Thursday 22 December 2011

Doll Up Your Home Doors with Chrome Knobs

Chrome door knobs are very popular choice not only for front doors but also for kitchen and bathroom doors due to their easy matching with existing furniture, appliances, and other hardware. Chrome has been in use for quoting metal knobs and handles throughout the world since the development of electroplating. Its popularity as a quoting material is attributed to its being resistant to corrosion. Besides, it is hard and creates polished and glossy looks when quoted on knobs and handles made of base metals like brass, zinc, and steel.

A chrome knob also finds its place on a kitchen cabinet drawer. By virtue of its being durable as well as stylish, a chrome knob adds to the beauty and style in your kitchen. The knobs are available in a variety of designs and styles to allow you a greater choice for decorating your homes matching the existing themes. You can give a modern and contemporary look to your old kitchen by just replacing the existing cabinet knobs with stylish chrome knobs.

Both chrome door knobs and drawer knobs are available in scratch proof polished finish that looks highly glossy even in low lighting conditions enhancing your theme. They do not suffer from natural wear and tear easily and can last for many years once installed. They are available in variety of designs ranging from plain to extremely flamboyant. You can choose from a wide variety of designs and styles of chrome knobs to match your existing themes in your home.

Chrome knobs and handles are designed to provide perfect handling according to the structure of hands providing comfort in opening and closing the doors and cabinets. The come in different shapes and sizes, for example, the most common circular shape, as well as stylish oval, square, or oblong shapes that look very attractive. They are also available in different colours such as golden and a few others besides usual sliver colour. The best thing about these knobs is that they fit easily in every space whether modern or classic. They don’t look out of place even amongst stainless steel, silver, and other modern furniture as they integrate in every theme making it more appealing.

Although metallic, the chrome hardware is not very expensive. It may cost you more if you choose extremely ornate designs but simple plain designs that are comparatively cheaper also look elegant. The knobs made of solid brass quoted with chrome are matchless in strength and may last for years. So, if you compare their price in terms of their life, you will find them cheaper.

Online shops are the great place to look for chrome door knobs of your choice as the brick and mortar stores offer only a limited designs and shapes. There are many suppliers and manufacturers websites accessible through Internet offering a wide range of designs and styles.

We would, therefore, suggest you to have a look at a few online store if you are planning to construct a new home or to renovate your home.

Chrome Door Furniture Helps You Leave a Great Impression on Guests Entering Your Home!

Chrome is a hard metal with steel-gray, shiny, and glossy look. It is highly resistant to corrosion, and hence finds its application in door furniture and hardware that is exposed to excessive and frequent use. Since chrome is an expensive element, the chrome door hardware is often made of some other base metal such as brass, zinc, or steel, and then layered with chrome through electroplating. The process is known as chrome plating.

The chrome plating provides more corrosion resistance, ease of cleaning, decoration, and additional surface hardness to door hardware making it more attractive and durable. The most commonly available chrome door furniture or hardware is the door handles and knobs. They are manufactured in variety of shapes and sizes according to their application, i.e. the type of door on which they will be installed.

 

How does chrome door furniture impress your guests?


Since the door handles on your front entry doors are the first things that your guests touch when they come to visit you, their quality is very important to leave a good impression on your guests’ hands. They should not only look beautiful but also be functioning well. Chrome door handles, by virtue of their durability and classy look, are great choice for installation on entry doors as they last longer and need minimal maintenance.

Chrome door handles are available in variety of sizes that perfectly fit on any type of doors including office doors, kitchen and bathroom doors, and main entry doors. Because they are durable, they find their place on high traffic doors such as that of bathrooms too. Since your bathrooms may also be used by your guests, they also leave an impression on them. Chrome handles keep working well for years and don’t let you bother much for their maintenance. So, you are relieved from burden of maintenance for a longer period time as compared to any other types of door handles.

