Suddenly you find yourself in front of a slammed door to the next room and realize that you can’t open it? And it doesn’t matter what caused this - a draft, the tricks of a beloved pet, or your own negligence. The first thought in my head is how to open an interior door without a key.
Agree, even if you have never been in such a situation, no one is immune from this, and knowledge of how to quickly open an interior door will never be superfluous. In our material we will look at effective ways to open interior doors in a variety of cases.
There can be many situations with a slammed door, and the locking mechanisms are also different. Therefore, the solutions are significantly different from each other. We hope that the knowledge gained will be useful and you will not have to knock down doors or call the Ministry of Emergency Situations - everything can be done quickly and easily with your own hands.
Reasons for the situation
To open a slammed door into a room, you must first establish the cause of the unpleasant situation. As a rule, it is not possible to open the door leaf in the standard way (handle, key, button) in the following cases:
- the locking mechanism has failed;
- the locking latch is jammed or dislodged;
- the interior door accidentally slammed shut;
- the key broke off and part of it remained in the keyhole;
- there is a key inserted on the other side of the door that prevents the lock from being opened;
- The button mechanism is broken.
It is not difficult to open the lock of an interior door. For internal door structures, in contrast to entrance doors, simple and cheap models of locking mechanisms, which are fragile, are usually used. Therefore, you can open the sash in different ways.
Preventive measures
To avoid such situations, a number of preventive measures need to be taken:
- The locking mechanisms on the doors should be well looked after (carry out routine repairs, check their functionality and lubricate them on time).
- Jamming devices should be replaced immediately.
- Have a spare set of keys for all doors. Provide them with tags.
- Do not install complex locking mechanisms on doors unless necessary. Sometimes you can give preference to simple bolts, latches and latches (especially if there are small children in the family).
- It is recommended to purchase locks that are equipped with devices for emergency door opening.
Timely preventive measures can eliminate unnecessary problems with interior doors.
How to open an interior door without a key
Many apartment residents encounter a slammed door to their room. Therefore, it is useful to know how to open an interior door without a key. There are different ways to do this. They are selected based on the type of locking device. Doors with a round handle, a latch lock, or other locking mechanisms will open differently.
How to open an interior door lock without a key with a round handle
Interior doors with a round handle are often installed in apartments. It happens that they jam. Or the lock accidentally closes at the most inopportune moment. As a result, it becomes impossible to open the sash. The question arises, how to open the handle of an interior door without resorting to the services of a master. There are different options to open the lock.
Here's how to open an interior door:
- using a master key;
- remove the door from its hinges;
- disassemble the locking device;
- use physical force.
Before you open a door without a key into a room with a round handle with a knife or use physical force, you should try other methods. After all, with a sharp object you can accidentally damage the door covering or deform the locking structure, and by applying force, you can break the lock and door leaf. To open the sash, you will have to remove the handle and disassemble or adjust the locking mechanism.
How to open an interior door lock: with a latch
The latch lock has design features. If you leave the latch in the wrong position, it may automatically engage when the door is closed suddenly. Then you won't be able to open the door. Therefore, it is useful to know how to open the latch of an interior door from the outside. To do this, you need to unscrew the bolts and remove the handle and face plate. This will give access to the latch structure. Press the latch mechanism with a thin nail or pencil. By holding the system in this position, you can open the blade.
Other lock mechanisms
Sometimes lever and cylinder locks are installed on interior doors. They are more difficult to open without a key. It happens that you cannot do without the help of a professional. There are several ways to open the sash that you can try. They will help you open the locking device with minimal damage. You need to give the door a good tug. In simple lock models, the bolts bounce off on their own. But this method is not always effective.
It is important to understand, if the door to a room is closed, how to open the lock cylinder. If the locking device is not new, designed, then you can try to open it with a similar key. You can use a sharp object as a master key. They use it to move the latch or bolts. If this does not help, then the only way out is to disassemble the lock. To access the mechanism, you need to unscrew the visible screws, remove the lining and the handle.
Latch
The simplest mechanism, consisting of only two elements - the body and the tongue. Serves to prevent the door from spontaneously swinging open. It has a budget price. In addition to its affordable price, the device attracts:
- long service life;
- ease of recovery;
- reliability of the design;
- no need for a key;
- very rare breakdowns.
