Inside Mail Slot Cover
How to Burglar-Proof Your Mail Slot
A mail slot cover will prevent anyone from sticking his or her hands inside your mail slot from the outside. Mail slot cages, bags, and boxes catch the mail when it comes through the slot and make it more difficult for a potential intruder to slip in a wire, cord, or an arm. Unfortunately, these measures, while they are a good first step to. Many mail slot designs feature a closing cover that lifts to slide the mail through then shuts to prevent the elements from getting inside your home. There are even mail slot hoods that install on the open interior back side of the slot to enhance privacy and security. Shop Mail Slots and Other Top-Rated Mail Products at Ace. An exterior mail slot cover (or lid) covers the mail slot so that the home remains insulated against the elements. USPS mailbox guidelines require any horizontal mail slot to be hinged at the top and any vertical mail slot to be hinged on the opposite side from the door’s hinges (if mounted on a door).
You may not realize it, but your front door could be the easiest way for a burglar to access your home. While it might be convenient, a mail slot can pose a threat to your safety and could be an unintended invitation to criminals. They may be able to slip a wire or a cord, and in some cases even their arm, through a mail slot and unlock the door to your home in seconds.
Door mail slot security is a serious concern and addressing it may just save your valuables or even your life. Here are a few tips to help burglar-proof your mail slot today.
Install a Mail Slot Cover, Cage or Box
One thing you can do to invest in your homea??s door mail slot security is to install a mail slot cover, cage or box. A mail slot cover will prevent anyone from sticking his or her hands inside your mail slot from the outside. Mail slot cages, bags, and boxes catch the mail when it comes through the slot and make it more difficult for a potential intruder to slip in a wire, cord, or an arm.
Unfortunately, these measures, while they are a good first step to securing your mail slot, will not prevent the most tenacious of intruders from gaining access to your home. In addition, while you may be able to record their illegal entry on an outdoor wireless security camera, wouldna??t it be better if they never got a chance to get in at all?
Install a Double Deadbolt
Better than a bag, box, or cover, a second deadbolt, properly installed at greater than arma??s length from your mail slot, can be a great deterrent to potential intruders looking to gain entry through your front door.
Interior Mail Slot Cover
Make sure that you purchase a good quality lock and that it is reinforced to prevent it from being popped out by a burglar. This step, while better than a simple mail slot cover, still will not compensate for the way in which a mail slot, cut across the grain of a wood door, compromises your front doora??s structural integrity.
Get a New Door
For the ultimate in door mail slot security, you are best off simply replacing your front door all together, and investing in a locked, high-security, exterior mailbox. It is less convenient, but as long as you have an outdoor wireless security camera so you can ensure your safety while retrieving the mail, you will improve the security of your home and your loved ones considerably.
Still on the fence about a home security system? Read our blog to learn what a home burglary can really cost your family.
What is claimed is:1. An indoor mail slot cover that can be reduced in size prior to installation in accordance with the size of said mail slot and that can seal said mail slot by covering said mail slot and a weather-stripping arrangement installed about said mail slot directly on a building structure or on a mail slot bezel plate attached to a building structure, said cover comprising:
Interior Mail Slot Door
a plastic plate having:
a cover flap portion sized to cover said mail slot;
at least one transversely extending groove, located in at least said cover flap portion, said at least one transversely extending groove dividing said cover flap into a pair of adjacent sections;
a lug portion, spaced from said cover flap portion and located directly opposite thereto for connecting said plate to said building structure, said lug portion having at least a pair of separable lug sections, each of which is located opposite to a said second of said cover flap portion; and
a hinge portion located between said lug and said cover flap portions, said hinge portion comprising an integrally formed coined hinge having at least a pair of adjacent separable, hinge sections, each of which connects a said separable lug section to a said section of said cover flap portion; and
means for attaching at least a said lug section to said building structure, whereby when prior to installation one of said adjacent sections of said cover flap portion is of sufficient size to fully cover said mail slot and said weather-stripping arrangement, the other of said adjacent sections of said cover flap portion, simultaneously with a said hinge section and a said lug section connected thereto, can be broken off along the line of said at least one transversely extending groove and then discarded to thereby reduce the size of said cover flap portion and leave the remaining of said adjacent sections thereof operable for pivotable movement with respect to said mail slot between an opened position, uncovering said mail slot and a closed position, covering said mail slot and said weather-stripping arrangement.