If you decide to use chrome door furniture in your new home, do not try to install them by yourself as you may end up in damaging the doors, handles, or in injuring yourself. To maintain shiny finish and stylish look of door handles, do hire a professional. By this, you will definitely have to spend some money but this will be definitely much less than you can lose as a result of damaging the doors or handles, or by injuring yourself.

 

The best way to buy chrome door furniture


You can buy chrome door furniture using online stores that are very common now days. Almost all major suppliers have their websites on the Internet. You don’t have to physically move from one store to other facing pushy salespersons who try to sale their stuff to you without letting you ascertain their quality.

At online stores you can review a variety of chrome door handles, knobs, and other accessories with their pictures and specifications while sitting in your drawing room. You can also browse photos of doors installed with those handles to get the impression of how your doors will look after installing them. The websites also list the price of each item, so you have a greater choice in selecting the most appropriate items that match your likings and budget.

Ceramic Door Knobs Are Getting Popular in Home Furniture

Although often ignored, door furniture has a great role in beautifying homes. Doors not only make us feel safe and comfortable but also add to the beauty of our houses. They can be furnished with variety of handles and knobs, which not only ease opening and closing but also beautify them by virtue of their shapes, styles, and colours. Ceramic door knobs are getting popular now days due to their versatility, economy, and ease of installation.

There are many reasons why ceramic knobs are being preferred for door furniture. They are inexpensive and available in a number of colours and shapes that can be used on doors of any colour and shape. Their varsatility allows them to be used anywhere, whether it is an entry door or a bathroom door. The knobs used on entry doors have locks and latches fitted with them while those used on bathroom doors have privacy sets to lock them from inside. They are highly affordable as compared to metal door knobs.

Ceramic door knobs are available in different shapes and sizes, mostly around 2.5 inches in diameter. They are available in different finishes too. The most common finishes available are normal brass, antique brass, chrome, satin nickel, and oil rubbed bronze. They can suit your requirement for any type of doors due to variety of the colours and shapes they are available in. They are available in standard colours like white, brown, and black, besides ivory and almond colours. All these colours are available in Victorian, Prairie, and Meadows styles.

Another feature of ceramic door knobs is that you can have them ordered to match the style of your door if they are not available prefabricated. You can get custom designed knobs from a large number of manufacturers. For example, you can order the knobs designed shaped like Mickey Mouse or any other cartoon character to use it on children’s drawers. Ceramic knobs are easy to install. Athough inexpensive, antique style knobs are a bit costilier. However you won’t find them very expensive if you compare the price with the value they provide by adding elegance to your doors.

By virtue of their varsatility, ceramic knobs can be used on cabinets, show cases, bathroom and bedroom doors, and on the doors leading to the gardens or patios. They are so varsatile that they can fit in any design scheme, from simple standard colours to detailed Victorean pattern.

Ceramic knobs have been popular in United Kingdom and other parts of Europe for many years; they are also getting popular in United States. Available in wide range of colours, styles, shapes, and different prices, ceramic door knobs can best fit your home doors. However, it is important that you make a good choice based on your budget. Before buying, you need to consider price, ease of installation, durability, and their fitness to the colours and designes of the doors in your home. Although ceramic knobs last longer than metal knobs, they are easily broken if dropped or hit with something hard. So, if you have children in your home donot choose more delicate designs.

Monday 21 November 2011

Brushed Steel Door Furniture – How to Choose the Best for Your Home


Door furniture makes even a plain looking door or cabinet stunning, and it brings smile on the faces and joy in the hearts of onlookers. And if the door furniture is brushed steel door furniture then the thrill and excitement of having it gets enhanced provided you get the best one.
But the question remains how to choose the best brushed door furniture for your home? What all to look for in a door furniture to ascertain that you get the absolute best one available in the market, in the budget you have. Read this guide through, it will help you with your purchase.

Brushed steel door furniture buying guide

When buying brushed steel door furniture for your home you should look at the following items.

