General Wheelhouse Security. What I know as a Deputy Sheriff

**This is a response to a thread earlier today about tracking systems on wheelhouses**

Hey guys,

As a Deputy Sheriff and a fellow outdoorsman it is important to let you folks know some of the things i know that may help:

1. Criminals IMO read these threads quite a bit. When Discussing placement of these tracking devices (which work!) make sure to private message the person asking the question. I know we all think criminals are “dumb” but believe it or not I have dealt with people who do plenty of research on the type of “clientele” they are going to steal from.

2. Mark all of your gear with some sort of special I.D. marking. These guys tend to go straight to pawn shops in the metro (or wherever.) Use a metal inscriber to put initials or something along those lines so you have some firepower when trying to retrieve your belongings in the event your gear is stolen.

3. TAKE GOOD PHOTOS! If you have detailed photos of your equipment it will help the police.

4. Write down product info. Serial numbers are key to an investigation. No serial number, Nothing to track.

5. Don’t shy away from the little tings. Put a tongue lock on the trailer. Put a nice heavy-duty chain and lock around the wheel and some sort of frame. If it even looks hard to steal most criminals will move on to something that is easier to take.

6. Blinking light in window. This one is somewhat of a stretch. Find a blinking red or blue LED light and place it in the window. In the off season order up a sticker that says “this trailer is monitored by a tracking device.” Place this near places a criminals would look in, try to open, windows, doors, metal tongue etc. This is a little deterrent that is simply the reason we all put fake “ADT” signs in our front yards. Most criminals DO NOT want to risk that.

It is sad we live in a world that we have to do all this. It is up to you to decide if your fish house will be the one in the Outdoor News as “MISSING/STOLEN PLEASE HELP.”

Great information. Thanks for passing this along and for the work that you do from day to day. It is appreciated.

Great write up! I think a tracking device would be the best thing to use. No matter how many locks or chains you put on it if they want it they’ll get it. There isn’t anything you can’t get odd with like an angle grinder or a bolt cutters. If they want to steal it, they’re going to steal it. Don’t leave anything of value in the house and put a tracking device on the house! Those would be the 2 things I did if I owned a nice house.

O’Meara Outdoors wrote:

**This is a response to a thread earlier today about tracking systems on wheelhouses**

Hey guys,

As a Deputy Sheriff and a fellow outdoorsman it is important to let you folks know some of the things i know that may help:

1. Criminals IMO read these threads quite a bit. When Discussing placement of these tracking devices (which work!) make sure to private message the person asking the question. I know we all think criminals are “dumb” but believe it or not I have dealt with people who do plenty of research on the type of “clientele” they are going to steal from.

2. Mark all of your gear with some sort of special I.D. marking. These guys tend to go straight to pawn shops in the metro (or wherever.) Use a metal inscriber to put initials or something along those lines so you have some firepower when trying to retrieve your belongings in the event your gear is stolen.

3. TAKE GOOD PHOTOS! If you have detailed photos of your equipment it will help the police.

4. Write down product info. Serial numbers are key to an investigation. No serial number, Nothing to track.

5. Don’t shy away from the little tings. Put a tongue lock on the trailer. Put a nice heavy-duty chain and lock around the wheel and some sort of frame. If it even looks hard to steal most criminals will move on to something that is easier to take.

6. Blinking light in window. This one is somewhat of a stretch. Find a blinking red or blue LED light and place it in the window. In the off season order up a sticker that says “this trailer is monitored by a tracking device.” Place this near places a criminals would look in, try to open, windows, doors, metal tongue etc. This is a little deterrent that is simply the reason we all put fake “ADT” signs in our front yards. Most criminals DO NOT want to risk that.

It is sad we live in a world that we have to do all this. It is up to you to decide if your fish house will be the one in the Outdoor News as “MISSING/STOLEN PLEASE HELP.”
Thanks for the helpful information and thank you for doing the job that you do to keep us safe.

rjthehunter wrote:

Don’t leave anything of value in the house and put a tracking device on the house!

To me this is the common sense one that I’m surprised didn’t get mentioned. The perps can’t steal it if you don’t leave it in the house in the first place.

This is part of the reason why I think the problem is getting worse. With all the new Man Caves On Ice with 96 inch TVs, satellite, generators, Lazyboy chairs, stainless steel appliances, computers, video games, etc a lot of guys are just getting lazy because it’s too much work to take all the goodies out of the house when they leave.

And the perps love you for it!

Freaking amazing anybody has time to fish anymore. I wonder how many guys have gone ice fishing and then on day 2 somebody finally says, “Hey, maybe we should like drill a hole or whatever …” but then the commercial on TV ends and the thought vanishes.

Grouse

TheFamousGrouse wrote:

<div class=”d4p-bbt-quote-title”>rjthehunter wrote:</div>
Don’t leave anything of value in the house and put a tracking device on the house!

To me this is the common sense one that I’m surprised didn’t get mentioned. The perps can’t steal it if you don’t leave it in the house in the first place.

