Checking out your flat pre delivery? Mind the door knob!

Image: modknobs.com

I was overlooking the hand over of a new apartment complex and one rainy day, a customer showed up with his spouse to take a look at his flat. We walked up, generally talking about the weather and the fact that families were slowly settling into their new homes. A few issues on maintenance were discussed.

We entered the gentleman's flat and I waited in the hallway as the couple walked around, inspecting if everything was up to their satisfaction. The lady entered the master bedroom and shut the door hard. Darn! The lock went bust. No matter how hard we tried, the door would not open. The knob turned smoothly and all, but the internal mechanism had failed. The culprit could have been inferior quality, the monsoon rust, a few months of non use or all of these factors put together. The result however, was one very cross guy and a zapped woman inside, shouting to be released from the situation. Help took an hour to arrive and we got her out finally, with the lock completely destroyed and a good part of the door chipped in the process.

Moral of the story: When moving into a new flat or villa, check all locks thoroughly without closing the doors, to be sure. If you find a door knob rattling or rusty, have it replaced immediately. Your child, spouse or an aging parent can be stuck inside a room at any point of the day or night and help may take hours to arrive.
Lock that one!