Residential door locks ... what do you recommend?

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I am in the need for exterior residential door locks. My requirements are:
  • Quality deadbolt (class 2 minimum)
  • Keyed lever door handles
  • reasonable price points for features

What do you recommend? Currently, I am looking at the Schlage Maximum Defense Packs - Antique Bronze finish, Flair levers, single cylinder deadbolt, combination at ~$65 a door (purchased seperately at Home Depot).

http://www.schlagelock.com/main/prodcat/prodcat.htm

Thanks in advance!
 
I was going to recommend Schlage Max Security, but looks like you are already headed in the right direction. I installed them on all my doors, and their finish still looks flawless, and they are smoothe as silk. I like the feature that you can open the door from the inside with it still locked. This is a good safety feature so you can slam a door in someone's face if needed, and not have to worry about trying to lock it. But, this can also lead to you locking yourself out of your house if you aren't careful. I have done this several times. My fix for this problem is a two step solution. My garage door has a numeric keypad to open from outside. Then, I have mounted a security lock to the frame of the door that leads inside my house. This is a heavy guage lock box with a user-defined combination. I have a spare key inside. The only way I can be locked out is if I have no power, and the garage won't open. I'll probably hide another key somewhere outside in the back yard where nobody would ever think to look, just incase I ever do get locked out due to a power outage. Anyway, went off on a tangent there, but it's hard to beat a Schlage.

HTH,

Mike
 
A good quality deadbolt is important, but there is another factor to look at to ensure security.

Back in July, some A-hole kicked my front door in in the middle of the night...about 3:45 or so. Deadbolt and knob were both locked. The force of the kick ripped the bolt right through the framing around the door. The trim molding exploded. A piece of the door frame flew across the room with such force that it punched a hole in the drywall on the other side of the room. The good news is that all he wanted to do was scare us...which he was very effective at doing. No one was hurt and nothing was stolen. My wife and I didn't sleep too well for quite a while after that, and we still have a rough night now and then (last night was one).

The total to have the door replaced was just over $1200. Included in that was a very reasonable price of $60 to have a steel reinforcing plate mounted in the door frame. The plate is 1/8" thick, about 3" wide and runs the entire height of the door. There are 8 3" screws that run through the door frame, through the plate, and into the wall stud. The plate is drilled and the bolt engages through the plate when locked. The strike plate around the deadbolt also has 2 3" screws that run through the plate. Basically, if someone wants to give it another try to kick our door in, they'll have to bend the door in half...which of course can be done, but by the time they put enough kicks in to accomplish that, I'll be waiting on the other side with the other purchase that I made following the first invasion...my HK USP.

It was a terrible night, but we learned a lot from the experience. We made plans, discussed scenarios, practiced, equipped, practiced some more. My wife finally realized that the police AREN'T going to be there to protect us if something happens. (It's not their fault, they are limited to a reaction)

I guess what I'm trying to say is this...the lock is important, but make sure that the bolt is engaging through something worthwhile. Wood splinters way too easily, there has to be some reinforcement...and even that is no guarantee, so make sure that you've taken the appropriate measures, planned, practiced, etc.

Thanks for reading...

Mark
 
Part of my job is breaching doors. Use the longest screws you can. They are what fails. A dead bolt one foot from the top and another from the bottom is nice. Want something real easy. When the door is closed measure the distance from the door to the first hard surface, usually a step or a wall. Cut a 2X4 and put it there at night. When we move into a house next year I want to mount my exterior door so it swings out. Very hard to breach.
 
is now an engineer, but in high school, his hobby was locks, lock mechanics, picking locks ect. For a while, his hobby was breaking and entering for the sake of defeating locks. He went to some dumb high school called the Bronx high school of Science which sort of cultivated his interest in "mechanics" in any case, his choice for a lock is the DOM lock which is German made. The concept was copied by Medeco, but he says that DOM construction and materials is far superior. In his opinion, it's easier to attempt to defeat the door material, than to try to defeat the lock.

Edited to add...