2. The indoor mail slot of claim 1 wherein said plate is of rectangular configuration and has a pair of longitudinal edges spaced apart from one another and a pair of transverse edges spaced apart from one another, said transverse edges connecting said longitudinal edges at either end thereof to define the said rectangular configuration of said plate and wherein said at least one transversely extending groove is parallel to said transverse edges.
3. The indoor mail slot cover of claim 2 wherein said at least one transversely extending groove further extends into said hinge and said lug portions to define said separable hinge and said separable lug sections on either side of said at least one transversely extending groove.
4. The indoor mail slot cover of claim 3 wherein said coined hinge is only formed in the surface of said plate facing away from said mail slot as viewed when said indoor mail slot cover is installed on said building structure.
5. The indoor mail slot cover of claim 4 wherein said cover flap portion has a greater transverse extent than said lug and said hinge portions.
6. The indoor mail slot cover of claim 5 wherein said plate further has a set of two pairs of transversely extending grooves, parallel to said transverse edges of said plate, each of said pairs being spaced an equal distance from said transverse edges and said pairs being spaced apart from one another an interval greater than that of said distance, said pairs further dividing said cover flap portion, said hinge and said lug portions into a set of five adjacent sections, wherein the central sections of each have a greater longitudinal extent than the two sections outlying each of said central sections on either side therof, and wherein said lug portion further includes a set of five separable lug sections comprising said five adjacent sections of said lug, and said hinge portion further includes a coined hinge having a set of five separable hinge sections comprising said five adjacent sections of said coined hinge, whereby the length of said plate and hence said indoor mail slot cover can be incrementally reduced by the spacing between said transversely extending grooves and said transverse edges of said plate.
7. The indoor mail slot cover of claim 6 wherein said plate further has a pair of longitudinally extending grooves located in said cover flap portion, intersecting said pairs of transversely extending grooves at right angles, further dividing said cover flap portion into a pair of further sections whereby the width of said plate and hence said indoor mail slot cover can also be incrementally reduced by the spacing between said longitudinally extending grooves and said longitudinal edges of said plate. 8. The indoor mail slot cover of claim 7 wherein all of said grooves are formed in the surface of said plate facing said mail slot as viewed when said indoor mail slot cover is installed.
9. The indoor mail slot cover of claim 8 wherein all of said grooves have a `V` shaped crossection.
10. The indoor mail slot cover of claim 9 further comprising means for releasably securing said cover flap portion in its said closed position.
11. The indoor mail slot cover of claim 10 wherein said releasable securing means include an adhesive ferrite strip disposed beneath said weather-stripping arrangement and an adhesive magnetic strip attached to said cover flap portion on the said surface thereof facing away from said mail slot after the installation thereof at a location thereon so as to overlie said ferrite strip to attract said ferrite strip when said cover flap portion is in its said closed position.
12. The indoor mail slot cover of claim 11 wherein wherein said attachment means include a pair of attachment tabs disposed between said building structure and said plate, said attachment tabs sized and spaced apart from one another so as to underlie said lug sections remaining after possible breakage of said plate.
13. The indoor mail slot cover of claim 12 wherein said weather-stripping arrangement is installed on said bezel plate and said attachment tabs have a pair of opposed self-adhering surfaces, each respectively contacting said lug sections remaining after possible breakage of said plate and said building structure to attach said plate thereto, and a thickness, separating said surfaces, equal to the sum of the thicknesses of said weather-stripping arrangement and said bezel plate.
14. The indoor mail slot cover of claim 12 wherein said weather-stripping arrangement is installed on said bezel plate, said attachment tabs have a pair of opposed self-adhering surfaces, each respectively contacting said lug sections remaining after possible breakage of said plate and said building structure to attach said plate thereto and a thickness, separating said surfaces, equal to the sum of the thicknesses of said weather-stripping arrangement and said bezel plate and wherein said lug portion has at least a set of two pairs of holes, each pair of which is respectively located on either side of the innermost of said transversely extending grooves, and each of said attachment tabs underlies at least one of said holes of a said pair, and wherein said attachment means include at least a pair of screws, each of which extends through said one of said holes of said pair of holes, one of said attachment tabs and said building structure.
15. The indoor mail slot cover of claim 12 wherein said weather-stripping arrangement is installed on said building structure, said attachment tabs each have a thickness equal to that of said weather-stripping arrangement and wherein said lug portion has at least two pairs of holes, each pair of which is respectively located on either side of the innermost of said transversely extending grooves, and each of said attachment tabs underlies at least one of said holes of a said pair, and said attachment means include at least a pair of screws, each of which extends through said one of said holes of said pair of holes, one of said attachment tabs and said building structure.
