Browse Forums Safer Living 1 Feb 04, 2009 7:48 pm Hi All
So there are a few reasons why I don't like deadlocks, among them: 1. I'm led to believe that if someone wants to get in they will, most usually through a small window or by bumpingthe lock 2. If someone does get in, then I'd rather they are able to get out before I get a chance to meet them (not sure if this is for my safety or theirs...). I have insurance... 3. Deadlocks can be seriously dangerous, for example in fire situations (ABC, FPAA, Argus). The thought of coming home late and forgetting to un-deadlock all the doors and subsequently being trapped in (for example) a burning house terrifies me... However, I acknowledge the need to have some sort of burglary deterrent and that a quality lock seems to be a fundamental starting place. Are there any locks out there that meet insurance criteria, are hard to defeat, and don't allow me to be locked into my own house? I'll be looking at cameras that stream to the internet, back-to-base alarms et. al. but for now I specifically want advice on locks. Cheers, Steve Wishful Builders... Re: Deadlocks scare me, are there any alternatives? 2Feb 04, 2009 7:54 pm How about ones like this that you can keep unlocked from the inside but are still just as hard for burglars to get in? We are getting all our normal deadlocks (without the snib bit) replaced with these soon. (but we are getting chrome ones)
Re: Deadlocks scare me, are there any alternatives? 3Feb 04, 2009 8:12 pm Deadlocks on all external doors are a no brainer for me.. after being robbed twice in two weeks through the only door on our old rental unit that didn't have a deadlock, I would never be in a place that didn't have them.
Thieves will look at your door and say to themselves.. I can't be bothered.. as generally they will break a window next to your door and then reach around and open the door.. Or they may break a bigger window and then enter that way.. but it is still very hard for them to leave with big items through a window and alot slower for them. When I get home at night I unlock all the deadlocks.. they are only ever locked when no-one is in the house. And even if you did forget to lock them, in a fire I wouldn't hesitate to just break a window to get out. Re: Deadlocks scare me, are there any alternatives? 4Feb 04, 2009 8:14 pm I have a gainsborough Tri lock thingy. When home I can press a button in for it to be locked and if anyone turns the knob from the inside it opens.
When I leave however, I can press the button and shut it / lock it normally, or I can lock it with a key from the outside and it becomes a deadlock. Building Upside down house in Wantirna VIC Current Stage: Procrastination... it's just all too hard.... Blog: http://thereluctantbuilder.blogspot.com/ Re: Deadlocks scare me, are there any alternatives? 5Feb 04, 2009 8:21 pm ozkarnak I have a gainsborough Tri lock thingy. When home I can press a button in for it to be locked and if anyone turns the knob from the inside it opens. When I leave however, I can press the button and shut it / lock it normally, or I can lock it with a key from the outside and it becomes a deadlock. That tri lock thingy is the standard door lock we get.. can you deadlock it from the inside... I hope so because that would be a pain if I have to do it from the outside.. as I hardly ever use my front door as I just exit via the garage, but always deadlock my front door before I leave. Re: Deadlocks scare me, are there any alternatives? 6Feb 04, 2009 9:03 pm Yes you can deadlock it from the inside, the same as for the outside you just use the key.
If you turn the key once its locked normally, if you turn it twice its deadlocked. Its not something I think about often but It's actually a really good lock Building Upside down house in Wantirna VIC Current Stage: Procrastination... it's just all too hard.... Blog: http://thereluctantbuilder.blogspot.com/ Re: Deadlocks scare me, are there any alternatives? 10Feb 05, 2009 7:40 am You should never deadlock a door when you are home/inside. My MIL does this and it is extremely dangerous - any fire safety officer will say the same. After 4 years - we're in! Re: Deadlocks scare me, are there any alternatives? 11Feb 05, 2009 8:03 am Hi Thanks for your replies
I'm in a meeting all day so will chip away with questions piecemeal... If I'm not mistaken this is the infamous Lockwood 001 - what is the snib bit, can you buy it with the snib removed - what does it do? What I want is a lock that is as effective as a deadlock at keeping people out (i.e. stopping people from getting in, per the OP I know that any lock can be defeated)... but if someone does get in I don't want a deadlock to keep em out... is there a version of the 001 that achieves this? - aforementioned meeting starts Wishful Builders... Re: Deadlocks scare me, are there any alternatives? 13Feb 05, 2009 9:05 am tribasus, when I said 'snib' I really meant the bit that you can turn, the bit that you put the key into. If you leave it unlocked from the inside, you can just turn this knobby bit with your hand and open the door.
I'm not very good at explaining it sorry Re: Deadlocks scare me, are there any alternatives? 14Feb 05, 2009 10:34 am To be honest I'm not a fan of the lockwood style locks. Older people and children have a hard time turning it. We had to change the lockswood lock to another type of deadlock on my grandparents house because they had issues with it.
