Sad state of affairs at Home Depot

[cledry]

The way his patio door is set up, the stationary panel of his patio door is on the outer track, while the sliding panel is on the inner track. There is a slight overlap between the two panels. A hard rubber "sweep" forms a weather seal.

The Charley bar in question is a cheap Home Depot model. The bar is installed midway up the door and inline with the door's latch mechanism. A pin on the bracket installed on the jamb forms a hinge, while the free end of the bar rests in a bracket installed on the sliding panel. The free end of the Charley Bar lacks any sort of pin or locking mechanism.

I was able to take long piece wire, that I happened to find in the yard (I believe that it was once part of a hanging planter), straighten it out and form a slight hook on the end. By slipping the hooked end of the wire between the two panels, I was able to push aside the rubber sweep and reach the Charley Bar. With the hook, I lifted the free end of the Charley Bar while applying opening preasure on the sliding panel. It took a couple of bumps, but the bar quickly went verticle and I was able to slide the door open with minimal effort. The locking mechanism on the door is a simple thumb latch that I was able to shim with a pocket knife.

He forgot to put the little flat metal piece in the bracket that keeps you from lifting it out like you did.

[Hachronn]

He forgot to put the little flat metal piece in the bracket that keeps you from lifting it out like you did.

I'm familiar with the component you're referring to, but in keeping with the half assed nature of his home security, I don't think that the piece of crap he had installed ever came with one. I'll take a photo the next time I'm at his house.

[ElGatoNegro]

Don't feel bad c-horse. I have cheap defiant deadbolts on my doors. Time for an upgrade. But I guess I haven't been too worried. Kinda hard to pick or bump a lock. When 2 German shepards are try to chew your legs off.

[Hachronn]

Don't feel bad c-horse. I have cheap defiant deadbolts on my doors. Time for an upgrade. But I guess I haven't been too worried. Kinda hard to pick or bump a lock. When 2 German shepards are try to chew your legs off.

...and truth be told, those of us who don't have leg chomping canine's are still more likely to come home to broken glass than we are to a picked lock.

[ElGatoNegro]

Yes, true. Takes less skill to break a window. I wonder if its legal to replace your windows with those security windows that have a wire mesh in the glass.

Be alot nicer looking then bars...

[sentientsentinel]

The more I look at residential locks the more I think hat locked doors are really part of an unspoken social contract and a spoken penal code
everyone knows 99% of residential houses can be destructively bypassed in less then 5 seconds and there are also the windows.I don't think residential locks are meant for stand alone door security.Think about it if the implied social contract broke down it wouldn't matter what lock you had on your house medico,primus etc. or even high end prison locks.The way I see good security is A good reinforced doorway,a good
lock,secure windows,a camera system that streams off site,a man on premises all the time with a gun and a good social contract.

[dll932]

Yes, true. Takes less skill to break a window. I wonder if its legal to replace your windows with those security windows that have a wire mesh in the glass.

Be alot nicer looking then bars...

Wire mesh glass is not to code anymore-if you bash through it you can get cut to ribbons. Burglars don't like to make noise so breaking glass isn't usually their preferred method. but 3M makes a film you apply to windows that makes them harder to break.

[dll932]

The more I look at residential locks the more I think hat locked doors are really part of an unspoken social contract and a spoken penal code
everyone knows 99% of residential houses can be destructively bypassed in less then 5 seconds and there are also the windows.I don't think residential locks are meant for stand alone door security.Think about it if the implied social contract broke down it wouldn't matter what lock you had on your house medico,primus etc. or even high end prison locks.The way I see good security is A good reinforced doorway,a good
lock,secure windows,a camera system that streams off site,a man on premises all the time with a gun and a good social contract.

Au contrere, mon frere. You COULD make your house nearly impenetrable but it would be 1) costly and 2) inconvenient. If you have GOOD locks, an alarm, good sight lines, lights that have sensors...well, you get the idea-most burglars will just go someplace else that looks easier. They tend to go for targets of opportunity. Noisy dogs and nosy neighbors help too.

[dll932]

The way his patio door is set up, the stationary panel of his patio door is on the outer track, while the sliding panel is on the inner track. There is a slight overlap between the two panels. A hard rubber "sweep" forms a weather seal.

The Charley bar in question is a cheap Home Depot model. The bar is installed midway up the door and inline with the door's latch mechanism. A pin on the bracket installed on the jamb forms a hinge, while the free end of the bar rests in a bracket installed on the sliding panel. The free end of the Charley Bar lacks any sort of pin or locking mechanism.

I was able to take long piece wire, that I happened to find in the yard (I believe that it was once part of a hanging planter), straighten it out and form a slight hook on the end. By slipping the hooked end of the wire between the two panels, I was able to push aside the rubber sweep and reach the Charley Bar. With the hook, I lifted the free end of the Charley Bar while applying opening preasure on the sliding panel. It took a couple of bumps, but the bar quickly went verticle and I was able to slide the door open with minimal effort. The locking mechanism on the door is a simple thumb latch that I was able to shim with a pocket knife.

