How to fit a new door handle or lockset

A door handle that's gone loose and rattly, or a lockset that was ugly the day you moved in, is one of the few jobs in a house where the hard part happens before you pick up a screwdriver. The fitting takes about 20 minutes once you've got the right set in your hand. Turning up with the wrong set is what turns it into an afternoon, so most of this is about getting that bit right.

Work out which kind of set you actually need

This is where people come unstuck, because the three types look similar on the shelf and do completely different jobs:

• Passage. It turns and latches and it doesn't lock. Hallway doors, linen cupboards, and a kid's bedroom you'd rather stayed openable.
• Privacy. It locks from the inside with a snib or a button, and there's an emergency release on the outside. Bathrooms and bedrooms.
• Entrance. It's keyed, so front and back doors, and the door between the house and the garage.

Then it's knob or lever, and that's mostly taste, except that a lever is easier on hands that don't grip well, which is worth thinking about if there's anyone in the house who'd struggle with a round knob on a cold morning.

Measure before you buy, not after

Take the old handle off first and get three numbers off the door, and if you'd rather not write them down then bring the old latch into the shop in your pocket, because we can match it on the counter in a minute.

• The backset. Measure from the edge of the door to the centre of the big round hole. That measurement has to match the new latch, and plenty of sets come with an adjustable latch that covers the two common ones, but you want to know yours before you choose.
• The hole size. The diameter of that big round hole through the face of the door.
• The door thickness. Every set is rated for a range and it's printed on the box.

You can read about backsets for an hour and still not be sure which one you've got. Or you can bring the latch in and be certain in about 30 seconds, which is the whole reason a shop with people in it still exists.

What you need in front of you

• The new set, still in the box
• A Phillips screwdriver, and usually a flat one as well
• A tape measure
• A pencil
• A sharp wood chisel, if the new plate is a different size to the old one

Step 1. Take the old one off

Undo the screws on the inside rose or plate, pull both handles apart, then undo the two screws holding the latch into the edge of the door and slide the latch out. Put every screw in a cup rather than on the floor, because a screw that rolls under a skirting board is gone and you'll be improvising for the rest of the job.

Unscrew the strike plate out of the door jamb as well, since the new one usually has a slightly different shape.

Step 2. Slide the new latch in the right way round

The angled face of the latch bolt has to point towards the way the door closes, so towards the jamb it shuts against. Get this wrong and the door won't close at all, and it's the single most common thing people redo, so check it before you screw anything down.

Set the latch in, line the faceplate up flush with the edge of the door, and put the two screws in firm but not cranked tight.

Step 3. Put the handles on

Push the outside handle through so the spindle, which is the square bar, slides through the square hole in the middle of the latch. Bring the inside handle up to meet it, line the fixing posts up, and start both screws by hand before you tighten either one.

Tighten them evenly, a bit on one then a bit on the other, and stop when the handle is solid. Going hard on one screw first pulls the whole set crooked, and on a hollow core door you can crush the face if you keep going.

Step 4. Fit the strike plate and test it properly

Close the door slowly and watch where the latch bolt lands on the jamb, mark it with the pencil, and screw the new strike plate there. If the old plate left a bigger recess than the new one fills, that's what the chisel is for, and a little timber packer behind the plate is a perfectly legitimate fix.

Then open and shut the door a dozen times and turn the lock both ways. A latch that catches or a door that has to be pulled towards you before it'll lock means the strike plate is out by a millimetre or two, and moving it is far easier than living with it.

When it doesn't go to plan

• The handle turns but the latch doesn't move. The spindle has missed the square hole in the latch. Pull it apart and start again.
• The handle is stiff. Usually the screws have been overtightened and pulled the set out of square. Back them off and re-tighten evenly.
• The door won't latch. Strike plate alignment, nine times out of ten.
• The new plate is smaller than the old recess. Chisel a clean edge or pack behind it. Filler in a strike plate recess won't hold the screws.

Shop related products

• Leverset Door Handle, Passage, Brushed Nickel. The no lock option for hallway and cupboard doors.
• Leverset Door Handle, Privacy, Brushed Nickel. Snib lock and an outside release, for bathrooms and bedrooms.
• Privacy Door Knobset, Brushed Nickel. Same job as the privacy lever, in a knob.
• Entrance Knob and Deadbolt Combo, Brushed Nickel. Keyed alike, so the knob and the deadbolt take the one key.
• Supercraft Phillips Screwdriver, #2 x 38mm. The stubby one, which is what you want up against a door face.
• Supercraft Hi-Vis Tape Measure, 8m. For the backset, and everything else.

Did you know we also carry a 4 piece Supercraft wood chisel set in store, along with passage and entrance sets in chrome plate as well as brushed nickel. Those aren't all listed on the website, so give us a ring on (08) 8536 4333 to check what's on the shelf.

Where to go next

If you've fitted a keyed entrance set and you want a spare for the house, we cut keys in the shop while you wait. Have a look at the key cutting service.

Two more on doors and door furniture:

• How to fix a loose door handle
• How to seal the gap under the front door

I take the old latch into the shop with me every single time, because I've got no faith whatsoever in my own memory for a measurement I took 10 minutes ago.

Cheers,
Candeece