Home Improvement Asked by Duke Leto on February 22, 2021
We hire people to care for my mom 24/7 in her home and we want one of the bedrooms to be off-limits to them. We lock the door from inside and then use a little screwdriver to unlock it. It was simple, just feel a groove and turn counter-clockwise.
However, the last time my sister visited she had a hard time opening it and damaged the mechanism, and I had a very hard time opening it the last time I went. I thought I wouldn’t be able to open it and have to spend the night on the sofa and then call someone in the morning to open it, but after trying for a few minutes I was eventually was able to open it.
So now since I could not reliably unlock it I left the door unlocked. I am more and more uneasy about it and am considering asking someone to lock it.
How would I unlock it next time I go? Would a locksmith be able to do that, and how much would that cost?
Thank you!
You should just replace the lock with a keyed lock for the time being.
Since all that's required to open a passage lock is "a little screwdriver" it does not offer much "security" at all. (Damage may have come from using a tool that "worked" but was not the intended tool - i.e. the lock may intend a hex key but a flat-blade screwdriver of the right size might have fit "close enough" - may also have come from the fact that the outside mechanisms are intended for rare occasional use, not daily use.)
You might also want to add some video surveillance inside the room, it being 2020, if you suspect that people who should not are entering it.
If (common case with older relatives and help) the concern is that you are storing valuables in there, it's highly advisable to just move them to a safe deposit box before there's a problem.
Correct answer by Ecnerwal on February 22, 2021
Have you considered getting a combination lock (Amazon have a variety of them - https://www.amazon.com/Combination-Door-Locks/s?k=Combination+Door+Locks ) - While not impossible to subvert these provide significantly greater security then privacy locks, and the convenience of not needing a key.
Answered by davidgo on February 22, 2021
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