Front door - mortice

donaldfleming

After an attempted break-in I’ve been advised to review the security of my property.

My flat is in a block, which is situated in a high crime area. Last week burglars attempted to insert a ‘jemmy’ between the door and the frame in an effort to force the door open. Fortunately they were unsuccessful.

I’ve been advised that the space between the edge of the door and the frame as seen from inside is excessive in terms of security.

Furthermore, only approximately one-third of the five-lever lock is held within the mortice when the door is locked. Consequently, two-thirds of the lock is visible.

Does this represent an unnecessary security risk?

Should a greater proportion of the lock be contained in the mortice? At present, only a fraction of an inch is contained in the mortice when the door is locked.

Should I have my door adjusted?

tomfun

Any door should have a gap of 2-3mm around it when closed, any more and you will get draughts and it will be a much easier task for your local robber to pry the door open.

You should have as much of the lock engaged in the keep as possible,it may be possible to adjust the door by packing out the hinge side but if the gap is to big all you can really do is buy another door (if the original one is that bad a fit)

eco-friendly_2

Remove the architrave/door facing and drive wedges (pieces of timber) between the brickwork and door frame, to close the gap.