I just started renting a one room space in manhattan to house my video
production business. I have a lot of expensive equipment. The only lock
provided is a cheap doorknob lock.
I want to add a nice grade 1 deadbolt to the door. I researced a little and
I thought I had it right when I started looking around for the Schlage B660,
but a locksmith told me that Mul- T -Lock made much better deadbolts, and
Medeco did as well.
Now I am lost again Please help me decide what is the right lock to choose.
I should be after a deadbolt, correct?
The room is made out of drywall. The door and frame are made of steel and
they are set in drywall too. I don't know how thick the drywall is but my
landlord told me it was extra-dense fire deterrent dry wall or something
like that.
Thanks,
videoken
"videoken" <qqqqqqqchekken_u snipped-for-privacy@yahoo.comqqqqqqq
house my video
The only lock
researced a little and
the Schlage B660,
deadbolts, and
right lock to choose.
made of steel and
drywall is but my
wall or something
its a matter of preference but given your description of the
door & frame set-up.
I would just go with the Schlage.
unless you're worried about key control..
my2¢
Thanks Key, so the Schlage has about the same quality of protection with the
exception of key control? (I am not really that concerned with key control,
in fact, I don't feel like shelling out $20 every time I need a key made.)
Is the Schlage the best economical value at that level of lock?
videoken
"videoken" wrote in message:
Well, first off, does your door swing into the space or out of your space
???
If it is an out-swing door install some kind of latch protector before doing
anything else...
Medeco is good, as it is pick highly pick resistant, but it will add expense
to everything from the initial installation (it costs more), to duplicating
keys and re-keying it in the future if that becomes a thing that needs to be
done...
A dead-bolt will begin to help you with your security concerns... But you
will still need to take further 'target hardening' precautions to ensure the
maximum possible level of security...
Typical fire code drywall is 5/8" thick reinforced with imbedded fiberglass
strands... So you have a wall with two sides of sheet rock hung on standard
aluminum sheet metal studs... This is the norm for commercial occupancies,
but I am not sure if NYC has more intensive requirements these days...
Adding a deadbolt to your door is a step in the right direction... But if
you have *A LOT* of valuable equipment that is only the first step of your
security battle plan... You NEED an ALARM SYSTEM... A professionally
installed hardwired one... You said that you have a one-room open space ???
Make sure that you have your central control box for the alarm system
installed as far away from the door as possible... And in the event that it
can still be seen from the doorway make sure to have some kind of instant
tamper circuit installed which will trip the alarm in the event the box is
tampered with while the system is armed... Depending on what you keep in
your space you may or may not want a motion sensor of some kind... These
have mixed results in commercial spaces as often in retail environments
there are often signs hanging that can move when HVAC equipment cycles on
and off creating a condition of false alarm... Take that into consideration
when your alarm system is designed... Don't cheap out on this as an alarm
will alert the authorities to someone attempting to steal your equipment...
It may also help ease your insurance expenses a little bit as well...
With walls made out of sheet rock anything you put on the door in way of
locks can be easily bypassed by someone with a utility knife or a drywall
keyhole saw... If the "boogie-men" know what is inside your space and what
it is worth the only way to keep it safe is with an alarm...
I hope that this helps you with your problem...
Evan the Maintenance Man
First off the door is an in-swinging door.
I understand that I the lock is only the first step. (Also the most
obvious.)
That is for sure. Since someone can cut around the door and kick it in (I
guess.) I figured a good deadbolt would be a better alternative than a
police lock. I am defintiely going to get an alarm system. I am researching
that as we correspond.
Thanks Evan,
Your advice is great.
Does anyone have a recommendation for a deadbolt lock?
Videoken
Ottawa Canada
I personally favor MEDICO locks as their rrestricted keyway lets
you keep tabs on who has a key as only YOU can order duplicate keys.
If the wall between your room and the hallway is made of drywall
and the walls between you and other tenents are also made of
drywall, your room is not very secure from someone gaining access
through one of the walls so while you can put a good deadbolt on
the door, a robber especially in the evening or on a weekend can
just bash through the drywall and help themselves to everything in
your room.
You may want to look for a more secure room to house your video
equipment prefereably with brick or cement walls between the room,
hallway and neighbors.
You could install an alarm system in the room with fine wire in the
walls which will indicate someone is bashing a hole in the wall,
but frankly your room sounds as secure as a cardboard box.
I hate to be the bearer of bad news, but even high density firre
resistent drywall is pretty easy to get through if someone really
works at it.
Good luck finding an affordable, secure room for your business in
New York, NY.
Brian
"videoken" (qqqqqqqchekken_u snipped-for-privacy@yahoo.comqqqqqqq) writes:
"videoken" <qqqqqqqchekken_u snipped-for-privacy@yahoo.comqqqqqqq
<qqqqqqqchekken_u snipped-for-privacy@yahoo.comqqqqqqq
to
equipment.
for
better
are
the
the
protection with the
with key control,
need a key made.)
lock?
NOT saying that the
"Schlage has about the same quality of protection".
just that Schlage knob-locks and dead-bolts are descent
locks compared to many of the cheapies that you find and a
good lock for your door & frame set-up.
