Make Your Front Door Strong
There was a reason why the front doors of the forts and fortresses of the maharajas of yore would be paid special importance - if you have visited the forts of Shivaji Maharaj in the outskirts of Pune you would have seen the massive gates and fortification techniques that included strong double or triple barreled doors with metal studs which would require ten massive elephants armed with battering rams to break into! Just to be near the front door one would also have to swim past a moat filled with alligators! There was a reason behind the special emphasis placed on the front door.
The front door is important because it is usually the access point that faces the world and the access point that is used most. Therefore it makes special sense to pay special attention to the front door of your house if you value the security of your home. And this applies as much in todayâEUR(TM)s times as it did in the medieval era. Of course you can leave out the crocs and gators!
As you enter your home today from work, check the quality and strength of the front door of your house. Let us talk about some problem areas and habit and how you can fix them.
Keys Hidden Outside
Most people have experienced the annoyance of being locked out of their own home for one reason or another. It is very easy to do, popping out to probably water the plants outside your front door and finding that the wind has blown the door shut. A friend of mine has recurring nightmares of being shut out of the front door of her house dressed only in her underclothes! Alternately you may have had the annoying doorstep conversation with your partner when you get home from shopping that has you both saying âEUR~But I thought you had the door keysâEUR(TM).
To avoid this problem many people are tempted to hide a door key somewhere outside the house. HereâEUR(TM)s my advice - DonâEUR(TM)t do it. Criminals know that many people do that, especially where there are children in the family. People used to leave a door key fastened inside the door on a length of string. To get in all you had to do was fish through the letter box, pull the string out and use the key tied to the end to open the door. That âEUR~cleverâEUR(TM) trick got to be as well known as leaving a key under the front doormat so people stopped doing it.
Hiding keys in or under a flowerpot, bricks and gnomes wonâEUR(TM)t fool a criminal either. I have even seen adverts for âEUR~secureâEUR(TM) key hiding places made to look like cobblestones, gnomes or other garden clutter. To my mind anyone who uses one of these plastic containers which are âEUR~cleverly disguisedâEUR(TM) as something or other is recklessly stupid. Why spend a lot of time and money making your house safe and secure, then break your own security by leaving a key out for the criminals? No matter how clever your hiding place is, it will be discovered.
If you were a criminal watching a target house for a few days and saw a child come home, move a brick near the garage door, open the front door then return to that brick, how long would it take you to guess where a hidden key might be? Do you think that criminals donâEUR(TM)t read the newspapers? They will have seen the adverts for disguised key stores in the shape of garden frog, cobbles and logs and will have made it their business to know what they look like, because finding a key makes it a lot easier for them to get into your house.
Spare keys-countermeasures
DONâEUR(TM)T HIDE KEYS OUTSIDE.
If you have to have an emergency key, give one each to two relatives or very close friends who live nearby. Why two? One of them might be out when you need your emergency key! Make sure that you trust your key holders and anyone who lives with them! Uncle Kalra may be thoroughly trustworthy, and Mrs Suryavanshi from flat number 402 may be a wonderful lady, but who else is coming and going in that house? Uncle KalraâEUR(TM)s alcoholic grandson, or the new drug addict boyfriend of Mrs SuryavanshiâEUR(TM)s lovely daughter may not be as trustworthy!
SOFTWOOD DOOR
Many wooden doors are cheaply made and have little strength; one kick will break them open. By swinging the door shut you will feel the weight of the door. Grasp the door on the edge opposite the hinges, one hand near the top and the other as low as is comfortable. Then try to twist the door (gently pull with the right hand and push with the left. A softwood door will often flex showing how little strength there is in it. A cheap door feels light, and you can easily mark the wood by gouging at it with a thumbnail (do it on the edge just above a hinge where it will not be seen). This softwood has little strength and is very susceptible to rot and decay as well. Kicking it will splinter the door and often the frame too. (DonâEUR(TM)t do it to test it, just be aware that a softwood door offers little strength.)
DOOR PANELS
You should be aware that the design of some less expensive doors could include a weakness that is well known. Where a door includes panels set into the door, the panels sometimes have very little strength. At worst the panels may be thin plywood, and only let into the frame in a shallow groove, so that one good kick often makes the door panel fall inwards. The criminal has the option of crawling in through the hole he has made, or reaching inside to release the lock to open the door. A flimsy door panel doesnâEUR(TM)t even make much noise when it is smashed!