In this case, different types of latches can be used - latches, roller, magnetic, sliding or with a lock. The first type of locking mechanism is equipped with a tongue that is beveled on one or both sides. In the second case, the tongue is presented in the form of a rotating roller.
Magnetic ones hold the door using the system of the same name. And for sliding ones, the latch acts as a bolt. To open or close it, you need to pull the lever or rotate it around its axis. Locking mechanisms with a latch are similar to locks. The latch blocks the rotating or pressing mechanism.
Important ! If latches of this type are handled incorrectly, the latch may fail and the tongue may jam.
Tools and available items used to open an interior door
If you don’t have a screwdriver or other tools to open the door, you can use those items that you always have at home. Among the suitable means at hand are the following:
- knife;
- hairpin;
- clip.
When deciding what and how to open a lock on an interior door without a key using improvised means, it is necessary to take into account the type of door leaf, the installed lock, and the reason for the impossibility of opening the door.
With a knife
A simple way to open an interior door is with a knife. The tool must be inserted into the gap between the canvas and the box and the tongue must be moved. In this position, push the sash. It should be easy to open the door. This method works better on the side where the constipation is beveled. Otherwise, you may not be able to pick up the tongue. But it's still worth a try. It's better to take a dull knife. A sharp tool can scratch the lock elements and parts of the door block. Then you will have to replace or restore damaged parts. You can also use a thin ruler instead of a knife. It must be durable, made of metal.
Hairpin
To open a slammed door, you can use two hairpins. The hairpins need to be straightened. The end of the bobby pin is inserted 1-1.5 cm into the keyhole and gives it the appearance of a master key, forming a tongue. This will allow you to raise the pins. To make it more convenient to open the lock with a hairpin, it is better to bend its other end into a loop. This will make it easier to press. The second pin is bent at a right angle. It will move the locking pins. A bobby pin bent at an angle of 90 degrees should be inserted into the lower part of the larva. You need to push it in as deep as possible. The shutter is turned slightly in the opening direction. The lock mechanism is held in this position until the end of the procedure. In this case, you cannot apply very much force. The hairpin, which acts as a master key, must be inserted into the hole and the pin cylinders should be felt. They are located at the top. Use your tongue to find the pin that is the tightest and push it up until it clicks. This way you need to lift all the pins. After this, the lock will be open and you will be able to freely enter the room. The advantage of using pins is that they do not damage the parts of the locking mechanism.
Paperclip
You can also open the lock of a closed door using paper clips. You will need two of them. The paper clips are straightened. Then perform all the same actions as in the case of hairpins.
Opening methods
How exactly the procedure will be performed depends on many important factors - the type of lock, the nature of the problem that has arisen, the location of the person at the time the door is blocked and the amount of time available.
If there is an emergency or there is a child on the other side of the door, no one will think about how to get inside. The choice will be made in favor of the fastest technology. In this case, it does not matter how destructive it will be for the product itself.
More complex options and methods for opening without a key
If the door to a room is slammed from the inside or outside and you can’t open it using improvised means, then you should use other, more complex methods. For example, you can remove the sash from its hinges or dismantle the entire door block. If this is not possible, then the last option left to open the accidentally closed door is to use brute force.
Remove from hinges
Removing the door from its hinges is a good option for how to open a door without a key when other methods are unavailable or do not help. If there is a gap of several centimeters between the top of the door and the frame, then you can try simply removing the door leaf from the hinges. You can also unscrew the hinges with a screwdriver. Some models of such products are equipped with special parts that can be easily unscrewed. As a result, the gap increases. But it is not always possible to do such work. It happens that a couple of millimeters of clearance are missing. The reason may also lie in hidden mechanisms, which are located not only on the hinges, but also on the frame.
When removing the fabric from its hinges, you should ask a family member to help. Together, the work will be done more conveniently, easier and faster.
Using brute force
You should only knock down the door as a last resort, when you urgently need to enter the room. After all, it will be expensive. The destroyed door leaf, side frame of the door and broken lock will have to be replaced. To do this, you will need to contact a specialist. You can only remove a flimsy door yourself. The canvas is knocked out of the opening with blows.
Dismantling
This option is suitable for those cases when it is impossible to open the lock without a key in other ways. But not always and not everyone succeeds in implementing it. After all, various types of awnings are used to secure the door leaf and you need to understand their design. The most commonly used canopies are butterfly canopies. They are fixed to the frame and jamb with self-tapping screws. All fasteners are unscrewed and the canvas is slightly moved. After this, the sash is removed from the doorway.