Evan had some good advice for you too.
g'day
If you want to go with a high security lock like the Medeco that's fine but
make sure you make the rest of the security chain just as good. I would not use
the Schlage since it does not offer drill resistance. Drill resistance is a
must for anything above minimal security in a lock. It's just too quick and
easy for someone to drill a non resistant lock. A premises like you describe is
really not secure at all without a monitored alarm so that would be where I
would start if I were you. As far as the drywall don't hope for much security
from it no matter how thick it might be. If your equipment is really valuable
consider locking it in a good safe or other very sturdy container inside the
room. That + a good lock + the alarm should give you enough protection.
if your walls are drywall a simple box cutter will open your space in
seconds.
I got a new Medeco lever set for 40 bucks on ebay. I got it cause I
felt like buying not because of any illusion of security.
thick it might be.
I think somewhere along the line someone got the impression that I was
offering the drywall as a description of a security measure. I do uderstand
that anybody can get through the drywall with easily available tools. The
whole point of me getting a good deadbolt lock is so that they don't come in
through the door. I want to hopefully force them to break the walls if they
want in that bad.
I understand that the room is not really secure even if I get a good
deadbolt. But the room is what it is. I am getting a security system. And
theft insurance. I probably won't be putting security alarm wire in the
walls. But I want to make sure (As much as I can.) That the thieves don't
come in through the front door. I was going to get the police lock, but I
figured that would be overkill considering how insecure the walls are. (As
many have pointed out.)
My man 'key' had it when he responded earlier:
So what I want is the best (Right) lock for my door and frame setup.
Can someone please give me an example of a 'good lock'? I am looking to make
a purchase soon.. When I started researching it got confusing fast. The only
thing I could really figure is that I wanted a grade 1 lock.
A good alternative please?
videoken
">
Yes I will offer some specific makes / models
My personal favorite is a Schalge 500 series Deadbolt AKA SUPERBOLT
(B560,B562 (double)) although they are currently out of producton they can
still be found on some shelves and if you ask on here SOMEBODY will have one
.
The keyway is covered by a harded streel plate and provides reasonable
drill resistance. Add that to a restricted key and you will be ready to go.
try lori 80 or 90, Assa V10, Primus, or many other Restricted keyways, a UL
listed cylinder migth be considered over kill because of the drill resistant
cylinder cover.
The only negative I can think of is it requires a 2 1/8 in hole (Same size
as a kwickset) and somepeople dont like a hole that big in their door.
There are some other features that this model has that are not found in
other dbs, 4 screws holding the lock to the door vs 2 ,2 screws + a
retaining ring holding the cylinder to the face instead of 1, hardened
steel face vs brass,
This model has been replaced by the 600, 700 ,800 series DB and in my
opinion they are not even close to the beefyness ( is that a word?) of the
500.
There is a model made by Multilock mentioned in another post that is also a
very strong lock..
Medeco makes a good product , and you will pay for the name,
Miwa (USA) makes a very strong DB with a magnetic key that would prove very
difficult to pick / good drill resitance and kind of a puzzle to take apart/
put together.
Do a web search for a Miwa dealer near you.
There's no need to. Use a motion detecter. Make sure the system is a monitored
one. Everybody has heard a burglar alarm going off with nobody paying any
attention to the siren.
For a high security lock installation I would be a good idea to go with a
UL-437 compliant lock. By doing so you take out alot of the work in selecting a
model since standard compliance saves you from having to research each and
every attribute. The Medeco is the only one of the three you mentioned that is
compliant. There are other standards but most of them are more stringent. The
most important thing you are getting by adherence to that standard is drill and
pick resistance as well as resistance to forcable attack. It sounds like you
are the only one who will have keys so key control is probably not the most
important thing here. I'm assuming that your deal for the space allows you
control of the keys since you are installing your own locks.
Most if not all of the Medeco dead bolts would be fine. If you want the Schlage
then go with the Primus available in the B800 series and if memory serves also
in the B700 series, but double check that to make sure. Don't forget the extra
protection of locking your items up in another container within the room.
Medeco and Mul-t-lock are really the "kings" of the city now, and the
majority of our service calls are spent installing their product. If you want
something cheaper Arrow is pretty common in the city as well and make some
excellent products. Personally, I like the Mul-t-lock d/b over the medeco
because of the way, when properly installed, the ball bearings on the bolt
interlock with the high security strike so the bolt can not be pried apart from
the strike. Also, the going price for Mul-t-lock keys in the city is anywhere
from $6.50 to $8.50 per key, dont' pay more. One more tip, if you are getting
a mul-t-lock, insist on having the locksmith install one with an 006 keyway,
this way you can get keys cut anywhere they do mul-t-lock. Any smith that
won't install one with a regular keyway I would run away from, they are too
desperate for business that they need to install one with "their" keyway so you
have to go back to them to get copies (probably at $20 a copy instead of $7).
good luck
-snip-
One more tip, if you are
There are benefits that come from a restricted keyway. The customer just needs
to decide if they need the key control or not.
Mzone, thanks for your help. I am probably going to go with mul-t-lock. I
might have to ask an area locksmith for a recommendation. Any last words of
advice before I choose?
videoken
Oh, I forgot. The landlord said he will have the deadbolt installed for me.
I was thinking about getting the lock at metropolitan hardware or one of the
bigger places. (I figure I will probably get a little better
price/selection.)
Thanks,
videoken
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