Choosing The Best Deadbolt For Your Exterior Doors
One way to improve your home security is to make sure that you have the best lock possible on your front and back doors. A home burglar looks for the easiest way into your home and will try the doors first. If they are thwarted by locks that are difficult to break or cut through, the thief may move on to another house. Here are the different deadbolts available to you and why each one may be the best for your doors.
General Deadbolt Construction
When looking at locks, ask the locksmith to show you their ANSI Grade 1 quality deadbolts. These are solid steel locks that resist being broken by a blow from a hammer. The hardened steel bolt also resists being sawed through. Less expensive cast deadbolts can be shattered with a sledge hammer or pry bar. Get the best quality lock that you can afford to slow down a burglar.
Standard Deadbolt
This is the typical deadbolt you see in homes. It is often the one used in new home construction. It uses a cylinder which passes through the door and a steel bolt that extends out through the edge of the door into the door frame. A key on the outside and a knob on the inside are used to move the bolt back and forth.
To be effective, the bolt must slip into the door frame at least one inch. Less than that, a thief could pry a door away from the frame to push the bolt past the frame and open the door. If you purchase an inexpensive lock, the thief could pry the door from the frame enough to get a hacksaw blade on the bolt and try to cut through it.
Externally Mounted Deadbolt
If you live in an older home where the house has settled and there is enough of a gap between the door and frame for a thief to get to the bolt, this lock is a good choice. It is called a jimmy-proof lock and was designed to prevent a thief from having easy access to the steel bolt. This lock also uses a cylinder that passes through the door requiring a key on the outside and a knob on the inside to move the bolt. But the lock itself is mounted on the surface of the door on the inside of the house. The bolt moves into a steel component mounted on the wall next to the door instead of into the door frame.
This design places the bolt further away from the front of the door, making it difficult to pry the door away from the frame enough to access the bolt with a saw or cutting tool. The bolt on this lock also tends to be larger than the standard deadbolt, slowing down a thief even more.
Vertical Deadbolt
A variation of the externally mounted deadbolt is the vertical deadbolt. This gives you even more protection, as the bolt moves up into a series of steel hoops or rings which completely enclose the bolt. No amount if prying will allow the burglar to gain access to the bolt with this lock. This removes any concern you'd have about a thief sawing through the bolt to get into your home.
For more information, contact VIP Locksmith Tampa or a similar company.