Anyone who has a sliding patio door should replace it with atrium doors (one stationary member, one active-with multi point locking). IMO.

[kmh6k]

menards, home depot, farm and fleet......it's like a master lock cult!!!!! drives me batty.. thank the saints for the internet...

[Tyler J. Thomas]

Locksmith here. Decade experience, multiple certifications and initials behind my name, and a lot of technical articles written for the big three publications attached to my name (even had an article written partially about me in the Ledger).

I bought my locks for my new home at.....Home Depot. They were cheaper than my distributor.

The UNC Charlotte study along with FBI statistics and my own experience in the worst parts of Atlanta taught me that forced entry is the de facto method of entry. 1/8 respondents in the UNC Charlotte study picked or used a key to gain entry; sadly I wish they had differentiated the two. Nevertheless, I like my odds when my chances of becoming a victim of property crime are 1 in 2600+ in my area (couple that with assuming they're making entry to my premises and only a minority will attempt to pick their way in).

Don't get caught up in the hype that a majority, or heck even a sizable minority, of burglars are using what they see on YouTube - the facts just don't substantiate it.

I put the 3M film on for energy saving/security benefits, I installed a few StrikeMaster IIs (actually used Bondo to fill the knock-out that wasn't being used, sanded, primed, painted), and put the single cylinders on doors with no glass around them and doubles for doors with glass panels. To hell with alarm systems (contracts, pricing, appearance); criminals know they have a small window of time and they're going to have to make A LOT of noise to get into my house.

Locksmiths like to joke that locks only keep honest people honest; the truth of the matter is that the objective is to make your neighbor's house more appealing (47% of burglaries are spur of the moment).

Maybe if I lived in an area with worrisome property crime statistics I would elect for higher security but it's simply overkill for me. What I have now is perhaps even overkill but I don't like alarm systems, DIY or professionally installed, so I decided to focus my efforts on the perimeter instead of what if they got inside. Home Depot is fine for locks in certain scenarios. Nothing wrong with a Grade 1 B60/62 used in conjunction with a StrikeMaster II.

[billdeserthills]

Locksmith here. Decade experience, multiple certifications and initials behind my name, and a lot of technical articles written for the big three publications attached to my name (even had an article written partially about me in the Ledger).

I bought my locks for my new home at.....Home Depot. They were cheaper than my distributor.

The UNC Charlotte study along with FBI statistics and my own experience in the worst parts of Atlanta taught me that forced entry is the de facto method of entry. 1/8 respondents in the UNC Charlotte study picked or used a key to gain entry; sadly I wish they had differentiated the two. Nevertheless, I like my odds when my chances of becoming a victim of property crime are 1 in 2600+ in my area (couple that with assuming they're making entry to my premises and only a minority will attempt to pick their way in).

Don't get caught up in the hype that a majority, or heck even a sizable minority, of burglars are using what they see on YouTube - the facts just don't substantiate it.

I put the 3M film on for energy saving/security benefits, I installed a few StrikeMaster IIs (actually used Bondo to fill the knock-out that wasn't being used, sanded, primed, painted), and put the single cylinders on doors with no glass around them and doubles for doors with glass panels. To hell with alarm systems (contracts, pricing, appearance); criminals know they have a small window of time and they're going to have to make A LOT of noise to get into my house.

Locksmiths like to joke that locks only keep honest people honest; the truth of the matter is that the objective is to make your neighbor's house more appealing (47% of burglaries are spur of the moment).

Maybe if I lived in an area with worrisome property crime statistics I would elect for higher security but it's simply overkill for me. What I have now is perhaps even overkill but I don't like alarm systems, DIY or professionally installed, so I decided to focus my efforts on the perimeter instead of what if they got inside. Home Depot is fine for locks in certain scenarios. Nothing wrong with a Grade 1 B60/62 used in conjunction with a StrikeMaster II.

I think you are fooling yourself, in fact I know You should know that the schlage B60 deadbolt featured at Home Depot is Not a grade 1 lock. Don't you think you should
at least make your lock cylinders bump-proof?
I will agree with the rest of your plan for home security

[Tyler J. Thomas]

B60 not Grade 1? I'll bite, tell me more.

[tylerioux]

Schlage states that the B series of deadbolts is in fact Grade 1. They only make the one line, not a second lower grade version.

[Tyler J. Thomas]

Schlage states that the B series of deadbolts is in fact Grade 1. They only make the one line, not a second lower grade version.

He's probably thinking of the discontinued B160/360 series that were sold at Home Depot; they didn't carry any Grade. The B60/62 series were introduced, IIRC, in 2009/2010 and replaced the B160/360 series. If they weren't Grade 1, I don't think ANSI/BHMA would much care for them using the Grade for marketing purposes, or any purpose for that matter, for 5-6 years.