Residential Security - Doors

An exterior door is only as strong as its weakest component. A high quality lock installed in a door attached to a weak frame remains vulnerable to forced entry, and is equivalent to putting a padlock on a paper bag.

For an exterior door to be an effective barrier between the burglar and their target, three aspects of a door assembly must be addressed and secured: the door, the door frame, and the lock.

The Door Frame
The door frame is often referred to as the door jamb, and it is inherently weak. In most cases the frame is weakest component of the door assembly. Usually constructed of soft wood, they offer little or no resistance to splitting. The most important point of any door security system is the place where the deadbolt lock meets the frame.

Some ways to increase door-frame security:

• Adequately anchor the strike plate to the wall structure of the house. A strike plate is a piece of metal, usually brass or steel, that attaches to the door frame and receives the bolt. Standard strike plates are secured with two screws, which offer little or no protection against door-frame failure. All exterior door frames need high-security strike plates. High-security strike plates have four screws constructed of heavy gauge brass or steel.

• The strike plate should be secured with at least 3" screws with a solid-wood filler inserted between the door jamb and wall structure (studs). The solid-wood filler should extend a minimum of 12" above and below the strike plate. Security products exist for metal or aluminum plates to be installed behind the door frame and out of sight. This type of reinforcement method has proven to be very effective while maintaining aesthetics.

• All door hinges should be secured with at least 3" screws. While less likely an occurrence, the possibility exists a burglar could attack the door from its hinge side.