HARDWOOD DOOR
A hardwood door is actually hard, and gouging it with a thumbnail will break the nail rather than the door. Swinging it back and forth you will be able to feel the weight. Trying to twist it is usually futile, they are so rigid that there will be little movement, but you are welcome to try. Remember that no matter how strong the door, if the frame, hinges and locks are cheap or badly installed, you will reduce the protection that the hardwood door provides.
UPVC (DOUBLE GLAZED)
UPVC (plastic) double glazed doors seem quite secure because of the standard multiple point locking mechanisms built into the door, but many of them suffer from panel weakness. As with wooden doors, the door panels are particularly vulnerable - one kick or a blow with a weight will smash the panel out, leaving a nice access point, or at least free access to reach in and open whatâEUR(TM)s left of the door from the inside! Newer and more expensive doors have steel frames built into the carcass of the door, which combined with the multiple locking point mechanisms do make them very secure, but they are not widely used and rarely found in older doors.
DOOR FRAME
Remember to check the quality and fixing of the door frame. If the frame is weak and badly fitted it will give way and the strength of the door is irrelevant. Weakness can be found for a number of reasons, such as:
The frame is constructed of cheap wood or is rotten.
The frame is secured with the wrong fittings or not enough fittings were used.
The structure of the wall to which the frame is secured is substandard.
The frame is the wrong size for the opening it has been used in.
You should test the security and strength of the frame. Grasp the frame firmly and try to move it. If there is any movement re-fix it to make sure it can withstand attempts to gain access.
LOCKS
No matter how strong the door is, it has one fundamental flaw and that is that doors are designed and built to swing open easily. Their function is to give easy access to people and that makes them vulnerable. They have to open easily, but they should also be easy to shut and secure when required and that is achieved by fitting locks and bolts to the door. The effectiveness of the security of any door depends on the quality, number, fixing and placement of locks and bolts. A night latch is convenient because it secures the door and the owner only needs to carry a small key to allow them to open and close the lock. The night latch usually screws to the surface of the door so offers minimal protection against physical assault. As a single point fastening the night latch offers poor protection because one solid kick will break the door open. A two-point locking scheme offers better protection, especially if it uses what is called a five lever mortice deadlock.
Good Locks and fittings are available from good hardware stores. Do not buy unbranded locks - go for Yale locks and fittings - a trusted brand that I have used myself for the doors of my own house. These are 50% more expensive than cheap ones but trust me they will last a lifetime and will long pay back the investment in terms of itâEUR(TM)s sturdy make and reliable use.
A mortice lock is a stronger fixing method because it is installed inside the door. A suitable slot has to be cut into the edge of the door, and the lock is buried within the wood where it becomes part of the structure of the door. Holes are cut through to accommodate the handle and key slot, which allow the lock to be operated. As with most locks a catch plate is secured into the doorframe, reinforcing the point where the mortice bolt engages the frame.
French windows and patio doors
French windows are probably the most vulnerable door in any property. They are usually located at the back of the premises, so a criminal can work on them unobserved and uninterrupted. The doors are designed to let in light and be easily opened wide to give access to the garden on a warm dry day and as such are designed more for looks and wide access than solid security. Patio doors are often newer and of a better build and design quality, but they are still vulnerable to a criminal who manages to get to the back of the premises.
Both types of doors can easily be levered open with simple tools, unless the owner has taken steps to secure them.
Summary
Door Security - Countermeasures
As a general rule for best effect I would suggest the following:
Buy the best door you can afford and can justify for the use you have in mind.
Have the door installed by a skilled tradesperson.
Ensure that the frame is of equal quality and that it is firmly and correctly secured to the surrounding masonry.
Use the best hinges suitable for the application.
Install hinge bolts - bolts that fit into the hinge edge of the door and reinforce the strength of the door on the hinge side. Expensive locks are a waste of money if a criminal can simply kick the door off the hinges on the hinge side.
Use at least a two-point fastening scheme. Your locksmith will advise you where to fit the locks, but generally it is advised that one lock is fitted approximately two fifths of the way down from the top of the door and another just under halfway up from the bottom. At least one lock should be a properly installed mortice lock.
When you have gone to the trouble of installing such a secure door, lock it when you go out.
For safety reasons DONâEUR(TM)T leave the mortice lock locked when you are in the house, particularly at night, in case you need to get out of the house in a hurry. Pay particular attention to the survey of French windows and patio doors. As a priority get the locks, hinges, tracks and security of all French windows and patio doors checked by an expert if you have any doubts as to their security and strength.
