How to Protect Your Man Cave

Modern man may be separated by millennia from his hairier and less erudite predecessors, but the human male has merely transformed his ancient cave into a more technologically advanced one.

A modern man cave is the pride and joy for many men. It's their patch, and somewhere where they can unwind and entertain fellow troglodytes by playing going head to head at FIFA and watching action movies. The thought of the man cave itself, and in particular the important items inside it, getting damaged would be heart-breaking for some.

If you already have an insurance policy in place for your man cave, check that everything is bang up to date. If you have so much stuff in the man cave that it would be too time-consuming to record and photograph everything, then make sure you at least record the most valuable items - both monetary, and in terms of personal and sentimental worth. Remember, where applicable, to record serial numbers.

An ingenious way of making sure that anything stolen from your man cave can be traced back to you is by writing your name on the back of important objects with an ultraviolet marker pen. When the stolen objects have been retrieved, light will reveal who the items really belong to.

Security for a man cave can involve an alarm system and CCTV camera, and, if you just want to make the man cave physically secure, then you'll need to have a strong lock for your door.

Knowing your passwords is also important in case of computer theft, as complacency can catch people out who have always signed into accounts automatically. In the case of stolen mobiles, some programmes will enable the owner to track down the whereabouts of their missing phone.

Some items in a man cave may, of course, be a little difficult to steal for a wannabe burglar. A collection of vintage motorbikes is probably safe from a lone burglar, unless he's built like Hercules. A pool table will similarly be something difficult to shift, but your new iPhone or laptop will be easy pickings for any unwelcome man cave intruder. Worse still would be if your irreplaceable collection of rare vinyl records or old football programmes disappeared forever.

It makes sense to insure a man cave and to protect your most valuable items - unless you prefer the genuine caveman alternative, of course. In that case you'll need to add a sturdy club to your man cave possessions.