Keeping yourself and your family safe when you’re away from home is top of mind for many of us. Door security is one aspect that we may overlook if we’re not careful. There are a couple of reasons why this is important.
The first reason for door security is intruder prevention. A disgruntled current or former employee at a hotel could have access to a master key and use it to enter the room while you’re sleeping. Short-term rentals are a popular alternative to hotels and motels. What’s to stop a former guest from making a copy of the keys and returning to the property for nefarious purposes?
Another reason is an active shooter. You may find it necessary to hunker down in a room to hide, and you’ll want to secure the door to prevent the shooter from gaining access.
Sure, the odds of any of these things are pretty remote. But the door security measures we’re going to discuss are inexpensive, easy to use, and won’t add much to your pack or suitcase.
Wedge Door Security
Many of us have at least one of these kicking around at home already. They work well for door security in many cases. Just close the door and jam the wedge under it. They’re cheap, and you can buy them at most big box retailers as well as online. They’re also light enough that you can carry a few of them in your pack in case, for some reason, you need to secure multiple doors.
However, they don’t work on all door configurations. The wedge might not be tall enough to work, and the door will just go right over the wedge.
Portable Door Lock
These started cropping up on the market a few years back. There are a few different makers out there producing similar setups. The one shown here on Amazon gets pretty high marks from reviewers.
The way the lock works is pretty simple. A metal piece fits into the strike plate in the door frame. You hold that in place as you close the door. Then, you slip the plastic piece into the exposed metal flange. The door is then effectively locked and will stay that way until you undo the lock.
These cost a bit more than the rubber wedges, but they’re even more effective with door security. However, like the wedges, these aren’t universal. Some users have reported that they don’t work with certain hotel doors. There needs to be enough space between the door and the jamb for the lock to fit.
Belt Improvisation
If you’re dealing with a door with an automatic closer, which you’ll find in many businesses, you can use a belt or purse strap as an improvised lock. At the top of the door, you’ll see the door closing arms. They are in kind of a V shape. What you’ll do is loop your belt tightly around those arms, clamping them together. This provides a pretty decent level of door security on the fly.
The process is something that’s perhaps better explained visually than via text, so check out this video for more details
At the end of the day, while most of us already probably carry around too much stuff as it is, staying safe and secure when we’re away from home is important. Tossing a couple of rubber wedges or a portable door lock into a bag won’t add much weight at all, nor take up much space, but can dramatically increase your ability to keep doors secure.
One word of caution. While these measures will prevent those with bad intentions from entering, they’ll also prevent first responders and others who might be needed in an emergency. For example, if you fall and are injured in your hotel room, it’ll be difficult for EMTs to get inside to help you if you’ve used a wedge or portable door lock to secure the door.
Go into this with both eyes wide open and weigh the risks for your individual situation.