BTW, thieves, rapists, and other bad guys don't enter through the front door anymore. They will attempt other entryways such as windows, basement and upper floor windows included, balconies, ect. They may also lie in wait for moments when you've opened your doors to enter or leave. One method a "home invader" will use is to get you to somehow open your door, usually a delivery or distress ruse. As soon as you open your door a crack, they will attempt to kick or push their way in. A door chain or similar device is easily defeated with as little as a small push. The key to safety is eternal vigilance. The type of lock, although important, is secondary.
 
While it's much harder to kick in an outward swinging door, you are leaving the hinges exposed. Even if you weld the hinge pins to prevent easy removal, a pait of bolt cutters will make short work of the exposed hinges themselves.

I managed hifi stores for many years and have seen first hand what crooks will do to get in (I hated those 4:00 AM calls from the alarm company).

Mutt: the delivery/distress ruse is exactly why I never answer an unexpected knock at night without Mr. Glock behind my back. I live in a really safe suburban city, but you never know what surprises are on the other side of that door.

jmx
 
Per the discussion above, yes, a high-quality lock is of little value on a poor quality door/frame installation.

For anti-lock picking, you need to look at either an 11-pin cylinder, or move up to a more secure, laser cut key (Schlage Primus). Schlage (contract side) handles these devices.

For force-entry resistance, start with a steel door frame (we use 12 guage). This makes any and all locking devices MUCH more effective.

Most solid wood doors are pretty effective at entry resistance, although law enforcement spends additonal $$ on for steel plate and/or kevlar insertion.

Bottom line - most of the stuff you can buy at Home Depot is more of a placebo for you than it is an effective defense against an intelligent criminal.

I have lived in apartments in San Francisco for 13 years that have the crummiest, hollow-wood door, cheap **** locks you could imagine. They have worked fine because no one tried to enter them illegally.
 
Home invaders will also wait on the side of the garage. When you pull up and use a garage opener they will wait til your in and then make entry before you close the door. When the door is closed you are basically secluded with the attacker inside the garage with you! Always be aware of that!!!;)
 
Thats why youve got to get the garadge doors with the tripping beam feature. Not just to prevent intruders but for personal saftie for younger ones, and your vehicles.

The other people have basically concluded this subject.:cool:
 
hey my dad makes houses for a living, and because im so nice:D
i went and asked him, he said that WEISER brand and "Quick Set" brand locks are the best, theyre harder to pick, andkick in
 
Originally posted by MelancholyMutt
is now an engineer, but in high school,...snip...
Click to expand...

Hey MM - what year did you graduate Bx Sci? If it was class of 80, your probably thinking of the same guy I am!!!
 
My friend is named after a philosopher but we graduated in 89. You know him, but it's probably not the same guy if the guy you're thinking about graduated in 80.
I went Bx Science for my first year and then transferred to another really crappy school called Stuyvesant High School because I hated the commute.
 
Hey guys..

I know this isn't what you are looking for,,but....

We have a Weiser electronic lock on our front door..
It's a combination lock..I find it very handy to have..

they also make a remote control lock..

Not high security,,but handy....

ttyle

Eric...
 
Originally posted by MelancholyMutt
My friend is named after a philosopher but we graduated in 89. You know him, but it's probably not the same guy if the guy you're thinking about graduated in 80.
I went Bx Science for my first year and then transferred to another really crappy school called Stuyvesant High School because I hated the commute.
Click to expand...

Yep - Not the same guy - I'm KNOW who you are thinking of (this is an edit - I couldn't remember until I ran into him tonight). Yeah, that other horrid school. Back when (in 77-80) it was actually harder to get into BxSci than Stuyvesant - it's been the other way for a while now (since the new building was built).

Gad, in 1989, I was already married, had finished paying off my first new car, and my student loans. I'm feeling OLD this week, as I turned 40 yesterday :eek:
 
I get paid to force doors also:) .Its almost always the jamb that fails,so think of lock,door and jamb as one unit.Now one can go though the door or though the lock.Most locks can be sheared off with a "k" tool and a hand sledge and the lock turned with a key tool in about 10 seconds also.Does the kid down the street have these tools not likely but...

