention to the perp. He will have no choice but to immediately discard your prop or waste time trying to disable the alarm. I'd wager that anyone in the situation will eagerly drop the prop and scram without even thinking twice about it. Chances are your prop will never make it past your own property line, but if it does, you will have a sound signal with which to track it down.


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## kprimm (Mar 14, 2009)

9MM would work great also. Too bad there are so many turds in this world.


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## Frighteners Entertainment (Jan 24, 2006)

Here's a fun way to detour the vandals....using the motion lights and any sound devices and adding in a trigger to the motion light to turn on a few sprinkler valves to get them wet.


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## abner135 (May 31, 2009)

If its not to late Dollar Tree ($1.00) has a two part alarm you can check out


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## billman (May 3, 2006)

Also, you could put some slime on the props. Like they do in some pro haunts.


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## RandalB (Jun 8, 2009)

Park a squad car out front like I do...

I also have motion detector lights in the haunt for off hours.

RandalB


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## jaege (Aug 23, 2009)

I looked up that little personal alarm device. They run between 5 and 10 dollars. Not a bad investment.


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## Frighteners Entertainment (Jan 24, 2006)

Same price as a motion activated light, still the best thing you can do.....really, then I would get this device.


jaege said:


> I looked up that little personal alarm device. They run between 5 and 10 dollars. Not a bad investment.


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## drevilstein (Sep 17, 2013)

I tie everything down, with wire where possible, or at the very least, with thick fishing line. They may still steal or break something, but I'm not going to make it easy.


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## drevilstein (Sep 17, 2013)

also, my pvc framed creatures are slid over rebar, with a 1"drywall screw screwed into each leg. The screw binds against the rebar making it impossible to pull up without removing the screw.


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## screaminscott (Oct 13, 2006)

drevilstein said:


> also, my pvc framed creatures are slid over rebar, with a 1"drywall screw screwed into each leg. The screw binds against the rebar making it impossible to pull up without removing the screw.


That's what I do with my tombstones. I insert PVC into the tombstone when I build it, then slide that over rebar and use the screw trick.


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