Do you know what your doors are made of? Chances are, your home has at least one door made from uPVC composite material. Most construction companies use uPVC doors when building residential and commercial buildings thanks to their durability of uPVC Door Locks, price, and insulation. The temperature-resistant nature of uPVC doors can even help lower electric bills.
Unfortunately, uPVC doors aren’t as strong as other types of doors, and the standard locks that come with these doors tend to lack adequate security features. To protect yourself from burglars, it’s important to install high-quality locks on uPVC doors. This will deter criminals from attempting a break-in, bringing you more confidence in your property’s security.
Today, we’ll go over some of the best locks for uPVC doors. This guide offers advice from a master emergency locksmith at Lock & Key to help you find the best locks for your home or business. We’ll discuss the importance of installing high-security locks that are compatible with uPVC doors, as well as some model recommendations.
An Overview of uPVC Doors
For thousands of years, doors have traditionally been made from various types of wood. Wooden doors are typically quite strong, but they are extremely heavy and lack resistance to weather and warping over time. In today’s world, uPVC doors or uPVC Door Locks have replaced wood as the norm, now found in nearly every type of residential and commercial building. The reasoning is simple: uPVC is cheap, the material is durable, and doors made from uPVC can be manufactured easily.
UPVC stands for unplasticized polyvinyl chloride, referencing the lightweight and durable plastic material used in uPVC doors. PVC is the core, much like a PVC pipe that you can find at a hardware store. Door frames are constructed from this, and chemical stabilisers are added to help resist UV and heat damage. The final product is a functional, durable, and insulated door that’s perfect for any home or business.
This type of door is popular for a reason, as it can be made in hundreds of customisable styles and installed quickly. However, uPVC doors lack the strength and resistance of composite and metal doors, making them slightly more vulnerable to attacks. For this reason, it’s a great idea to reinforce these doors with sophisticated anti-burglar locks.
Best uPVC Door Locks
We’ll now go over some lock styles that work well on uPVC doors, as well as specific models for each type:
Multipoint Door Locks
Another great option to secure a uPVC door is to install a multipoint door lock. These locks provide additional security due to the multiple locking points being used. Where normal locks have a single latch, multipoint door locks have at least three deadbolts, with one on either side of the centre latch. All of the locks can be engaged or disengaged by simply turning the key in one location. The result is an extremely strong mechanism that can be added to virtually any standard door. The 73228780 Rockell Multipoint lock is a locksmith-approved, European-grade multipoint locking system that can greatly enhance the security of any uPVC door or uPVC Door Locks.
Anti-Snap Locks
Most uPVC doors come with a standard euro-cylinder lock. These locks are simple and convenient, but criminals can easily bypass them with burglary techniques. Common cylinder locks are often the targets of lock snapping, a lock-breaking method that can be performed in seconds without sophisticated tools. Because of this, anti-snap locks have become quite popular in recent years.
Anti-snap locks come in many styles and designs, but the core distinction is that they are resistant to lock snapping and lock bumping. Common cylinder locks can be snapped at the midpoint, automatically unlocking the mechanism. Anti-snap locks feature a snap channel, causing snapped locks to break at a point that renders the lock inoperable, preventing criminals from gaining access. These locks also have specialised pins that can make it extremely difficult to open using lockpicks or uPVC Door Locks.
Some locks claim to have anti-snap technology but are just as vulnerable as any other cylinder lock. For this reason, it’s important to seek out locks certified by official standards agencies, such as the British Standard Institute (BSI). You can identify BSI-approved locks by their signature kitemark seal, often found on the lock’s exterior. Some anti-snap locks are advertised as “insurance-approved”, meaning they pass a rigorous set of criteria laid out by insurance companies. A great example of a BSI and insurance-approved door lock is the TS 007 BSI Yale Cylinder lock. These locks make fantastic alternative options to unprotected cylinder locks.
Digital Door Locks
The market for digital door locks has exploded in recent years, with hundreds of new models becoming available for consumer purchase. Commonly, digital door locks feature a display or keypad for you to enter a PIN code. Digital locks offer many benefits, such as keyless entry and customisable entry options. Locksmiths recommend using digital locks with keyless entry methods because they are extremely difficult to bypass by traditional criminal means, making them significantly more secure.
Some homeowners and companies choose biometric locks for their doors. These sophisticated devices use biometric data to operate the lock. This often involves a retina scan or fingerprint authentication, and these locks are quite hard to fool. Biometric locks are also known to offer quick and easy entry, avoiding the need for users to enter lengthy PIN codes.
Bluetooth door locks can connect to your phone through the use of a native app. This allows you to lock or unlock your door remotely and allow others access to your home without making a physical key.
If you opt to purchase a Bluetooth smart lock, make sure to get a model with a mechanical key override. This can serve as a backup in case there’s a problem with the keyless entry mechanism.
Installation
Choosing the right lock for your uPVC door can be a challenge, and replacing a lock on your own carries some risk. Depending on the type of lock and your DIY abilities, you might be able to complete an installation yourself, but it’s best to leave these things to the pros.
If a lock is installed improperly, it can be prone to damage over time and limit the door’s ability to withstand brute force techniques. Depending on your insurance policy, an improperly-fitted door lock can invalidate your protection plan. For this reason, it’s crucial to take lock installations seriously.
We recommend partnering with a local locksmith company, such as Lock & Key, to help you with any lock-related inquiry or installation. They can send a professional to you to assist with lock fitments, and they’ll be able to find locks that perfectly fit your needs.
Conclusion
There is no shortage of high-quality door locks that can be used for your uPVC door. It’s important to remember that your uPVC door isn’t enough to fully secure your home or business from burglars and vandals. Because of this, additional reinforcements are needed.
Finding the right lock for the job can be a challenge, but knowing the different types of door locks will make it easier for you to determine a preferred method of entry. Anti-snap door locks are a great place to start, offering a high level of protection in a compact design that might perfectly replace your current euro-cylinder. Multipoint locks are reliable due to their multiple deadbolts, offering the highest level of security possible. Digital locks are a great choice because they virtually remove the possibility of a burglar breaking in using traditional lock-snapping techniques.
Additionally, you should always remember to change your door locks when moving into a new location to prevent spare key owners from entering your home without consent.
For any questions or concerns regarding door locks, we recommend reaching out to a professional locksmith to help perform an installation that makes sense for your property and doors. With luck, you’ll have uPVC doors that are durable, cost-efficient, and secure!
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