Product Review: Master Lock Dual Function Door Security Bar

A Cheap and Effective Way to Barricade Your Home, Apartment, Dormitory, or Hotel Room Door

If you want to keep the bad guys out and sleep securely, check out the MasterLock Dual Function Door Security Bar.

Many Americans are looking for effective ways to be more secure in their homes. The Master Lock Dual Function Door Security Bar is a simple, but effective, way to temporarily barricade your door and keep home invaders out. The Security Bar performs two essential security functions:

1) It can be wedged between the floor and your door handle so that your door cannot be opened.
2) It can be placed in the tracks of a sliding glass door in order to prevent the door from being opened.

Door security bars like this one from Master Lock are also called Charley Bars. Of course, the principles behind a charley bar are as old as physics. The force applied horizontally to the door is simply being redirected into the floor. However, the Master Lock Dual Function Door Security Bar has a few added features that make it more effective. First, the bar has a padded rubber foot on a swiveling ball joint to ensure that the bar maintains good solid contact with your floor. Second, it is made of rugged 20-gauge steel and is adjustable from 30 to 44 1/2 inches. Third, the security bar has a removable non-marring yoke to protect the finish of your door and help keep the bar securely around the door knob during a break in attempt.

I have tested this security bar as a Charley bar in an apartment with linoleum floors and in a hotel room with carpeted floors. In both cases, the Master Lock Dual Function Door Security Bar performed well. In both cases, I installed the bar on an unlocked door and could not open the door and confirmed that the bar did not slide out of place. In a hotel setting, a maintenance man who was unaware of a last minute room change attempted to enter my room and was unable to open the door despite having a master key. If someone was able to pick or bump my front door lock, they would be stopped or significantly delayed by a properly installed Charley bar.

When using the Master lock Dual Function Door Security Bar, it is important to follow the directions so that the bar is properly aligned with the door and is at the proper angle. If the bar is made too long and is at the wrong angle, it can slide out of place. However, I found it very easy to read the instructions and install the bar on a nightly basis. While the Master lock Dual Function Door Security Bar can be collapsed for transport, the bar can be extended to and left at the proper length for daily use. This Charley Bar fit well in a large suitcase and would be perfect for extra hotel or dorm room security.

With the yoke removed, the Master lock Dual Function Door Security Bar can be laid in the tracks of a sliding glass door. While I did not have an opportunity to test this function, I believe the bar would function effectively in this capacity. However, it would be more cost effective to use the wooden dowel or broomstick cut to the proper length and use that to jam a sliding glass door. However, the Master Lock Dual Function Door Security Bar might be handy when a family travels to a rented vacation home and is unsure of the dimensions of any sliding glass door.

I can only see a few drawbacks to the Master lock Dual Function Door Security Bar. If you are incapacitated due to a medical emergency or fire and require rescue, it might delay firefighters or rescue workers for a short time. A short length of steel bar will not stop a fireman's axe. A determined home invader might still be able to breach your door by kicking and battering the door until the hinges or door frame gives way. However, in case of an actual home invasion attempt, I believe that the Masterlock Dual Function Door Security Bar can buy valuable time for a potential victim to arm him or herself and call the police, or make an escape.

Overall, I had a good experience with the MasterLock Dual Function Door Security Bar and would recommend it to anyone seeking a more secure home, apartment, or hotel room.