How to Upgrade Front Door Locks?

Whether you want to secure your home, your property, or your building, we advise turning to professionals for help as installing, maintaining, and upgrading door locks aren`t easy tasks, especially if you have no prior experience on the subject. Unfortunately, even with top-grade security, burglaries do happen. Now, we`re not saying that it will happen to you. It’s just that it is always better to be safe than sorry. Your best bet is upgrading your front door locks, and don`t worry; even if you aren`t familiar with the subject, there are ways to inform yourself about the best options on the matter. So, if you want to read about how to upgrade your front door locks, check out the following text below.

Strike Plate

One of the best, if not the best, way to upgrade your front door locks is to install a security strike plate. What is a strike plate? When we say a strike plate, we`re referring to a metal component located in your door frame, which houses the door lock. While closing the door, this strike plate connects to the plate. When there is a force in or the door is kicked, this strike plate is the most common failure point. The main problem here is that a lot of force is being transferred through a relatively small area.

So the most efficient and the quickest way to upgrade almost any door is to purchase a strike plate. Talking about availability, you should know that you can find these strike plates at any hardware store. They are also much tougher than standard pieces ensuring better security for your door.

Longer Hinge Screws

Another great way to upgrade your front door locks is to install longer hinge screws. They will resist force way better than regular ones as they penetrate much deeper into the door frame. In most cases, removing the hinges from a door frame is a complex and difficult job because hanging a door in the best possible manner takes skill. On the other hand, removing the screws and replacing them with longer hinge screws is easy and very quick. All you need to do is remove one screw at a time while replacing it with a longer one. We recommend working your way down the door from top to the very bottom without having to re-hang or remove the entire door.

A Peephole

Although this might sound funny, installing a peephole is one of the best ways of upgrading your front door lock, although they will give people in your home a very clear view of all the people approaching before they even decide to open the door. The best thing about installing a peephole requires a hand drill with the right diameter drill bit.

The only problem is that almost all peepholes are at least a half-inch in diameter, meaning that drill bits of this size are too broad to fit into very small hand drills. So, you`ll probably need a drill bit adaptor. Once a locksmith drills a hole, he places peepholes in two sections and then screws them together from absolute each side of the door.

A Letter Box Cage

A critical point of weakness on most doors is the letter box. For instance, if your door has the aforementioned letterbox, criminals can can `fish` out keys like car keys left near the door. Most people have that small tables near the door where they keep the keys. Valuables and keys are easily lifted through that letter box by using, for instance, a straightened wire coat hanger. So, fitting a letterbox cage that is available in any hardware store is a very smart move.

A Mortise Lock

Deadbolt locks or a mortise are the absolute gold standard in front door security. The very best door locks have a deadbolt lock. It contains discs that cannot be bumped open or picked. Also, manufacturers of these locks hold patents on the key design. It allows them full control over who makes key blanks alongside who can get those keys cut, ensuring maximum security.

Make A Choice

Although all of these options can boost the security of your front door locks, we must mention that not all are perfect for every door. So it is essential to contact an experienced individual to help on the matter, especially if you have no prior experience on the subject.

However, choosing the right Dallas locksmith service isn`t an easy task meaning that you should watch out for shady and pricey companies looking for a way to get as much money out of you as possible.

Explore all available options before making the final decision and use online reviews as a parameter. Don`t make the mistake of going for the most expensive locksmith. Instead, opt for a mid-ranged company for the best price-quality ratio.

One of the best ways to evaluate the company`s work ethic is to contact its workers. Ask them almost any question that comes to your mind.

We`re not saying that there is anything wrong with DIY methods. But if you have no prior experience on the subject, we advise you to think about hiring pros. Now, many might argue that it is far cheaper to perform the upgrades by yourself. But if you break the door mechanism, it will cost you a lot to replace the whole door. Furthermore, a full-service locksmith can quickly help you with a residential lockout, which is one of the benefits of having good relations with mobile locksmiths.

In any case, we hope you enjoyed our article and found some useful information on the topic.