Is there any way to "blank out" a lock?

dirtychinchilla

dirtychinchilla

dirtychinchilla

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Woking
I'm doing a couple of things to make my wife feel a little more secure at home. With the weather as it is recently, we often have the fan on and then you can't hear any disturbances downstairs.

For the front door, I'm putting on a couple of bolts, which should make it harder to break open if someone does get through the lock. At the back, I can't do that because of the design of the french windows.

For some reason, the back has a lock on both the inside and outside. The reality is that I will never use that door to enter the house. So I'm wondering if I can take away the cylinder on the outside so that it's not possible to pick that lock.

It looks like this:

KhzFkvi.jpg



I have found this device which is sort of like the old school steering wheel lock, but for french windows. That might be a better solution, but maybe not.

Just one thought I had - on the front door we have a thumb turn thing to lock it from inside. That would equally be fine on the back, but I don't know if I can get one with a blank on the other side still...
 
Even with modern methods, locks can be problematic to pick and take time.
There are various other methods of opening locks, but the more common approach is to bypass the lock entirely and go for some other method of entry.

For now, though, you can get single-sided cylinders and just blank off the outer side of the lock. It might be worth checking with your door manufacturer, to see if they do a conversion kit.
 
ttaskmaster said:
Even with modern methods, locks can be problematic to pick and take time.
There are various other methods of opening locks, but the more common approach is to bypass the lock entirely and go for some other method of entry.

For now, though, you can get single-sided cylinders and just blank off the outer side of the lock. It might be worth checking with your door manufacturer, to see if they do a conversion kit.
Click to expand...

So you're saying it might be useless as a deterrent? I know someone could smash the windows, but at least we'd hear that.

I'm wondering if I get one of these and put a blank on the outside. Having back door keys is quite annoying anyway.
 
ttaskmaster said:
Even with modern methods, locks can be problematic to pick and take time.
There are various other methods of opening locks, but the more common approach is to bypass the lock entirely and go for some other method of entry.

For now, though, you can get single-sided cylinders and just blank off the outer side of the lock. It might be worth checking with your door manufacturer, to see if they do a conversion kit.
Click to expand...

I'd say this too, in broad daylight is someone going to spend time picking at a lock, versus a brick through the window. Tbh I'm not even sure most neighbours would react to a smashed window during the day - most will assume someone's doing some DIY, or road/traffic noise.

I guess I'm quite conscious of security at home during the day too, as WFH I can have my headset on for a number of hours - in meetings or listening to music while working. So naturally you'd be oblivious to someone trying to get into the back garden for example. I usually make sure windows on the ground floor at the front of the house are always closed. Then I always keep the back gate locked and the back door locked.

It does help that I've got a dog, so he'd go mental if he saw someone in the garden.
 
just get a basic home system like simplisafe etc with sensors on doors/windows and you'll be set! isn't even that expensive really.
 
Isn't that already a euro spec anti-snap lock? Probably better the potential burglar seeing that than a blank.
 
dirtychinchilla said:
So you're saying it might be useless as a deterrent?
Click to expand...
If there's an easier way in, then yes.
That's what they'll be looking for - You could have a front door that looks like Fort Knox, with armed guards and everything... but they'll be looking for things like the small window you left open, or whether they can just pop the hinge pins and lift the entire doorframe out, or whether there's a lock they can simply shim open.

dLockers said:
Isn't that already a euro spec anti-snap lock? Probably better the potential burglar seeing that than a blank.
Click to expand...
Anti-snap just means you can't snap it with a pair of mole grips or something. The burglar will see that and look for a better way in.
 
ttaskmaster said:
Anti-snap just means you can't snap it with a pair of mole grips or something. The burglar will see that and look for a better way in.
Click to expand...
That's my point. The lock has already deterred them from trying the lock, so swapping the lock for a non-lock will achieve nothing more than the current lock.

Lock.
 
Would it stop the entire lock working if you just wodged a little metal epoxy in the hole?

Also is Woking that bad? You seem quite concerned.
 
BUDFORCE said:
Would it stop the entire lock working if you just wodged a little metal epoxy in the hole?

Also is Woking that bad? You seem quite concerned.
Click to expand...
It’s not bad at all I think his wife must be overthinking it. Not many sit there trying to pick locks. Put a door sensor on front and back door and you’ll be golden. Easy and obvious.
 
With regards to the annoyance of having different front and back door keys, you could always just change them for keyed alike locks. I've done that for years because it's just more convenient.
 
Have you considered outdoor cameras pointing at possible entry points, such as the front and back doors, patio doors, large downstairs windows that can be smashed? It's all very well hearing the patio windows being smashed, but they'll have probably legged it with some valuables by the time you've got downstairs. At least a CCTV stands a chance of catching them in the act and provides evidence for the police.
 
dirtychinchilla said:
I'm doing a couple of things to make my wife feel a little more secure at home. With the weather as it is recently, we often have the fan on and then you can't hear any disturbances downstairs.

For the front door, I'm putting on a couple of bolts, which should make it harder to break open if someone does get through the lock. At the back, I can't do that because of the design of the french windows.

For some reason, the back has a lock on both the inside and outside. The reality is that I will never use that door to enter the house. So I'm wondering if I can take away the cylinder on the outside so that it's not possible to pick that lock.

It looks like this:

KhzFkvi.jpg



I have found this device which is sort of like the old school steering wheel lock, but for french windows. That might be a better solution, but maybe not.

Just one thought I had - on the front door we have a thumb turn thing to lock it from inside. That would equally be fine on the back, but I don't know if I can get one with a blank on the other side still...
Click to expand...
Solder over the opening.
 
You could just put something like a ultion cylnder in there, one of the hardest ones to get in, and a set of high security door handles, and even sash jammers top and bottom of the door
 
A burglar will almost never try and pick or force or a lock unless there is no easy way in. French doors are an easy way in and a glass breaker would see them out in a second and very few people will actually react/report broken glass. If it makes you/your wife feel safer then it cant be a bad thing I guess!
 
Just a thought, but I was thinking about the glass and wondering if you could put a clear laminate on top of it, to make the window harder to get through. I'm sure that car windows have a clear laminate on top of them, but this is mostly to stop the glass injuring people if it smashes.
 
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