Whether you’re cleaning out the gutters or hanging holiday lights, don’t pull a Clark Griswold in “Christmas Vacation” by having an extension ladder fold up on you. Follow these tips to ensure that home safety extends past your ADT home alarm system.

• Cleat: Create or buy a 2×4 cleat, drive two stakes into the group and screw the cleat into the steaks to help steady the ladder.

• Good standing: Place the ladder on clear, level, dry ground only. Avoid snow, mud and ice.

• ¼ rule: Stand the ladder from the house one-fourth of the distance of its height.

• No outer limits: Don’t over- reach or out-reach while using the ladder.

It’s happened to all of us, the annoying call during dinner of someone trying to sell you something. Some of those callers actually are trying to sell you something, while others are posing as telemarketers to get your personal information. Help protect your home security with these tips:

• Register your number: Add your home and mobile phone number to the National Do Not Call Registry to avoid receiving telephone calls.

• Hang up: If you aren’t interested, it sounds too good to be true or the person on the line won’t stop talking, just hang up. Remember, they called you.

• Don’t pay anything: A caller asking for a fee upfront for a credit card, loan, gift or prize is a huge red flag.

• Screen calls: Pay attention to area codes that appear with calls on your caller ID. Some callers do business outside of the U.S. to avoid law enforcement or charge callers more money for call time.

• Don’t give out personal information: Companies you deal with for services like home alarm systems should already have your information on file. If someone calls and asks you to verify information, hang up and call the company’s customer service line instead.

Feeling safe at home is essential. But  installing your home’s security system on your own isn’t. Don’t hassle with DIY home security systems. Instead, trust the professionals at ADT, which have helped protect American homes and businesses for more than 130 years.

If you still aren’t convinced, check out these reasons why you should let America’s #1 home security provider handle your home alarm system:

• Comprehensive monitoring: Rest easy with home monitoring for police, fire and medical emergencies.

• Around-the-clock monitoring: Security professionals monitor your home 24/7 at four interconnected command centers. You can feel peace-of-mind knowing that these professionals are on the lookout while you’re at work and the kids are at school.

• Simple controls: The system’s digital keypad makes it easy for people of all ages to use and the keychain remote allows you to arm or disarm the system from your driveway or bedside table.

One of the easiest ways to deter intruders from your home – in addition to installing a home alarm system – is installing affordable outdoor security lighting. Whether you choose to control your lighting manually, or with motion sensors or timers, it’s important to find outdoor lighting options that work well for you and your home.

Check out the three main types of outdoor security lighting that can help keep your family safe:

• Porch lights: You probably already have a functioning porch light at your home’s front entryway, but similar fixtures can be extremely effective in other points of entry, including the back of the house, the deck, the garage and near utility shed doors, among other places. These tell potential burglars that you are home or are expecting visitors, which creates unfavorable scenarios for a break-in. To increase effectiveness, use at least a 60-watt bulb at each site.

• Spotlights: If used correctly (and not over-used), these can highlight large areas susceptible to lurking burglars that porch lights don’t reach. Spotlights are great for backyards and driveways.

• Landscape lights: Create a dramatic effect and cast out shadows with lights placed to strategically show off your landscaping and even your ADT system yard sign at night. There are many different attractive styles that can compliment your home’s exterior.

Summer fun often involves lounging around a pool. But don’t be tempted to nap while the kids are playing. Follow these tips to be proactive about preventing pool-area accidents.

• Adult supervision: Make sure an adult who knows CPR is always carefully watching kids in or near the pool. If at all possible, do not leave the task of watching younger children to older children.

• Safety vests: Keep life vests that are approved by the U.S. Coast Guard on hand. Anyone who is not a strong swimmer should wear one. Air-filled swimming tools are not adequate substitutes.

• Fences: Fences do more than serve as a great back up to a security system. They also help keep children out of the pool when they’re not under your supervision. Surround your pool with a fence that’s at least five-feet-high and closes securely on its own. Keep the gate closed at all times and never prop it open. Also, keep furniture away from the fence so kids won’t be tempted to climb over it.

• Post-swim clean up: Clear any toys from around the pool so children won’t be tempted to retrieve them without your supervision. Also secure the gate so they can’t get back into the area.

While there’s nothing quite like feeling the sunlight on your face after a long winter, it’s still important to remember that too much heat is never a good thing. And this isn’t just about your face–it’s also about your house and vehicle. Keeping your home cool is important for it structurally, not to mention how important it is to ensure that young children, elderly relatives and pets are not subject to temperatures that are too much to handle.

Keeping doors and windows shut is about more than home security. It’s also an essential way to save energy and make sure the pumping AC doesn’t go to waste. If you’re running the AC while you have the windows open, you’re wasting a cool air, while also making your house a bit more vulnerable for a break-in. Try to keep the doors and windows shut so you  can save on your energy bill and make the most out of your system.