Actually to be truthful I have a hard time turning it and also operating another lock at the same time. How are people supposed to do that carrying anything ?. Also I've broken my arm/hand/wrist a couple of times (I'm a clutz) and those doors are impossible to open onehanded. I appreciate security but don't make me put my coffee down to open the door ?? Building Upside down house in Wantirna VIC Current Stage: Procrastination... it's just all too hard.... Blog: http://thereluctantbuilder.blogspot.com/ Re: Deadlocks scare me, are there any alternatives? 15Feb 05, 2009 10:47 am wakeboardandy Deadlocks on all external doors are a no brainer for me.. after being robbed twice in two weeks through the only door on our old rental unit that didn't have a deadlock, I would never be in a place that didn't have them. Is a deadlock the *only* thing that would secure the door? wakeboardandy Thieves will look at your door and say to themselves.. I can't be bothered.. as generally they will break a window next to your door and then reach around and open the door.. Or they may break a bigger window and then enter that way.. but it is still very hard for them to leave with big items through a window and alot slower for them. On the flip side what if your child / wife comes come and interrupts an intruder? wakeboardandy When I get home at night I unlock all the deadlocks.. they are only ever locked when no-one is in the house. And even if you did forget to lock them, in a fire I wouldn't hesitate to just break a window to get out. In a fire situation people don't think they way they do when they are behind a keyboard. While I don't doubt that you may be able to escape through a window, your first instinct/habit will be to go to the door. If you then find it locked your second instinct will be to gather your thoughts. Then you'll need to figure out how to break the window... Much easier to not have deadlocks... break over Wishful Builders... Re: Deadlocks scare me, are there any alternatives? 16Feb 05, 2009 1:05 pm stonecutter1309 You should never deadlock a door when you are home/inside. My MIL does this and it is extremely dangerous - any fire safety officer will say the same. Yep - and the place where I'm looking to buy is classified "Flame-Zone" - from a bushfire perspective it does not get much worse than that (but the view is fantastic)... Picture Here Wishful Builders... Re: Deadlocks scare me, are there any alternatives? 17Feb 05, 2009 1:16 pm donuts tribasus, when I said 'snib' I really meant the bit that you can turn, the bit that you put the key into. If you leave it unlocked from the inside, you can just turn this knobby bit with your hand and open the door. Thanks, Question: does anyone know if the lock is less difficult to open from the outside when it is NOT dead-locked? Cheers, Steve Wishful Builders... Re: Deadlocks scare me, are there any alternatives? 18Feb 05, 2009 2:13 pm ozkarnak To be honest I'm not a fan of the lockwood style locks. Older people and children have a hard time turning it. We had to change the lockswood lock to another type of deadlock on my grandparents house because they had issues with it. Actually to be truthful I have a hard time turning it and also operating another lock at the same time. How are people supposed to do that carrying anything ?. Also I've broken my arm/hand/wrist a couple of times (I'm a clutz) and those doors are impossible to open onehanded. I appreciate security but don't make me put my coffee down to open the door ?? agreed ozkarnak! I am definitely looking into the trilocks ... though I think it is a good thing that kids can't turn it ... from the inside anyway... sometimes we have no choice but to lock our door from the inside because our 3yo just wanders out to our fence-less front yard at the moment that is more of a hazard to us than a fire! Re: Deadlocks scare me, are there any alternatives? 19Feb 05, 2009 7:35 pm borg SOmething I'd like to mention. A dead lock is by definition a lock that can be locked in a way thay requires a key for it to be opened from the inside. That is roughly what I understood - but after a quick search on the web I was unable to find that definition, dictionary.com offers the following: Dictionary.Com Dead"lock`\, n. 1. A lock which is not self-latching, but requires a key to throw the bolt forward. And Wikipedia the following: Wikipedia A deadlock may be either single cylinder or double cylinder. A single cylinder deadlock will accept a key on one side of the lock, but be operated by a twist knob on the other side. Double cylinder locks will accept a key on both sides and can therefore do away with the twist knob. So it looks like what I want is the single cylinder deadlock... And I noticed that the Gainsborough "TriLock"is configurable to operate in this mode GainsboroughHardware.com.au Trilock models available Double Cylinder - Key from either side will lock or unlock deadbolt Single Cylinder - Key from outside or turn-button from inside will lock or unlock deadbolt. Note: specify left or right-handed when ordering. Dummy Sets - A non-operational handle set for the fixed side of a double door. So... many thanks to ozkarnak Cheers, Steve Wishful Builders... Re: Deadlocks scare me, are there any alternatives? 20Feb 05, 2009 7:45 pm We have those tri-locks in this rental (6mth old Masterton home) - I hate them. Unless there is a trick I don't know about anyone from the inside is able to turn the handle and open the door. Now that is all fine and good when you are older but when you are 20mths or 3.5yrs then it is not a good thing. Some things are worth waiting for. 11 23158 A question. Im in Queensland and building a new home. We managed to reach practical completion 6 weeks ago but we haven't heard any date for handover yet. Who should we… 0 5807 i had the my concreters concrete right up to the fence. I have pits all along my path, so the water tends to drain away from the house and into the pits. There's only one… 7 12773 |