Modern door security options

BY WANGECI KANYEKI

Experiencing a burglary at your home can be a traumatising and fearful experience. Yet many homeowners overlook the need for a careful scrutiny of their door access and safety. With so many access solutions and products available in the market, it is important to take your time when exploring what will give you value for your money.

From door locks to padlocks, the solutions are mechanical, electro-mechanical or the intelligent digital locks. Their costs should be included when building your home. Some of the factors you need to put into consideration are whether your door is external or internal and the level of security you need.

According to Chhindi Sagoo, the sales manager of Mohinder Lock Systems Ltd, who have been operating in Kenya as certified locksmiths for the last 65 years, factors that influence door security include having a strong door, compatible locks and appropriate hinges. If your door is strong and the lock is weak, then security is compromised.

Mechanical solutions

Established door lock brands in Kenya include Yale, Union, Tesa, Besam & Multilocks under Sweden-based Assa Abloy Limited, with a worldwide reach in over 150 countries offering door locking and opening solutions.

Mohinder Lock Systems distribute brands like Chubbs, MCM, Kale, Kilit, CISA, Viro and Onity Amig.

Mechanical locks use the hand to turn manual levers, which are screwed onto the door. They have various levels such as levels two, three and five, with finishes in brass, aluminium or zinc, with different handle designs based on aesthetics and functionality.

Level two locks are best used for internal flash doors such as those used in bedrooms. They are low-cost and cannot withstand much impact.

They also use easy-to-duplicate skeleton keys where one key can easily open another door and are, therefore, not appropriate for external doors, which require a higher standard of security.

According to Zipporah Wang’ombe, the marketing and communication executive at Assa Abloy Ltd, level three locks are best used for flash and solid internal doors. They offer medium security, as their body is a little stronger than level two locks.

Level three locks can be used on external doors only if there is a good secondary security such as a well-secured gate. Though they are a little stronger than level three locks, they can still be easily picked or the key duplicated.

On the other hand, level five locks are best used on external doors, which are either metallic or made from solid wood. The chance of one key opening another lock is highly minimal.

Cylinder locks

This is a locking mechanism that uses cylindrical pin tumblers or barrels. The cylinders are usually separate but engage with its associated lock or latch and offer convenience and security.

They have a higher combination, which reduces the risk of having repeat keys opening each other. Cylinders offer more variety in handle designs and higher security.

They also have an option of a master keying system where each lock is operated by its own unique key. A control master key operates all the locks in the suite.

This can be useful for serviced apartments where a master key is used by room stewards to open and clean up the rooms. Should you feel your security is compromised at any time such as when a domestic worker loses a key, you do not need to change the entire lock but you can replace just the cylinder or barrel. The nature of the dimple type of key offers enhanced security as it is difficult to duplicate.

Bathroom and bedroom locks

When the key to a bathroom door gets lost, the common practice is to hammer a nail on the doorframe to hold the door in place. A more appropriate solution is to use a thumb turn to lock the door from the inside, which removes the anxiety of losing the bathroom key.

On the outer part of the door, there is an emergency key slot, which can open the door from the outside, in case a person locks themselves in.

While most bedroom doors use flash doors for privacy and may not need high security locks, it is recommended to have a strong security door and lock on the corridor entrance leading to the bedrooms and the master bedroom furnished with a high security lock, says Sagoo.

Electro-mechanical

Manual key handling can be time consuming and tedious, especially where there are many users involved. An enhancement of the mechanical solutions adds an electric circuit to it, making it more versatile and offers higher security with greater convenience.

According to John Mburu, Operations Manager at Multilocks, the doors can be opened using a key, push buttons or cards, the latter being, especially useful if the door is used by many people and is easier to administer.

Should an employee leave employment, there is an option of temporarily blocking out the respective key rather than replacing the entire lock. Electro-mechanical and electronic locks also use cylinder locks and combine mechanical and electrical circuit doors.

An interesting innovation is construction key cylinder, which is used on building sites. This lock enables construction workers to access the building during construction but not have access when the homeowner has moved in. Once the homeowner moves in and operates the door, the key will permanently disable the builder’s key.

Padlocks

The traditional padlock locking system continues to be popular, especially for double-door gates and grilled doors. Multi-lock padlocks use patented keys with endless possibilities, which offer high security application.

Unlike general padlocks, these padlocks have a high security application and cannot be picked or sawn. The shrouded shackel is safer and cannot be sawn. Usually, the thicker the shackel, the higher the security.

Enhanced features on padlocks include concealing the padlock in a hasp or a shackle protector for added protection against would-be padlock cutters.

A more sophisticated option is the padlock watch, which has a tracking feature that uses GSM communication to give an alert via email or phone every time it is opened. For areas with high humidity such as the coastal region with close proximity to the sea, the preferred padlocks are marine grade padlocks, which are non-corrosive.

Padlocks sometimes stiffen with time and require effort when opening. According to Sagoo, the lock to the gate and front door should always be serviced so that the homeowner does not waste time when entering the door.  

External doors

It is important to have high security locks put on the front and back external doors. The locks should not only be durable and aesthetically pleasing but they should also use complex keys that are not easily duplicated or easily picked.

Grill doors, which are commonly used in Kenya, tend to be neglected by being installed with very basic locks. They should instead have strong deadlocks without handles. Padlocks used on grill doors should  be strong and shrouded to offer the additional security. While you can compromise on aesthetics for the back door, care must be taken to use a high security lock as a weak door can be kicked and door flung open by intruders.

Night latching

For security on doors, it is advisable to have a night latch on external main doors for secondary security. Latches are suitable for steel and composite doors and can be opened externally using a key. It is mounted on the surface of the door and can be used in place of the traditional bolt.

However, care should be taken not to have a glass panel door or window, which can be opened by an intruder and the door thumbturned or night latch opened.

Digital locks

In this digital era, door locks have not been left behind. Instead of carrying a bunch of keys, the digitised platform uses card, fingerprint or a code to access the house. Assa Abloy (EA) Ltd Access Control Marketing Executive, Anthony Irungu, says: “This mechanism enables one to register up to 20 employees using the finger print or pass code. To back up the service, there is a mechanical key system to override the digital set up.”

Digital locks, he says, mainly use regular batteries like AA and should the battery be too low, an emergency nine volt, which authorised users are advised to carry at all times, can be used to jumpstart and activate the battery.

 Door viewers

Modern door viewers come with more than just a peeping hole to see your visitor. They now come combined with a doorbell and recording device.

The memory card slot helps a house owner to preview the people who visit the door. Automatic gate opening solutions enable the user to remotely open the gate from a distance of a 50 metres from the comfort of their vehicle.

There is an enhanced feature that provides intercom systems with the doorbell at the gate. This enables the homeowner to speak to the guest or to view them on the intercom and approve their access.

Knob sets and cabinet locks

These come in various finishes such as brass, steel, chrome and wrought iron, to match the décor and drawer handles. When looking for cabinet locks, ensure they are compatible with the local market’s after-sale service in case of repairs and part replacements.

Check for functionality, not aesthetics only as you could buy a fantastic looking lock from overseas, which is solely dependent on keys.

Should one of the keys get lost, then that door lock would have to be broken to gain access. It is advisable that cabinet keys should not open each other.

Safes

Use an easy access laptop-size digital safe to lock up valuable mobile nitty gritty such as laptops, jewellery and cameras.

If budget allows, a fire resistant safe would be more appropriate for valuables such as title deeds and passports — things you don’t use on a daily basis.

All these mechanisms aim at helping you to be proactive about protecting your loved ones and your belongings rather than waiting until you are robbed to upgrade your door locks.