Door locks

[Le_Jars]

Hi all, you know those doors where the locks include two pins that

engage in the top and bottom half of the frame (I think they are quite

common)? Well, can one buy a complete new lock including these pins etc

for a door rather than a whole new door? Or can one get the insides

changed does anyone know?

[Jon 1]

Yes there are 2 different kits.

1. Goes on the surface of the door, and would be easier to install, but is more expensive.

2. The door has to be channeled, so trickier to install but less expensive.

Generally I find locks to be more expensive in France than in the UK.

[Le_Jars]

Thanks Jon, I've got two doors that have the locks already in them and

I may need to replace them. Do you know where I can get

replacements?  Thanks in advance.

[Baz]

Any Bricolage will stock an assortment of locks, so you should not have any difficulty replacing them.

Baz

[gers32]

you can mail acompany in bedfordshire england who will post them very cheaply they are called window ware  www.windowware.co.uk  they are called trade name espanglock

[Mikew]

Don't forget, you can get a new lock barrel assembly with keys without having to change any other part of the door closure system.

[Gyn_Paul]

[quote user="Mikew"]Don't forget, you can get a new lock barrel assembly with keys without having to change any other part of the door closure system.[/quote]

But take the old one out (it is held in place with a long machine screw accessible from the edge of the door) and measure the 2 sides of the lock: they come in combinations of lengths to suit the thickness of the door (30mm x 30mm up to 40mm x 70mm from memory).

If you are fitting a new lock to a solid front or back door (ie one without a breakable glass panel) might I suggest you fit a lock with a turn buckle on the inside, rather than one that takes a key on both sides?  At night, in the pitch dark, in a fire (for example) you wouldn't want to be faffing around looking for the keys to your locked means of escape.

Sorry if that sounds over-dramatic, but I was trained as a Television Floor Manager, and once you get the safety bug in your head, it's very hard to shift it. I seldom go into an unfamiliar room without looking around to check 2 means of escape. It's all a matter of asking yourself,  "what would happen if...?"

You only discover just how stupid the general public are when you find yourself responsible for their safety!

paul

[Le_Jars]

Thanks for all your help!

[Kitty]

My Lloyds of London house insurance cover insisted on British locks on our French house as a security measure (all three external doors).  All well and good - but:

(a) when I wanted to get extra keys cut, I couldn't get them in France.  I had to wait until I got back again to the UK and plead with the locksmith to get the keys right first time. 

(b) they started to go wrong because of oxidisation.

I've now changed back to French locks.

[Gyn_Paul]

[quote user="Cathy"]

My Lloyds of London house insurance cover insisted on British locks on our French house as a security measure (all three external doors).  All well and good - but:

(a) when I wanted to get extra keys cut, I couldn't get them in France.  I had to wait until I got back again to the UK and plead with the locksmith to get the keys right first time. 

(b) they started to go wrong because of oxidisation.

I've now changed back to French locks.

[/quote]

Sounds like a really good reason to change to a French insurance company !