The Framers Forum

Do you have a front/back door that looks something like this on the inside? ....


We do and we always used to just close it behind us - we'd need the key to re-open it and if indoors, the handle, so it's locked, right? Wrong!

Recently the door and/or the frame must have warped in the hot weather or something because once shut it could be pushed /pulled open, most times. The catch wasn't going in to the hole - or whatever the proper terms are for those - so we had to turn the key whether we were at home or not, and when we were at home we'd use a spare key and leave it in the lock. It's what we do all the time now.

A few weeks ago I closed the door behind me and tried to turn the key but I'd left the spare key on the inside Locked out! Ended up calling a locksmith, took him seconds and cost me £89 +VAT, but I watched and learned!

Today I did the exact same thing so I went to the shed, got a 12" folding saw, folded it to 90 degrees, poked it through the letterbox and knocked the door handle down.

Our car has better security than our house FHS!

Hi John

That's scary!

Talking of flame in a previous post, some years ago I heard of a spate of burglaries using a blow touch on these types of doors, quiet but a smelly job as they exposed the inner lock mechanism by means of the flame.

glad it wasn't me the first time you were locked out






Nice to see you John

Folding saw?

Yes, folds in to its handle like a big penknife.

About 15 years ago where PVC windows used to be beaded from the outside, burglars were able to take the beading off, remove the glass and get in and out. Put back the glass and beading. There were cases where insurance companies wouldn't pay out as there were no visible signs of entry.

Nowadays all the beading is put on on the inside.

I had a new UPVC door last year and It's OK but the supplied lock was a bit iffy so I thought I would replace it. On genning up on locks I found out a lot of useful stuff. Apparently some locks fitted to this type of door are dead easy to defeat by burglars. They have a bit protruding that is just enough to get a pair of pliers round. Others can have the works broken with the right implement. I got a good replacement with all these issues solved (hopefully). The doors themselves are pretty hard to get into if they stay locked - witness TV 'cop clips' where they are trying to bash one in. One thing..... you can't easily put a security chain on. You would think they would come as standard.

Do you not have 2 doors to your house John?
I would have expected at least 2 in your mansion.

We only need the one, it's a bungalow

yea the other door is servant's enterance

Yeah but no but are you only allowed one door per storey? If you had an upstairs door the postman couldn't reach the letterbox.

February last year we were burgled via a PVC door.
The burglar, a crack addict, tried a single backward kick & the hinges popped.

Turned out they were held onto the door via 2 little brass screws drilled into the plastic.
Although the door had 5 re-enforced locks down the left side ... it had 4 little brass screws on the right.

Luckily we're renting so door costs had nothing to do with me.

My next door neighbour had her pvc back door removed by burglars who used a spade to lever near the hinges - which I guess is akin to the single kick method mentioned above.

Also some time ago we had someone who snapped the actual lock mechanism by bending the lower part of the door handle plate and apparently just simply "wiggling" the lock (according to the police). Luckily for us they didn't get in as we had door jammers on the door as well as the lock.

When getting new doors fitted it might be worth considering locks that stop the burglars in their tracks. Just found this website with more information - http://cusworth.net/2011/07/upvc-door-l ... s-at-risk/

When we had to get the front door lock replaced due to the attempted break in we also changed the one on the conservatory as well. These new door handles and locks also tend to come with extra strong plates that can't be bent.

Already found mole wrench teeth marks on the new door plate on the conservatory But no sign of any bending or other damage at all