Quote Originally Posted by HOTRODPAINT View Post
If you announce that you are attending an event... leave the lights and TV on... Let the thieves guess if there might be someone else still home. Most of them would be cowardly and look for something easier.
A couple of timers on lights in different parts of the house, and even a radio or TV can mimic your normal patterns while you're gone, turning things on in the main area at dark, off after the news with a bedroom lamp on as main lights go off. The timers with individual switches at each hour are most flexible for patterns.