There was a reason why the front doors of the forts and fortresses of the maharajas of yore would be paid special importance - if you have visited the forts of Shivaji Maharaj in the outskirts of Pune you would have seen the massive gates and fortification techniques that included strong double or triple barreled doors with metal studs which would require ten massive elephants armed with battering rams to break into! Just to be near the front door one would also have to swim past a moat filled with alligators! There was a reason behind the special emphasis placed on the front door.
The front door is important because it is usually the access point that faces the world and the access point that is used most. Therefore it makes special sense to pay special attention to the front door of your house if you value the security of your home. And this applies as much in todayâEUR(TM)s times as it did in the medieval era. Of course you can leave out the crocs and gators!
As you enter your home today from work, check the quality and strength of the front door of your house. Let us talk about some problem areas and habit and how you can fix them.
Keys Hidden Outside
Most people have experienced the annoyance of being locked out of their own home for one reason or another. It is very easy to do, popping out to probably water the plants outside your front door and finding that the wind has blown the door shut. A friend of mine has recurring nightmares of being shut out of the front door of her house dressed only in her underclothes! Alternately you may have had the annoying doorstep conversation with your partner when you get home from shopping that has you both saying âEUR~But I thought you had the door keysâEUR(TM).
To avoid this problem many people are tempted to hide a door key somewhere outside the house. HereâEUR(TM)s my advice - DonâEUR(TM)t do it. Criminals know that many people do that, especially where there are children in the family. People used to leave a door key fastened inside the door on a length of string. To get in all you had to do was fish through the letter box, pull the string out and use the key tied to the end to open the door. That âEUR~cleverâEUR(TM) trick got to be as well known as leaving a key under the front doormat so people stopped doing it.
Hiding keys in or under a flowerpot, bricks and gnomes wonâEUR(TM)t fool a criminal either. I have even seen adverts for âEUR~secureâEUR(TM) key hiding places made to look like cobblestones, gnomes or other garden clutter. To my mind anyone who uses one of these plastic containers which are âEUR~cleverly disguisedâEUR(TM) as something or other is recklessly stupid. Why spend a lot of time and money making your house safe and secure, then break your own security by leaving a key out for the criminals? No matter how clever your hiding place is, it will be discovered.
If you were a criminal watching a target house for a few days and saw a child come home, move a brick near the garage door, open the front door then return to that brick, how long would it take you to guess where a hidden key might be? Do you think that criminals donâEUR(TM)t read the newspapers? They will have seen the adverts for disguised key stores in the shape of garden frog, cobbles and logs and will have made it their business to know what they look like, because finding a key makes it a lot easier for them to get into your house.
Spare keys-countermeasures
DONâEUR(TM)T HIDE KEYS OUTSIDE.
If you have to have an emergency key, give one each to two relatives or very close friends who live nearby. Why two? One of them might be out when you need your emergency key! Make sure that you trust your key holders and anyone who lives with them! Uncle Kalra may be thoroughly trustworthy, and Mrs Suryavanshi from flat number 402 may be a wonderful lady, but who else is coming and going in that house? Uncle KalraâEUR(TM)s alcoholic grandson, or the new drug addict boyfriend of Mrs SuryavanshiâEUR(TM)s lovely daughter may not be as trustworthy!
SOFTWOOD DOOR
Many wooden doors are cheaply made and have little strength; one kick will break them open. By swinging the door shut you will feel the weight of the door. Grasp the door on the edge opposite the hinges, one hand near the top and the other as low as is comfortable. Then try to twist the door (gently pull with the right hand and push with the left. A softwood door will often flex showing how little strength there is in it. A cheap door feels light, and you can easily mark the wood by gouging at it with a thumbnail (do it on the edge just above a hinge where it will not be seen). This softwood has little strength and is very susceptible to rot and decay as well. Kicking it will splinter the door and often the frame too. (DonâEUR(TM)t do it to test it, just be aware that a softwood door offers little strength.)
DOOR PANELS
You should be aware that the design of some less expensive doors could include a weakness that is well known. Where a door includes panels set into the door, the panels sometimes have very little strength. At worst the panels may be thin plywood, and only let into the frame in a shallow groove, so that one good kick often makes the door panel fall inwards. The criminal has the option of crawling in through the hole he has made, or reaching inside to release the lock to open the door. A flimsy door panel doesnâEUR(TM)t even make much noise when it is smashed!
