Doorricade Security Bar - Secure the Entire Width of Your Inward Opening Front or Safe Room Door - Fits Doors up to 32" Wide

My reason for buying this product is that I wanted to upgrade the house's security against burglars and provide a saferoom for myself and guests incase of a home invasion.The pieces were well packaged and protected from shipping.Removing the door may not be necessary for you installation, but it makes installation much easier. Keep in mind I did this installation myself and rested the door on the bar to get the correct height when reattaching the hinges. You may need a second person to hold the door steady while reattaching it.Before making any holes or cuts, take the hinges and line them up on the door frame. Make sure the hinges won't interfere with the door's ability to open/close, the door latches/locks, or any other hardware. If you don't have enough of a gap between the door and frame to fasten the hinges on top of the frame, you'll need to mortise the hinges.Contrary to the video on the product page, it's highly recommended to mortise the hinges into the frame (Sink the hinge until it's flush) as is what is usually done with door hinges; The hinges are less likely to sag, twist, and fall out over time. The only tools you need to carve out the depression you need is a pencil, wood chisel (about 1" wide), and a mallet/hammer. This process WILL not be reversible if you make a mistake; trace the area to chisel with a pencil while holding the hinge over the area. If you don't want the bare wood look in the mortise area, you can use some spackle to fill-in and level the surface and paint it; I intend to do that later.Make sure the hinges are the same height; In my installation, the door frame was level on both sides. The instructions are very clear on what is needed, and the 1/8" drill bit is recommended as a 3" deep pilot hole; it makes inserting the 3" screws easier and less likely to split the wood.The 3 adhesives and cushioning pad are firm and good quality 3M. Be advised that if the door is unlocked, it can be pushed just enough for someone to look through the gap.Keep in mind the other hinges on my door had 1" screws installed by the home developer; I replaced them with 3" so the door itself can stay on the frame with the bar if it's attacked.The bar itself is a solid piece of aluminum alloy with rubber on the ends to protect your hands and the door finish when setting it up. Steel and harder metals are not really needed here as a solid bar is unlikely to break into pieces. You can unfold the hinges, set the bar in the slot, and position the anti-lift tabs quickly. If you want, you can leave the hinges unfolded and ready for the bar to speed up the process; the hinges don't really come out into the door threshold enough to catch on clothing.Yes, this is pricey for a door reinforcement. If you're concerned about securing a door in this fashion, you likely are considering layering other security devices, such as an improved lock, peephole, etc.

The hinges should have more flexibility with respect to installation of the typical door. The way it will install on the vast majority of doors is that there will be a gap between the bar and door that they want you to fill with included foam. In a real world scenario this would still allow the door to be kicked in up to the point where it hits the bar and the bar would stop the door. This would still allow your door jamb to be damaged in an attempted entry. So while the task of keeping the door from opening would be accomplished, it would be better if the hinges could be adjusted to allow the bar to be mounted flush with the door to prevent damage altogether.

A great security device for a residential door

I needed this to secure my side door to the garage. Install was a breeze and it works really well. I tried to bust through the door and it didn't budge.

Our homeowner's insurance agent requested this purchase for a door that opened to an unsecured area. The product was easy to install and meets the requirements perfectly. It makes it difficult to open an inward swinging door without intentionally removing the bar. You can still use the door, but this device secures it well, and would be sufficient to deter young children from opening it. Obviously, it would also work well for it's advertised use of making a door difficult to breach from the outside. But we had a different need, and it met the parameters well.