Quote Originally Posted by unclebob
I would first lock the closet and second lock the bedroom door very securely. Make it so that they would need to knock down a wall to breach the door. Make sure no light is visible from the closet door. Make sure no sound is audible. Soundproof is needed. If you change the locks on the front door you will be just creating a reason to arouse suspicion. They will also charge you in excess of $100 to re-change it. It is against the terms of your lease and the law to change the front door lock. It is perfectly legal and acceptable to lock up the closet and bedroom.

well here are the issues:

1. yes it's against my lease, but if they ever do find out, i just put the old one back in. they don't need to replace it. i'll keep the previous locks

2. locking up the bedroom and growroom closet that securely is very difficult. first, i'd have to be drilling to put new locks on the bedroom door. if maintenance ever had to come in that would not only be totally against my lease, but also very suspicious.

3. locking the growroom closet is a pretty hard feat. it's a double-sliding-door closet. i'd have to drill and then put some sort of padlocks on each side. not to mention you could still swing the hanging doors out a little and peak in. here's the thing: even if they had to get in the bedroom for some scheduled maintenace (god forbid), there is absolutely no reason on earth why they'd open the closet. there's nothing in there. no lights, no power outlets, no fixtures, no electrical lines, nothing. so, if they did have a scheduled maintenace day (and once again the likelihood is that this will never happen) i could conceal everything in the closet and keep it closed.

4. your ideas on light, sound, and smell proofing are very well noted, and i'm going to be very careful and thorough about that


i still think: new inconspicuous lock on the front door, new lock on bedroom. if anyone gets suspicious, and i can feel the heat around the corner ( ) i'm probably just going to shut down, burn, and go anyway. there's no reason for maintenace to try my front door, and if i'm home, i can open it myself, and the lock will look the same, so i still say it's better than allowing them the option of openning it anytime they want


ps: breaking down a door is so easy, i've done it myself, it's harder with a deadbolt, but not very. if they were going to break down the bedroom door with a regular knob-lock, they can break it down with a deadbolt. beyond that i'm not building anything too crazy here