Purpose and nature of the door furniture

Before buying brushed steel door furniture for your home you need to ask what will be the purpose of the door furniture? Are you going to buy an elegant-looking handles which will be used multiple times of a day, or are you going to buy stoppers, or is it the brushed stainless steel knockers that you would like to buy for your home?
Your understanding of what you need and in what quantity will help you decide on what you will buy once in the market.

Quality and durability

When buying brushed steel door furniture you must ensure the quality of the door furniture. You should decide if you want a stainless steel brushed door furniture, or a normal steel door furniture will do the trick? What would be the average live expectancy of the door furniture? For example if you are in the market to shop for handles then make sure you get the one which should work for many, many years because door handles will be used multiple times in a day.

Beauty and finish of door furniture

How good does a door handle looks in isolation and how will it look on your door are two different things. The door furniture that looks beautiful in the shop may not look even half as good as that when installed in your home, simply because the backdrop against which it I displayed in the showroom is different from the situation in which it will be used in your home.
When buying brushed steel door furniture for your home you should pay attention to the aesthetic coherence between the door furniture and doors and cabinets in your home.

Security

If you are buying a door handle with a lock for your home then you must ask if the door handle is safe enough to keep the bad guys out of your house? The same consideration should be given when you are buying one for your cabinet.

Cost

No matter how attractive a piece of brushed steel doorfurniture is and how safe it is, you cannot buy it unless it suits your budget, so during the research process it is important that you keep cost in your mind as well when buying brushed door furniture for your home.

Next time when you are in the market to buy brushed steeldoor furniture then you must keep these things in mind.

Monday 24 October 2011

Brass Door Handles – How to Keep Them Shining Like New

A brass door handle looks beautiful when it is new and shiny. It adds up to the beauty of the home, but when brass door handles start gathering dirt and stain, the attractiveness of the handle is lost and what remains is something we do not wish to fix our eyes on. This defeat the purpose of having elegant brass handles in your home.

If the brass handles in your home have started looking dirty and stained, there is a piece of good news for you, the past glory of brass door handles can be restored and they can be made to shine like new brass handles. There is no need to replace your existing door handle, unless you want to upgrade the style.

 

Making your old brass door handles shine like new


Before beginning the cleaning up process, you should determine the nature of stain on the brass fittings, and choose the cleaning process suitable for the purpose. If you have to remove tarnish from the brass door handles to make it attractive, you would need the following materials:
  1. 2 pieces of cloth
  2. White vinegar
  3. Lemon Juice
  4. Salt

Take a piece of cloth and soak it in white vinegar or lemon juice. Add some salt to it as well. Use this cloth to wipe the door handle which needs cleaning. After that you should rinse the cloth in plain water to remove traces of white vinegar/ lemon juice from the cloth. Wring it and use this cloth to remove traces of white vinegar/ lemon juice from the door handle.

Take another piece of soft cloth (dry one) and clean the brass handle. Use this cloth to burnish the brass door handle until it shines.

If there is no tarnish and you just need to do regular cleaning, or remove the dirt or stubborn stain from the brass door handles, you can use the following:
  1. Warm water
  2. Dish soap
  3. Two pieces of cloths
  4. A brush

To clean stubborn stain or deposited dust off the brass door handles, you need a bucket of warm water. Mix a small amount of dish soap in the warm water and dip a cloth in it. Wring the cloth out and wipe the brass handle with the soapy cloth.

Now take a brush, dip it into the soapy water and scrub the door handle to remove stubborn dirt and stains. Now wipe the handle with soapy cloth. Then use fresh water to rinse the cloth. Wring the cloth and wipe out any soap remaining on the brass door handle. Afterward, use a dry soft cloth to dry the handle.

These are the two effective ways to clean the brass door handles. As said, before using any of the ways, you must find out the nature of dirt deposit or stain because excessive cleaning may discolor your fixture, particularly when it is “brass quoted”. Cleaning of brass door handles will restore the lost glory of your door fixtures, and it may save you some money. So before you go for a new set, you should consider cleaning the existing one, unless you want to change the design.