When we have to gain entry for some thing like a check the welfare or water flowing out the house(commen winter call,frozen pipe)we don't want to cause to much damage so we force a window.Most open EASY with a small bar.Those screws on calm shell locks are WAY SHORT and pop out easy.

Garage doors with openers are also a piece of cake.Those strings with the little plastic handle so you can pull the release are the ticket to easy entry.Cordless drill makes a fast hole through the thin garage door,then a wire with a hook bent into the end to hook that string and pull.Another 10 second entry.

Another game I like to play is find the "hidden" key.The key to this is that people are mostly lazy so its not to far away from the door,not to high and not to low.Leave it at a trusted neighbors who's often home or out in your shed,under your pool deck etc.,you'll be much better off than all the people who hang it on a nail in the garage.
 
Well Guy's This is A Very Interesting Thread !! As a Professional Locksmith I Find Some of these "Trick's true And Some Funny !! Here are the Cold Hard Fact's !! #1 Buy the Best Lock you Can Afford I Recomend Schlage Brand Sold to Locksmith's not "Home Center's " The Deadbolt's are Good But not Cheap like the "Cheap One's" The Door Knob's that I Sell to Customer's are Comercial Grade Schlage Again about twice the Quality of The "Cheap one's " I Have Personally Seen these Lock's Last 20 year's !! Next Secure BOTH side's of the Door Frame I Usually Recomend 1/8 thick Aluminum Strip that is 1 1/2 Wide !! Remove the Door Completely and " Mortise the Aluminum in as well as the Hinge Area / Latch Area Secure all of it with 2 -3 inch Drywall Screw's Then Re install the door !! Use Only a Solid Core Door or a Steel Door with a Steel Edge Not a Wood One From the "Home Store " Good Luck Kicking this In !! THe Other's That Post About Weiser / Kwickset Lock's Please Trust Me and DON"T buy these as i Open Most of these in about 30 second's Flat !! The Schlage will be Able to Be "Picked but only with some real Time / Practice !! Sorry to Soap Box !!
and Yes I Am also a "Knife Maker
 
As a firefighter I have broken into my share of buildings, and here are some things to think about. A good question to ask yourself is how much security do you really need? Is burglary or home invasion common in your neighborhood or not? If home invasion is common, why do you live there? How long do you want to delay firefighters or EMS from getting in if you can't get to the door, and how much damage do you want done if you lock yourself out? Also, I would never have a deadbolt that is key locked from the inside in case I had to work it in the dark/smoke.

Just my two cents.
 
As a locksmith myself, I will second what Pinoy Knife said. Schlage locks are very good quality and is what I suggested to my parents who are in the process of building a house.

As for picking them, Pinoy is correct in saying they are more difficult to pick than a weslock, kwik-set and so on. Schlage locks are made to much tighter tolerances than the wal-mart specials. The weslock types are usually pretty sloppy when new, and they do not hold up well over time.

Im sure Pinoy will know what I mean when I say that having picked old worn out cheap locks, sometimes you almost surprise yourself by opening them simply by sticking the pick in and raking it once.

Also, if you worry about a lock being picked, one thing to look for is how it is keyed. A lock that is keyed with all the pins very close in size is a bad thing. You can look at the key, if all the cuts are shallow and appear to be almost the same, then they are much less secure against picking if the person has the slightest idea what they are doing. If the key is cut "shallow-deep-deep-shallow-deep" or some combo like that, then the "casual" picker will have a harder time of it. Not something to many people think to look for, but it is worth mentioning.

Also, if you have big bucks you can go for high security locks such as ASSA or something similar. They will have the tightest of tolerances, usually sidebars, restricted keyways which can only be made by certain lock shops if you have proper ID (assuming they follow policy). These locks are nearly impossible to pic, resist drilling and most other attempts at forced entry.

Oh well, just adding my thoughts. Good luck.
 
A very interesting thread. Thanks especially to the locksmiths who replied. It's good to know that Schlage is a good brand since I bought two of their B660 deadbolts for installation (after my cheapo one was compromised).

I'm curious... what do you locksmiths think of Medeco? And ASSA Abloy?
 
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