Door/locking/stuck/UPVC

castle96

Front door is stuck/broken. The 'claws' are 'out' and the handle does not operate them back in. Therefore cannot open the door to research/repair/replace. Cannot get to the hinges. Have had handle/plate off, but nothing operates the locking (not the lock) mechanism. Door seems to have standard Yale setup. Handle just flops up/down. Any ideas please??  TIA

FreeBear

Sounds like the gearbox inside the door has broken (I had one do the same thing...). Probably best to call a uPVC window/door doctor to take a look. They should be experienced in getting the door to open and remove the broken gearbox.

Bendy_House

Photo of handle and lock, Castle?

Does the key insert ok? Does the lock turn?

castle96

Key inserts and lock turns. Have bought 2 x "universal" yale inserts (complete insert/fitting 2 x £80 from B&Q, neither 'look like' they would fit looking through the small gap between closed door and jam, but as I can't get the door open, I won't know! Maybe they adjust?? I can see the end result being  a blo*dy chainsaw

donutandbeer

We recently encountered the exact same problem. We just called someone (not a locksmith, more of a handyman that does doors a lot) and they opened the door (took a while), took down the lock, and managed to find a lock that would fit and fitted it for us (on a different day). It was very cheap. 

castle96

The lock works fine (in/out) it seems to be the handle mchanism that operates the 'claws'. Without that working, the door is permanently closed!

Bendy_House

Can you unscrew and remove the inside handle? If so, you can see if the spindle can be persuaded to rotate a teeny bit more, perhaps enough.
If you ease the tension on the door while you do this, it might help. Ie, see if pushing the door further shut (against the door seals) allows the door latches to move more freely without scraping against the lock slots, then turn the spindle first to fully ENGAGE the latches, press the door firmly shut, and try quickly snapping the spindle around to the open position - have a spanner or something on it to allow this quick action.

When you turn the spindle, does it 'feel' and 'sound' as tho' the latches are actually moving?

Another thing to try - is your door a multiway latching type, with the central sticky-out bolt, and a near-the-top-and-bottom pivoting 'claws'? If so, can you slip a thin knife blade in there and push the claws up/down as required?

castle96

will give that a try 2moro. thanks