Welcome to Interior Doors Direct
Glossary of Terms
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Antique Brass
Backset
Ballcatches
Bore
Deadbolt
Door Stop
Door Viewer
Dummy Pair
Finials
Flush Bolts
Antique Brass: |
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Finish on hardware that has a dark brown color, also denoted by industry as US5.
Backset: |
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The term backset is used to explain the distance from the edge of the door to the center of the hole drilled for your knob, lever or deadbolt.
Ballcatches: |
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Item of hardware inserted into hole drilled into top of door. Used where door is opened by pulling or pushing it only. In double doors, they are used with dummy pairs of levers or knobs. They also can be used in the top of a small closet where pull may be used. The ball is pushed by spring tension into notched brass plate in jamb above door.
Bore: |
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Bore is the diameter of the hole drilled in a door for a knob, lever or deadbolt.
Deadbolt: |
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Locking mechanism for an entrance door or other door, in which a bolt moves with a turn of a key into a jamb. Deadbolts can be a single cylinder or double cylinder. With a single cylinder deadbolt, a key is used on one side, and is turned by hand on the other side. With a double cylinder deadbolt, a key is used on both sides. Double cylinders are only recommended where no one needs to go through a door in case of emergency.
Door Stop: |
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A door stop is the small piece of wood, usually 1 3/8" - 1 1/2" wide, that is attached to the door jambs on both sides and on top of the door. This strip of wood is where the door comes to rest when it is closed. It stops the door from moving any further, and also covers the gap that would otherwise appear between the door and the jambs.
Door Viewer: |
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Item that is inserted into a hole drilled into the face of a door. Viewer has a curved lens in it to magnify an image on the other side of the door. Viewers are made with various degrees of field of vision.
Dummy Pairs: |
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Dummy pairs are for doors where no latches are needed. These knobs or levers do not turn. They can be split up for bi-fold door set, since no hardware is needed on back of the bi-folds. Dummy pairs can also be used on double french door units, where ballcatches are used to hold doors in place. Dummy Pairs do not require a standard hole to be drilled, since most are attached from each side of the door.
Finials: |
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Also called decorative tips, these may come in different shapes, such as balls or pointed steeples, which attach to the top and bottom of a hinge for decoration. Only some hinges will accept these finials.
Flush Bolts: |
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Bolts mounted in a door to lock a door in place. These bolts slide up into the jamb above the door, and down into the threshold or floor below door. These are used primarily on double doors, where one door is locked in place and the other door is the one mainly used. When needed, the door locked in place can be opened. Flush bolts can also be called slidebolts, which are mounted to the face of the door. Flush bolts are mounted flush with the edge of the door.