HARDWOOD DOOR
A hardwood door is actually hard, and gouging it with a thumbnail will break the nail rather than the door. Swinging it back and forth you will be able to feel the weight. Trying to twist it is usually futile, they are so rigid that there will be little movement, but you are welcome to try. Remember that no matter how strong the door, if the frame, hinges and locks are cheap or badly installed, you will reduce the protection that the hardwood door provides.
UPVC (DOUBLE GLAZED)
UPVC (plastic) double glazed doors seem quite secure because of the standard multiple point locking mechanisms built into the door, but many of them suffer from panel weakness. As with wooden doors, the door panels are particularly vulnerable - one kick or a blow with a weight will smash the panel out, leaving a nice access point, or at least free access to reach in and open whatâEUR(TM)s left of the door from the inside! Newer and more expensive doors have steel frames built into the carcass of the door, which combined with the multiple locking point mechanisms do make them very secure, but they are not widely used and rarely found in older doors.
DOOR FRAME
Remember to check the quality and fixing of the door frame. If the frame is weak and badly fitted it will give way and the strength of the door is irrelevant. Weakness can be found for a number of reasons, such as:
The frame is constructed of cheap wood or is rotten.
The frame is secured with the wrong fittings or not enough fittings were used.
The structure of the wall to which the frame is secured is substandard.
The frame is the wrong size for the opening it has been used in.
You should test the security and strength of the frame. Grasp the frame firmly and try to move it. If there is any movement re-fix it to make sure it can withstand attempts to gain access.
LOCKS
No matter how strong the door is, it has one fundamental flaw and that is that doors are designed and built to swing open easily. Their function is to give easy access to people and that makes them vulnerable. They have to open easily, but they should also be easy to shut and secure when required and that is achieved by fitting locks and bolts to the door. The effectiveness of the security of any door depends on the quality, number, fixing and placement of locks and bolts. A night latch is convenient because it secures the door and the owner only needs to carry a small key to allow them to open and close the lock. The night latch usually screws to the surface of the door so offers minimal protection against physical assault. As a single point fastening the night latch offers poor protection because one solid kick will break the door open. A two-point locking scheme offers better protection, especially if it uses what is called a five lever mortice deadlock.
Good Locks and fittings are available from good hardware stores. Do not buy unbranded locks - go for Yale locks and fittings - a trusted brand that I have used myself for the doors of my own house. These are 50% more expensive than cheap ones but trust me they will last a lifetime and will long pay back the investment in terms of itâEUR(TM)s sturdy make and reliable use.
A mortice lock is a stronger fixing method because it is installed inside the door. A suitable slot has to be cut into the edge of the door, and the lock is buried within the wood where it becomes part of the structure of the door. Holes are cut through to accommodate the handle and key slot, which allow the lock to be operated. As with most locks a catch plate is secured into the doorframe, reinforcing the point where the mortice bolt engages the frame.
French windows and patio doors
French windows are probably the most vulnerable door in any property. They are usually located at the back of the premises, so a criminal can work on them unobserved and uninterrupted. The doors are designed to let in light and be easily opened wide to give access to the garden on a warm dry day and as such are designed more for looks and wide access than solid security. Patio doors are often newer and of a better build and design quality, but they are still vulnerable to a criminal who manages to get to the back of the premises.
Both types of doors can easily be levered open with simple tools, unless the owner has taken steps to secure them.
Summary
Door Security - Countermeasures
As a general rule for best effect I would suggest the following:
Buy the best door you can afford and can justify for the use you have in mind.
Have the door installed by a skilled tradesperson.
Ensure that the frame is of equal quality and that it is firmly and correctly secured to the surrounding masonry.
Use the best hinges suitable for the application.
Install hinge bolts - bolts that fit into the hinge edge of the door and reinforce the strength of the door on the hinge side. Expensive locks are a waste of money if a criminal can simply kick the door off the hinges on the hinge side.
Use at least a two-point fastening scheme. Your locksmith will advise you where to fit the locks, but generally it is advised that one lock is fitted approximately two fifths of the way down from the top of the door and another just under halfway up from the bottom. At least one lock should be a properly installed mortice lock.
When you have gone to the trouble of installing such a secure door, lock it when you go out.
For safety reasons DONâEUR(TM)T leave the mortice lock locked when you are in the house, particularly at night, in case you need to get out of the house in a hurry. Pay particular attention to the survey of French windows and patio doors. As a priority get the locks, hinges, tracks and security of all French windows and patio doors checked by an expert if you have any doubts as to their security and strength.