Types of Vintage Brass Knobs You Should Consider

Vintage brass knobs are and will always remain in high demand. The beauty and craftsmanship of vintage brass door knobs do not fail to entice home owners, who strive to get the best for their homes. The class and elegance of vintage door knobs cannot be matched by any of the available brass knobs. Ask any person of refined taste, and he will vouch for it.

Types of vintage brass knobs


There are many types of vintage brass door knobs available in the market, many of which are real classic and can be used in any home of any type, but some of them are not that open for association, so doesn’t look good on all kinds of doors and houses.

When deciding on buying a brass knob you need to focus on the finishes of the knob as well. You need to decide if you need Antique Brass, Oil-rubbed Bronze, Polished Brass, Polished Chrome, or Satin Nickel, etc., finish on the brass knob. I would suggest you to keep this in mind before going out for purchasing door knobs.

When purchasing brass door knobs, you should always go for the one which is made of solid brass and not just brass-quoted because door knobs of latter type does not last long, and the quoting may fade after some use, or at times after cleaning.

 

All-brass knobs


There are some brass knobs that are made of 100% brass, without any other element used in it. This gives a real vintage feel. Pure brass knobs come with some beautiful engravings. They give a royal feel to the door.

 

Brass knobs with crystal top


Another type of common brass knob that is quite famous is the one that comes with a colorful or white crystal top  (the portion which we turn to open or close the door). When a ray of light falls on the crystal part, the ray of light shimmers making the crystal shine like diamond. Crystal-top brass knob is a jewel, which beautify the door.

It looks even more elegant when the brass portion, which makes the bottom of such door knobs are beautifully carved. I have seen one that had a brass-base (knob backplate) resembling wheel of a chariot.

 

Wooden-top brass knobs


All brass door knobs do not come with glass or brass top alone. People use all kind of different materials, but the one that I personally liked the most had a wooden top. There are all kinds of wooden tops that people are using in brass knobs, but my favorite is a black-colored knob with light engraving, or one with wood finished, light though.

When buying vintage brass knobs you should also focus your attention on the era from which it comes, if you wish to buy original vintage brass knobs. There are many counterfeit in the market, you should be watchful of them. There are many more types of vintage brass door knobs available, and it could be purchased from the Internet, from the comfort of your home, without being greasy because of going out in sun fretting around in the market.

Thursday 22 September 2011

Bathroom Door Furniture – 4 Commonly Used Bathroom Door Locks

The role of bathroom door furniture like a lock is more to provide privacy to the users than is to provide security from thieves, burglars, etc. For this reason, a lock designed for and used in a bathroom door is a lot different from the ones that are used in the other doors in the house.

In general, a bathroom door lock does not use complex mechanism like using multiple cylinders and livers, but this explanation does not say much about this bathroom door furniture. To help you out, I am going to talk about 4 different lock types that are commonly used.

4 bathroom door lock types

Privacy function lock

This is the most common type of lock you will find in bathrooms. This lock is very simple. It consists of a doorknob or a lever, which has an in-built privacy function, which gets activated by push of a button or turn of a switch from inside of the bathroom. The bathroom with such locks remains open when it is unoccupied and as soon as some enters the bathroom and turns the knob or presses the button the bathroom door gets locked.

A high-quality privacy function lock also comes with an emergency button. This could be used to open the lock from the outside, if someone gets trapped inside of the bathroom.

Deadbolt lock

Deadbolt locks are normal locks used in commercial establishment. These locks are not locks but handles because these locks can be opened from both sides. A separate latch is used in a bathroom with such a lock so that the bathroom door could be closed from the inside.