It’s also a good idea to inspect your HVAC system before the summer, in case it looks like it will need any repairs. If you get it fixed early, you might also be able to find more reasonable prices. This way, your home is more prepared for a particularly brutal summer.

It’s also worth noting that the summer heat can have other effects on your home security. Sometimes when it gets particularly hot, it is easier to accidentally trigger a power outage in your own home by overloading extension cords or using too many devices on a single fuse at  time. Fortunately, many home security providers offer systems that work even when the power goes out. ADT  home alarm systems come with battery backup so you’ll get hours of home monitoring even if you lose power.

If you want to protect your car from the heat of summer, the best idea is to find shade.  Try to park your car in places where it won’t get direct sunlight. This will make everything from the interior to the paint job last longer, and it will also be a lot more pleasant to get in on a sunny day.

While summer might mean taking a break from the office to hit the beach, for many Americans, it also means preparing for hurricane season. If you’re not sure where to begin, don’t wait until the last minute to get ready. After all, there are some things that a home alarm system can help out with, and others that might require a little more work. Here’s a simple hurricane preparedness checklist so you can make sure you cover all the basics before a big storm arrives:

1. Do you have enough food and water for two to three days? If you’re far enough away from the ocean that evacuations aren’t necessary, then you need to have enough supplies to make it in case you can’t leave the house for a few days. Stock up on nonperishable food and enough drinking water for the entire family.

2. Did you move the lawn furniture indoors? When it comes to home security during a rough storm, this can mean the difference between a manageable amount of damage done to your home and something more serious. Make sure to move all lawn furniture and outdoor decor inside if a big storm is headed your way.

3. Did you park your car in a safe spot? Once you’re finally able to leave the house, it’s important to have a car ready. But if your car incurs damages due to falling branches or live wires, you won’t be able to go anywhere. Try to park it somewhere safe – ideally in the garage. And if you’re  leaving the house, remember to set that ADT home security system before you hit the road, just in case looters are eying your property after the storm is over.

The first step when you’re leaving for a summer vacation is to remember to activate your ADT home security system . Burglars know that people go away in the summer, and they prepare accordingly. To avoid falling victim to a burglary, you need to make sure that your property looks occupied – even when it isn’t. Be sure to replace the light bulbs around your house, including your exterior lights, and set some sort of timer that will turn lights on and off both indoors and outdoors. This way your house will look more lived-in.

But home security is about more than making sure robbers don’t break in. Also be sure to handle the smaller steps around the house. Unplug electronic devices from overloaded power strips, and be sure that you remember to turn off things like coffee makers, irons, and flat irons. This will greatly reduce the risk of a home fire.

Before you leave town, remember to make essential home security updates to your house. If you take the right steps before leaving, it will make for a much less stressful return home.

Home security is about much more than keeping criminals outside of your house. It’s about protecting your loved ones and personal belongings from other dangers as well – like fire and carbon monoxide poisoning. And while advanced burglary monitoring is a function of all ADT home security systems, remember that there’s more to taking care of your property than worrying about a break-in. In fact, statistics show that in most parts of the country, people are more likely to deal with a fire or water damage than a break-in.

So what can you do to help protect your home from a fire?

Install Smoke Detectors – Once they’re in place, make sure you regularly replace that batteries to keep them functioning.

Be prepared – Have items around the house including fire extinguishers in case a small fire breaks out in the kitchen or another area of the house.

Get an ADT home security system – ADT allows you to integrate smoke detectors into your home alarm system. If there is smoke or fire in your home, the alarm will sound and ADT will immediately contact the local authorities.

Whether it’s during the winter months when fires are statistically more likely to occur, or at another point in the year, take the steps necessary to help prevent a fire in your home.

As summer approaches, families across the country will make travel plans. In addition to booking flights and finding deals on hotels, one thing can’t be overlooked – home security. One of the best ways to protect your home is installing and activating a home security system. Homes with monitored security systems are reportedly three times less likely to be burglarized.

Another great way to help keep your home safe is by hiring a house sitter. He or she can make sure things run smoothly while you’re gone – and most importantly – make you home look occupied. An occupied home is much less appealing to a burglar than one that looks empty. House sitters are also ideal for people with pets.

Here are a few tips to follow when you hire a house sitter:

Keep them informed. If you have dogs or cats that require medicine, a particular kind of food or something else, be sure to let your house sitter know ahead of time. And be sure to leave the house sitter with a list of emergency contact numbers in case anything goes wrong.

Give an overview of your home security system. The house sitter should know how to arm and disarm your ADT security system. Let them know how the system works and create a plan in case a break-in or other home emergency occurs.

Give clear instructions. Make sure everything that needs to be taken care of while you’re away gets clearly listed or communicated. This will make things easier and less stressful for all parties involved, and clear expectations are always great – even if someone is doing you a favor.

Don’t forget about the mail! If you are going out of town, make sure the house sitter brings in the mail and newspaper. When they start piling up, burglars will realize no one is home.