Customer Reviews

Privacy Pocket Lock

5 star:		(8)
4 star:		(3)
3 star:		(0)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(1)

 

 

None of the online info shows how cool it is. Insalls like a regular door handle but hides in the profile of the door. When hidded in the pocket, the latch is flush until you push on it, then it pops out with a little handle to grab. Also, there is a strike plate not shown. When you go to lock it the "handle" pops out and deploys the latch into the stike plate then to the side, locking the door.

We recently remodeled our home and were looking for door latches for our pocket doors. These items fit the bill perfectly. They were easy to install and the finish looks great!

I bought five of these for my new house about 3 years ago. I am now replacing the last of them with passage door sets. They worked well for a while but then one of them caught on the strike plate and we had to take the lock apart to open the door. I have replaced three for this reason. Now I am replacing the last two because when you go to open the door the lock part pulls out and you have to push it back in every time. These locks are a good idea, but they are just not reliable.

I have been looking for years to replace the privacy lock on my bathroom's pocket door. This product filled the bill perfectly & at a great price. The only caveat I will share with you is this - you will definitely need some intermediate carpentry skills to install this - for the privacy function to work you will need to drill & chisel out a rather large hole for the strike plate. Fine product at a great price.

Pro:
- Fit standard pre-bored door slab
- Affordable price
- Easy to install, in part becasue it fit pre-bored door slab

Con:
- Circular pull area that goes where a normal door knob would go is very shallow at no more than 3/8" of an inch; this makes pulling heavy doors tough; hollow core doors should have no issues
- Mechanism that extends out for initial pull when door is in the wall is a toggle type switch that sits flush until it is pushed in to pop out and allow you to pull. To put it back in flush with the door, you push the mechanism back in. The sensitivity is tough to get right to return the mechanism to flush. If you push too far or don't push far enough, it won't stay retracted. There's a very small "sweet spot" that you will find after some practice.

Given the negatives, I still like the pull and am happy with it. I was able to use my existing hinged door on my new pocket door saving a lot of construction hassle. I didn't need to bore out a strange square shape on a new slab to install the typical pocket door pulls that I saw in big box retailers.

I did not want to go with the cut out pocket door locks and this really seems to work well. Installation would be a sinch if the door has already been drilled for a standard lock set. I had to drill my door for the lock set, but after that the lock went in great and works really well. The latch whole and latch takes more time than expected because the kit for it is about an inch deep. It is hard to explain unless you are looking at that part, but be prepared to do some chisling here (still, the overall job is fairly easy even with this step). I have kids so I'll see how it hold up over time. It is, though, a much better option than the standard square lock sets for pocket doors, which as others have pointed out don't align well so they are hard to lock. Plus, this lock is about the same price as the square type.

The Kwikset Pocket Door Lock appears to be a well engineered ingenious product. Kwikset would do well to list the needed tools to do the job at the beginning of the instructions. I had to purchase a 1" and a 2 1/8" hole saw (with appropriate mandrills) for my 3/8" drill and two shorter screws to hold the lock together. Also needed are a hammer and chisel, a 1/2" drill bit, a combination square, a tape measure, a 1/8" drill bit, and a 1/8" diameter nail. The set up from the manufacturer was perfect for my 2 11/16" front door, but way too big to fit the 1 5/16" pocket door it is installed in. The posts in which the assembly screws into are not tapped very deeply so the screws cannot be turned into the posts very far--thus the need to purchase shorter screws (which by the way are metric M4). The accompanying instructions direct the installer to drill four 1/2" holes in the jam to mortise the pocket for the latch plate assembly. However, I elected to drill one larger hole and then cut out the mortise to shape with a hand (hole) saw in the 3/4" board that serves as a jam. Kwikset provides reasonably good installation instructions including a template to locate the points where the holes are to be drilled. However, I felt more comfortable using the measurements provided and the square/tape measure. Finally, Kwikset states on the box (which was broken on receipt) "Only One Tool Required" with reference to a Phillips Head screwdriver--true if you are lucky enough to have prepared door and jam. Otherwise, I think not. I have just installed this device and cannot speak to its durability. As you can tell by this commentary I am hardly a professional, so if it is confusing, just take it from a do-it-yourself-er for what it is.
I rate this a 4 out of 5.

I put two of these in my house already and love them! I always hated those "standard" square pocket door locks that don't really lock and are hard to use--these locks make our powder room seem so much more secure and private. I am getting two more for other pocket doors in our house. The locks are easy to use and lock easily and close the door tightly.

I bought this for a pocket door in a bathroom I am remodelling. It uses the same standard holes in the door that a conventional lockset does, so there isn't a lot of extra work with a router or chisel that you would have to do with some of the pocket door hardware. I bought a lockset jig and hole saws at the same time to be able to install it.

When you retract the latch, the whole mechanism is flush with the door. Pressing on it opens the finger pull so you can pull the door closed. A twist of the knob when it's closed engages the latch.

Installation was straightforward and didn't take a really long time. The Privacy Latch has a nice clean look to it.

The first one I ordered had a defect that prevented the screws that hold both sides together from threading in all the way. The replacement was perfect.

This is an amazing little gem. After a recent remodel I was so dreading the lock mechanism of the 80's that I thought I would have to use on our sliding door, then I found this. It is so much better and looks nice too. It is a bit more complicated to use - as most new things are - but it works like a champ. I ordered a second one for the second sliding door in our house. Yay! for little ingenious inventions like this...that don't break the bank. PS most of the reviews are accurate.