You can try to partially disassemble the canopy. Some types of products allow this to be done. The parsing algorithm depends on the type of canopy. Therefore, you need to read the information that is attached to the device in the passport.
Complex systems
Products based on electronic technologies are the most advanced.
At the same time, smartlocks are complex in design and expensive devices. Such locking mechanisms consist of two parts: mechanical and digital. Depending on the type of installation, there are 2 types of electronic locks - mortise and external. The action algorithm is as follows :
- Encode the opening and closing of the door by entering a certain numerical combination into the device memory.
- Dial the code numbers on the front smart panel, then unlock and then lock the entrance.
- Configure the use of a special key to provide increased security.
Such systems are installed only in places where it is necessary to maintain a high level of secrecy. The feasibility of installing such a device in a private house or apartment is practically zero.
Attention ! The most expensive designs involve the use of a special magnetic card. It is almost impossible to falsify it.
Mechanical force
When other methods do not have the desired effect, or there is not enough time to open the interior door with their help, and the situation allows, brute force is used in relation to the door structure.
Loops located on the outside, accessible for direct interaction, allow you to quickly cut them using a grinder saw, jigsaw or other tool for working with metal.
Access to the gap between the blade and the box provides sufficient space for access by a grinder, hacksaw or other sharp tool. Cutting off the tongue of the locking mechanism quickly solves the opening problem, but then the bolt will have to be changed.
You can try to knock out lightweight door products with your foot, directing the blow towards the lock, or from the shoulder, then the force of impact will go above the lock, which will complicate the task somewhat. This option is considered only in the most emergency situations, when there is no other way to fix the problem as soon as possible.
Most often, after physical impact on door locks, repair or complete replacement of the locks is required, so you should be more attentive to the condition of the door and promptly detect the onset of a lock malfunction.
Physical method of opening the door
The tongue has become unusable
There are also cases where the door is locked with a key, and when you try to open it again, the lock does not turn. This can often happen with any handle that does not have an additional latch. Even when turning the key smoothly, the lock does not open. If this happens, then the problem is in the tongue itself.
How to open an interior door without a key in this case?
- Carefully place a bank card, ruler, stationery knife or any other object that will fit into this opening into the gap between the door and the frame. The door handle will serve as a guide.
- After this, the object being used needs to be slightly tilted and pressed. It is necessary to tilt it so that the far part of the object touches the inclined surface of the tongue.
- You need to apply pressure so that whatever means you are using can help the tongue go back into the lock. When such an action is performed, the handle itself must be tilted down, and the sash must be tensioned as the door opens.
If you know all these simple rules, then you will no longer have questions like: “How to open an interior door without a key?”
Latch
A very popular device on doors leading to a bedroom, toilet or bathroom is a latch. Modern models are equipped with rotating miniature handles, which are located on the side of the room. On the reverse side, part of the lock is represented by a plug. Sometimes a key lock is installed instead if we are talking about a living room.
Since sometimes you need to open an interior door lock without a key, you have to look for alternative ways to turn the latch tongue. The easiest way is to use a thin flat object, it can be a screwdriver, a plastic card, a file or a knife; sometimes you can open the lock with your fingernail. This is possible if there is a plug with a slot or recess on the back side. For smooth button plugs, you can use pliers. You just need to turn it and the lock will open.
Sometimes it is possible to move the tongue away using the same devices, but you need to get into the gap between the leaf and the door frame. If the tension is not strong, moving the latch will not be difficult.
A slammed door latch can be opened with a thin object by moving the tab
Another option is a latch. It is installed on top of the door. How to open such a mechanism? You can try to move it through the gap between the door and the trap. If this does not work, then the easiest way is to use force. Typically, self-tapping screws easily fly out of the canvas, although they can damage its surface.
Through the lock cylinder
There are several options for penetration using the lock cylinder. Depends on the degree of intervention in the mechanism and the ability to protect property from significant damage:
- Gentle . Here it is enough to use a paper clip, hairpin or wire.
- Moderate weight . Now is the time to use a master key or similar device.
- Destructive . Here they use a screwdriver, drill, hammer and remove the larva completely, opening access to the locked room.
Caution is the first thing that is necessary when choosing one method or another. After some damage, it will no longer be possible to repair the door.
