No prizes for guessing this one - the garage door is for most folk by far the largest door in their home and usually also the least secure.

It's a fact that most regular garage doors can be opened by a thief in under 10 seconds and once inside and with the door re-closed behind them they have total privacy and complete access to whatever you store in your garage - either to steal things or use them to assist further breaking in to your house.

But it gets worse; the Chamberlain Garage Trends Survey conducted in 2005 uncovered a number of interesting and some potentially disturbing facts about how we use our garage doors these days. The survey reveals that the garage door has superseded the traditional house entrance doors as the most commonly used point of entry - 58% now enter their home through the garage.

However, this apparently innocuous trend has indirectly resulted in a serious lapse in many people's security arrangements. The survey goes on to reveal that 32% of homeowners never bother to actually lock the door adjoining garage and home, thus making themselves entirely dependant on the main garage door to secure their home!

The implications are clear: any intruder who can open your garage doors (and as we now know that can be accomplished alarmingly swiftly) can in one third of cases enter your home without further hindrance. You might as well have left the front door wide open and put out a welcome mat.

Even if you do lock the door connecting your house and garage, the poor security inherent in most garage doors still makes it a popular target for burglars who know that once inside the garage they will be concealed and able to mount a determined assault on the inner door without attracting attention.

You hardly need a degree in rocket science to realize that the solution lies in installing high security doors, preferably for both the main garage entrance and the connecting door to the house. But if you only opt to secure one of these then the main garage door is the one to go for since deterring a would-be intruder from the outset is highly likely to result in them giving up on trying to enter your property and moving on to locate an easier opportunity.

Arguably the best option is to install steel reinforced wooden garage doors as these are not only extremely durable and attack resistant but also look way more stylish and up-market than cheaper plain steel doors.

Benefits to installing secure garage doors (other than hopefully preventing intruders from attacking you in your home or stealing your valuables) include the possibility of negotiating reduced insurance premiums, increasing the value of your property (it is well known that quality garage doors add value to a property) and making additional use of your garage space.

For example you might consider converting all or part of your garage into a safe room or consider storing items such as guns that absolutely need to be kept safe from children and potential intruders.