This is part of the reason why I think the problem is getting worse. With all the new Man Caves On Ice with 96 inch TVs, satellite, generators, Lazyboy chairs, stainless steel appliances, computers, video games, etc a lot of guys are just getting lazy because it’s too much work to take all the goodies out of the house when they leave.

And the perps love you for it!

Freaking amazing anybody has time to fish anymore. I wonder how many guys have gone ice fishing and then on day 2 somebody finally says, “Hey, maybe we should like drill a hole or whatever …” but then the commercial on TV ends and the thought vanishes.

Grouse

Nailed it! Fortunately, myself and my best fishing buddy are in training as neo-Luddites and still insist on actual fishing being our primary form of entertainment while out fishing. The occasional brat fry on the ice-especially with the kids along-occasionally creates a distinct, but delicious distraction. Even the phone gets left in the truck.
My kids fully expect me to start tapping out notes on a stone tablet any day now…

TheFamousGrouse wrote:

<div class=”d4p-bbt-quote-title”>rjthehunter wrote:</div>
Don’t leave anything of value in the house and put a tracking device on the house!

To me this is the common sense one that I’m surprised didn’t get mentioned. The perps can’t steal it if you don’t leave it in the house in the first place.

This is part of the reason why I think the problem is getting worse. With all the new Man Caves On Ice with 96 inch TVs, satellite, generators, Lazyboy chairs, stainless steel appliances, computers, video games, etc a lot of guys are just getting lazy because it’s too much work to take all the goodies out of the house when they leave.

And the perps love you for it!

Freaking amazing anybody has time to fish anymore. I wonder how many guys have gone ice fishing and then on day 2 somebody finally says, “Hey, maybe we should like drill a hole or whatever …” but then the commercial on TV ends and the thought vanishes.

Grouse

Couldn’t agree more!! Being lazy doesn’t help, and having a tv and all the appliances and say you leave your marcum in there and your tuned up custom rods and all your nice expensive toys. It’s as easy as hook and go and the thief has a trailer full of money that can be parted out and sold. This is why I would think the tracking device is the 1 thing you should have if you don’t have anything else. A 30k fish house fully loaded is worth looking after. At least if I had one I’d be pretty protective over it!

reverend wrote:

Fortunately, myself and my best fishing buddy are in training as neo-Luddites and still insist on actual fishing being our primary form of entertainment while out fishing.

Whaaaaat???? That’s just twisted. You guys are going to ruin the sport of ice fishing if you keep doing weird stuff like fishing while you’re out there. What the he!! gave you that idea? Twisted.

Grouse

That does it, I’ve got so much stuff in my trailer fishhouse I now need a another trailer to carry it so as not to leave all these things in my unattended fishhouse. Tracking devise good, hidden wifi game or surveillance camera good. Awe hell, I just crank it up and take it home with me when done fishing, besides I bought it to haul and store my atv anyways. In the driveway at home it’s insured, trailer is added to my auto policy, and gear is covered by homeowners, and atv is on my powesports policy.

reverend wrote:
Fortunately, myself and my best fishing buddy are in training as neo-Luddites and still insist on actual fishing being our primary form of entertainment while out fishing.”

Says the Luddite posting on an Internet forum. I gotta chuckle at the irony.

“Whaaaaat???? That’s just twisted. You guys are going to ruin the sport of ice fishing if you keep doing weird stuff like fishing while you’re out there. What the he!! gave you that idea?”

Wait for it… Wait for it…

Here comes the post about guys with wheelhouses fishing out all the MN lakes.

The back and forth on that topic is funny too.

Point is, these houses are getting stolen often. I never leave mine on the ice, but they’re getting stolen out of driveways all too often. Mine’s insured as well; so I’m gonna get most of my money back. I have tracking because I want to catch the dirtbag trying steal my stuff.

(the original poster missed the most simple step)

7. Take your fancy wheelhouse home with you. It is hard to steal what isn’t there. Would you leave your valuables lying on a public street corner in a busy city? The lakes are hardly any different, except for the fact that they are even harder for law enforcement to police.

buckybadger wrote:

(the original poster missed the most simple step)

7. Take your fancy wheelhouse home with you. It is hard to steal what isn’t there. Would you leave your valuables lying on a public street corner in a busy city? The lakes are hardly any different, except for the fact that they are even harder for law enforcement to police.

Fail to read my last post?

Not at all. However, if people are truly getting wheelhouses and other gear stolen right from their driveway/garage, they need to take a long hard look at where they’re living and what they do for security. If you cannot park an ice house outside your home…your problems are major. That’s a completely different topic than people leaving ice houses worth a considerable amount of money on the ice, a reasonable distance from where they live and where law enforcement can police things efficiently.

I wouldn’t leave a $15-$20k piece of jewelry lying on a street corner out of my sight. On a similar note, I’d never consider leaving an expensive ice shack unattended on the ice. To me it is completely foolish. To each their own.