Securing Exterior Stored Tools So Burglars Cannot Use Them

A lot of break-ins get easier because the homeowner left everything the intruder needed sitting outside: ladders, shovels, pry bars, even power tools. You do not need to turn your yard into a fortress, but you do need to stop handing out free equipment.

This guide walks through how to lock down exterior tools, where to store them, and how to build a simple routine so nothing useful is left lying around. If you have not looked at your overall layout yet, pair this with the Perimeter Security Fundamentals so your tool storage fits into the bigger picture.

1. What Counts as “Exterior Stored Tools”

When you hear “tools,” do not just think about the toolbox. From a burglar’s point of view, anything that helps with climbing, prying, smashing, or hiding counts as a tool.

• Ladders: extension, step, folding, and telescoping ladders.
• Yard tools: shovels, rakes, hoes, digging bars, post-hole diggers.
• Impact tools: sledgehammers, axes, mauls, mattocks.
• Hand tools: pry bars, crowbars, large screwdrivers, pliers.
• Power tools: cordless drills, grinders, saws stored in sheds or on porches.
• “Furniture” items: stackable chairs, trash cans, and benches that can become step-stools.

Anything in that list left loose outdoors is basically you saying, “Here, use this on my doors and windows.”

2. How Burglars Actually Use Your Tools

Most residential burglars do not show up with a full kit. They walk the property first and improvise. Common moves:

• Ladders: used to reach second-story windows, balconies, or roof access points that are less protected.
• Pry bars and shovels: used to pop weak door frames, side garage doors, or basement window wells.
• Sledgehammers: used to smash padlocks off sheds or check how sturdy a door actually is.
• Power tools: used to remove hinges, strike plates, or cut through simple hasps.

Your goal is simple: make sure anything that could help with those moves is either locked away or locked down.

3. Priority Order: Remove, Lock In, Lock Down

Do not overthink it. Use this order when you look at each tool or piece of equipment outside:

1. Remove: If you do not use it, get rid of it.
2. Lock in: If you do use it, store it in something that locks (shed, garage, deck box).
3. Lock down: If it has to stay outside, physically secure it so it is annoying to use or steal.

This is not about perfection. It is about taking away the fast, easy options so your house is not the simple target.

4. Locking Tools Inside: Sheds, Garages, and Deck Boxes

Best case, your tools live behind a real door with a real lock. That usually means:

• A garage with a solid-core side door and deadbolt.
• A shed with a reinforced hasp and decent padlock.
• A lockable deck box for smaller items and hand tools.

If your shed or garage door hardware is weak, fix that first. A cheap, thin hasp screwed into soft wood is not security; it is decoration.

• Use through-bolts with washers instead of short wood screws.
• Pick a closed-shackle padlock that is harder to cut.
• Make sure the door itself is not rotten or hollow.

For more on door and hardware basics, see the Door Reinforcement Basics guide once you have it in place.

5. Securing Ladders So They Cannot Be Borrowed

Ladders are one of the highest-risk items you can leave outside. They turn second-story windows into “ground level.”

Good options for ladder security:

• Indoor storage: store ladders in the garage or shed whenever possible.
• Wall brackets: mount ladder hooks to a wall and run a padlock or cable lock through the rungs.
• Ground anchor: use a concrete-set or screw-in ground anchor and a hardened chain to lock the ladder down.

Bare minimum: the ladder should require a lock to move. If someone can just pick it up and walk away with it, it is also easy to use on your own house.

6. Bundling and Locking Yard Tools

Long-handled yard tools are awkward to steal, but easy to use as prying and striking tools.

• Store them upright in a locked shed or enclosed corner of the garage.
• If they must stay outside, bundle them through the handles with a cable lock.
• Aim to have one locked bundle, not six loose tools sticking out of the ground.

Power tools should never be left on a porch, in an open carport, or in an unlocked bench. If it has a battery and a handle, it goes in locked storage when you are done.

7. Using Light and Cameras Around Tool Storage

Locks are the first layer. Visibility is the second. You want anyone messing with your shed, garage side door, or deck box to be lit up and, ideally, recorded.

• Use motion lights aimed at your shed doors and side yard, not just the driveway.
• Avoid blinding glare; angle lights down and across, not straight into the camera.
• Position at least one camera so it covers your primary tool storage area and access paths.

If you are deciding how to light those areas, see Motion vs Dusk-to-Dawn Lighting for a breakdown of where each type actually works.

For camera angles and coverage, pair this with the Camera Placement Guide so your storage areas are not sitting in blind spots.

8. Tie Tool Security Into Your Night Routine

None of this matters if tools slowly creep back outside and never make it in. The fix is habit, not more hardware.

Build a quick end-of-day sweep into your normal wind-down:

• Walk the yard and driveway.
• Put every tool back in its storage, every time.
• Verify the shed, garage side door, and gates are locked.
• Check the ladder is stored and locked, not leaning on the house.

If you want a simple pattern to follow, plug this into your Night Security Routine so it happens automatically instead of “when you remember.”

9. Quick Checklist: Exterior Tools Secured

Run this checklist once now and then monthly as a sanity check:

• No ladders left loose outside.
• All long-handled tools stored in a locked space or bundled and locked.
• Power tools never left on porches, patios, or open carports overnight.
• Shed or garage doors have solid hardware and real locks, not decorative hasps.
• Motion lighting covers tool storage areas and approach paths.
• At least one camera angle covers your main storage area, if you run cameras at all.

You will never remove every risk, but cutting off easy access to tools alone makes your home much less attractive to the kind of intruder who wants a fast, quiet job and no surprises.