Why Deadbolts are Important for Homeowners
Your home’s locks are the front line of protection for your family and assets. Most homes utilize a basic knob or handle lock on the entrances. Security experts always recommend for exterior doors that a knob lock always be accompanied by an optimally functioning deadbolt. Knob locks themselves provide very little in the way of protection, as they can easily be defeated via lock picking or plain old brute force. Deadbolts offer many benefits that greatly increase your home’s security protection at a reasonable, low cost. Read on as we break down why deadbolts are crucial to protect your home from criminal intrusion and theft.
Most homes already have deadbolts installed, at least on their front doors. But just having a deadbolt isn’t necessarily sufficient. Your home’s protection is only as good as the quality of your locks, as they create the crucial barrier to keep unwanted intruders out. Over time, your lock hardware can wear down or become damaged, including your deadbolt. If your locks are over 10 years old, you may wanted to consider having them replaced or upgraded by a professional locksmith. Innovations in the field have resulted in today’s deadbolts being stronger and more secure than ever before. Locksmiths offer professional-grade hardware and installation services to ensure that your home is well-protected.
Before we discuss why deadbolts are vital for any home, it’s helpful to present the available options. There are several different types of deadbolts available for homeowners to choose from. All of them have their pros and cons to consider. Each one features a solid bolt that fits into the jam that holds the door securely in place when the lock is engaged. Understanding the differences between deadbolt types can help you choose which one is right for your home. A professional locksmith can also council you on your options.
Types of Deadbolts
- Single-Cylinder Deadbolts: Single-cylinder keyed deadbolts are the most commonly found type on residential homes. On the side that faces outward, there is a key cylinder and on the interior side, there’s a thumb-turn mechanism to lock and unlock the door quickly. The only major drawback is that if your front door has glass panels, an intruder could smash the glass and unlock the door using the thumb-turn mechanism.
- Double-Cylinder Deadbolts: Double-cylinder deadbolts feature a lock cylinder on both the outside and the inside, as the name suggests, and therefore can only be operated using a key. There is no manual lock or unlock feature. While they do provide strong security, homeowners are strongly urged to carefully consider installing a double-cylinder deadbolt on their door. This is due to the hazard it presents in an emergency. If you do have a double-cylinder deadbolt on your door, one option to mitigate the danger is to keep the key in a nearby place that only you know about.
- Keypad Deadbolts: Keypad deadbolts are a relatively new type of deadbolt that is gaining popularity due to its innate high security. There are no keys to worry about getting lost or stolen. To operate the deadbolt, you merely type in a pin number on the keypad. This number can be changed at any time, allowing you to offer temporary access to workers and other visitors, or just to have increased peace of mind. While more expensive than traditional deadbolts, many homeowners find the price tag more than worth it. Most keypad deadbolts are single-cylinder.
- Digital Deadbolts: An even newer innovation in deadbolt security, digital deadbolts have either a keypad or smart technology that operates the lock. Standard digital deadbolts use a pin number, much in the same way as physical keypad locks. Smart deadbolts allow you to use an app on your smartphone to control the lock. Fingerprint locks are also available for increased security that use your fingerprint as the “key” to unlock the door. Generally, digital locks operate on batteries. The advantage is that these locks are very difficult to bypass. They are more expensive than keypad locks and standard locks, however.
Why Deadbolts Are Important
Properly working deadbolts in good condition are a vital component of appropriate home security. A deadbolt is far more resistant to lock picking and “bumping” methods used by thieves and vandals to break in to homes. This is especially true of modern, high-security deadbolts on the market. They also make your doors strongly resistant to brute force attacks. Knob locks can be knocked off using a hammer or another heavy implement without much work. This isn’t true of deadbolts because of their integration with the door and door jam. While a persistent criminal could of course just kick the door in or smash a window, most intruders want to operate in secrecy and wouldn’t want to draw attention to their unlawful actions.
Knob locks generally use a pin and tumbler system that uses a spring-loaded mechanism to hold the door in place. This mechanism, while sturdy, can be defeated without much work. An unfortunate reality is that most of the knob locks in place on today’s homes are inadequate and vulnerable to attack. In a deadbolt, there is no spring mechanism, as the deadbolt is held in place with retractable hardware.
Deadbolt installation or upgrades are inexpensive services that can increase your home security. While there are many additional steps you can take, such as installing security cameras or an alarm system, not all homeowners have the money to invest in such options. Even if you are intending on outfitting your home with these more sophisticated security additions, strong deadbolts help create the foundation for your home’s protection.
If you’d like to discuss having your deadbolts replaced or upgraded, or having new deadbolts installed, contact a locksmith professional, such as Queen Creek Locksmith LLC if you reside in the Queen Creek area of Arizona. A professional locksmith company will be able to provide you will a full selection of the latest in high-quality deadbolt hardware at an excellent price, and install it flawlessly and conveniently.