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Window Sills
Used in many countries around the world, different types of window security bars, also known as "security grilles" are installed for home protection and to complement design. How do you know if they are right for your building?
Deciding whether to install bars is dependent on several factors and remains a personal decision but if you can relate to the checklist below, you may be advised to consider them:
Sturdily attached to masonry or the interior wall, security bars make it more difficult for intruders to enter buildings. This buys time for services to be called if needed. The bars don't just act a physically secure barrier though, they also visually deter burglars.
There are a range of different security grilles or bars on the market, tailored to various preferences and levels of security requirements. In general, window bars are made from high quality galvanised steel, stainless steel, or wrought iron. These are particularly durable and strong materials that won't rust and just differ slightly in terms of price and design possibilities.
Window grilles are available for the interior or exterior and can usually be ordered from the supplier in the desired size. While external grilles are traditionally commonplace, bars made to be fixed on the inside can provide superior protection and there are retractable and openable variants on offer. These internal bars can be fixed in place at night and removed during the day, for example, which is ideal for commercial stores. Others work by sliding back when needed to allow for easy cleaning. Removable or openable options also mean that emergency exits can remain in place for ground floor openings.
Window bars can often be self-fitted to windows. The distance between the bars is particularly important. Security bars should feature spaces of approximately 150 mm, for example, to achieve maximum strength and protection. If you also aim to use the security grilles for child safety, then it is recommended that the bars be fixed slightly closer together, at 100 mm intervals.
External window grilles tend to fitted within the window recess or opening, attached to the wall with strong plates or long capped screws. In terms of interior window security grilles, these often come fitted to their plates with a face or reveal fixing attachment. In terms of a face fixing, this installation can't be seen or accessed from the outside as it is attached to the interior window frame or wall. Internal grilles installed with a reveal fixing, on the other hand, are often installed onto an interior window sill.
Security window bars are not the only option to effectively protect buildings from break-ins. Nowadays a wide variety of different glazings are on offer, for example, that have been purpose designed to make burglaries more difficult.
Laminated safety glazing from windows24.com features multiple interlayers of PVB polymer film and is excellently impact resistant.
If the window or door glass if broken under very high force, the glass remains held on the foil, preventing it from shattering out in sharp shards.
The intact foil then requires further specialist tools before it can be broken into.
Beyond glazing, an increased number of locking points can also be added to a window or door product to improve its security. In our online configurator, an increased number of mushroom pins and lock striking plates can be added, for example, to acheive a burglar resistance class of RC2. Strong external roller shutters with aluminium curtains, window sensors, and lockable handles are then further product add-on options.
To go into another popular option in more detail, a window sensor is small device attached to the window or French door frame. A magnet is then added to the sash. Usual operation using the handle can be easily carried out but when the sensor detects that the panel is being forced open it will trigger an alarm. This can be in the form of a traditional blaring sound, lights, or a more modern smart home app notification.
