Twist….Click….NO! Flip…..YES!
December 27th, 2007 Categories: Home Fixin's, Findings and Planting
The lowly door knob. Very seldom does it take center stage except when one is ready to sell their home. Then it gets shined until it gleams.
Over several years the door knob has undertaken a small revolution. Higher end homes and now some mid-price homes have changed the door knob to a lever type in lieu of the the twist or click type.
Levers, standard in Europe for a number of years, have never been highlighted in the United States until passage of the Americans with Disability Act.
Under the guidelines of the Act, doors to public buildings must be ”usable with one hand”, without tight grasping, pinching or twisting the wrist.
Homeowners, I would suspect, if they take a step back will clearly see the advantage of a “home” lever type door knob especially when trying to open the door when carrying packages or the baby or just trying to get through the door quickly.
Those who have hand difficulties definitely will view levers for the home as far more acceptable rather than twisting a knob or pushing down on the knob.
So if you are in the market for a new door knob give some thought to the lever type. The cost is about 15% higher today and not all stores carry the lever type, but as the price comes down and as more and more homes are decorated with lever type knobs they will be looked at as the standard.
While on the subject I would like to see someone create a home doorknob that can be opened or closed via a wireless clicker as we have with automobiles. These may exist but I have not seen them. If they don’t, well someone has an opportunity.
It would help someone carrying packages, but of importance is a safety measure for people having to enter home at night. Fooling around with the keys, often times in the dark, is trying and often unsafe. The resale value of the home most certainly would be enhanced since the buyer can see the advantages of knowing that they can open the front door from the car, just like the garage, and enter the home quickly and safely.
Basic Source: Star Free Press; December 27, 2007: Author-Frank Greve.
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