This part of our "Before and After" series, showcasing the installations done by our locksmiths.

Problem: Basement wooden doors of a multi-unit building were being forced open. The old locks, nightlatches, gave very little protection against prying or kicking attacks. As a temporary solution, the customer had added hasps and padlocks to the doors. However, Life Safety Fire Codes prohibit the use of hasps and padlocks on any doors in multi-unit buildings.

Our customer wanted a strong but economical solution to increase security on these doors. The new locks needed to work with their existing front door key. Finally, the locks needed to automatically latch when the door closed.

Solution: After evaluating alternate solutions, we decided to use a slightly modified deadbolt lock. Instead of using the bolt, we used a latch made by General Lock Co. This would be installed in the same location on the door as the old lock, latch automatically when the door is closed, and fit the customer's existing front door keys. We also installed a security strike to strengthen the frame and a door wrap to strengthen the door. Finally we added a latch protector, called the Door Guardian that joins the door and frame together upon closing.