house drapes open or closed while away?

Closed...with them open they can tell if anyone is inside. If they are left open at night, that will look odd. Leave them closed and let them wonder. Having a timer that can work at different times is great. Leaving front porch light on all night is not a good idea either.

Here are a couple thoughts.

#1. A project site superintendent& DW I have worked with has a house cleaner come in once a week. She does light cleaning,gathers mail, and sends to them on the road. Noticeable activity at the house, she also checks for any issues.

#2 The TV on a timer, not on all day and night.

Drapes open or closed - it helps to have a timer with a random program.

These Intermatic Night Sentry® timers will do the job very nicely:

In wall:



Table top:



Disclaimer:
I was the Chief Test Equipment Engineer at Intermatic when we acquired the Night Sentry Division from Dynascan® in the early 1980s.

Leave the drapes closed and the TV on.

Have a summer and winter place. We leave ours as they are leaving heat on low in summer place so interior pipes don't freeze. Turn water heaters off. Ask neighbors/ adult kids in area to call us if they think anything is awry. Maybe check with your local Police or Sheriff. They will have lots of info on the subject and may even provide extra attention to your place when you are away. Don't know of a guaranteed method to keep your property safe. Thought about alarms and/or video but that would just alert you after a robbery has taken place or in progress. I doubt police will arrive in time to prevent anything. We just keep up our homeowners premiums and hope for the best. Sorry this is probably no help to you.

Faced with your concern I'd leave the drapes closed IF the front of the house faced full sun. That would keep furniture from becoming sun faded.
As far as the security aspect the lights on a timer is a great idea and I'd ask a neighbor to occasionally change the position of the drapes just to keep someone with bad attentions away. I'm sure you've already solved your mail problem.

If someone is coming in to check ask them to periodically move the drapes to a different position. If someone is watching the house then the movement will let them know someone is around.
The drapes being shut towards the street during the day is not an uncommon occurrence. My Mother In Law keeps hers shut all the time because she does not want others looking in at her.

Closed