Thumbturn locks

A thumbturn lock or a turnpiece lock, which it is also referred to, is a kind of lock which is operated by rotating the switch, which is on the inside of the bathroom door.  It is used with a knob or a lever. This lock has an emergency release key on the outside. This lock is very easy to operate and if a kid, accidently, get locked inside a bathroom then taking him out using the emergency release will be easy if this lock is installed in the bathroom door.

Coin lock

In public settings where many people could use a rest room, a coin lock is used to control the free use of rest room. This is often installed in a commercial setting. If a bathroom has such a lock, a person will have to drop a coin or a specially designed token in the lock in order to use the bathroom. The door of the bathroom will remain automatically closed for the duration of your use. It will accept no more coin until you open the door from the inside and exit the bathroom.

Conclusion

There are many more types of bathroom door locks that are used by people in different locations, depending upon the usages, but the locks discussed above are the most used pieces of bathroom door furniture. When installing bathroom door lock you should not go for style only, you must take into consideration the usage scenario and people who will use it.

3 Essential Tips to Keep In Mind When Buying Bathroom Door Handle

The functional utility of a bathroom door handle is only to help a person open or close the bathroom door, and if a person has installed a bathroom door handle with lock then it will also help him or her protect his or her privacy in the bathroom. But this is not all to a bathroom door handle.

You may or may not have noticed, but it does play a pivotal role in the overall decoration of your house. If a matching handle makes everything look good, a handle that does not go well with the overall interior will be like a dust spec piercing in the eye, which for all intent and purposes is not a desirable situation. It is, therefore, important for you to find a good door handle for your bathroom.

Tips for buying Bathroom door handles

Fix a budget and stick to it

When it comes to decorating a house, a person tends to go overboard with enthusiasm, and he starts spending without considering the budget. This leaves him in trouble. One should keep in mind that there is no limit to spending on home. It can take as much as you can give, so instead of going randomly shopping with unclear budger, you should fix a budget for everything including the bathroom door handle, and never ever cross the budget.

Match it with other interior items

Every item does not go well with every other item, so before buying a bathroom door handle, you should look at the styling of your home and of the bathroom. Once you get an understanding of things that you have used to decorate your home, you should decide on the kind of bathroom door handle you should buy for your bathroom.

When buying a handle you should keep in mind that the role of a bathroom door handle is to just open and close the bathroom door, and if you are buying a bathroom door handle with lock then the role changes to include ensuring privacy, and not that of security, which a lock symbolizes, so you should not invest a lot of money on that.

Consider buying a bathroom door handle with lock

By buying a bathroom door handle with lock, you will be able to save some money. It will allow you to invest in just one item, and not in two separate items. You can use the savings to make your house even more attractive.

There are many types of bathroom locks available in the market. You should do a bit of research and find one that suits your budget and fulfill your need. You can either have a deadbolt bathroom door lock, thumbturn lock, or privacy function lock for your bathroom door. These lock types are among the best in the class and works particularly well for bathroom, as each one of them is designed to provide privacy, and less to provide security.

Conclusion

Buying a bathroom door handle is an important decision. It affects the overall look of your home. You should therefore keep the above tips in mind when buying bathroom door handles or a bathroom door handle with lock.

Tuesday 23 August 2011

Architectural Door Hardware – Replacing Door Handles

When buying any architectural door hardware, there are certain things that you need to keep in mind. Things like design, look and feel, ease of operation, sturdiness, etc. should be considered. You should also be concerned about the ease of installation, if you are a DIY (Do It Yourself) type because an architectural door furniture part which cannot be installed by a “non expert” is not suitable for DIY installation.

The above guideline or logic, if you may, applies to door handles replacement as well. In fact, replacing door handle is the most basic architectural door hardware replacement, which is done quite often. In this article, therefore, I will talk about how one can replace a door handle.

Replace door handle in 4 easy steps


Step 1: Gather all your tools and door handle parts


The first step towards replacing a broken door handle is to collect all the tools that you will need. You may need tools like a flat tip screw driver, a slotted tip screw driver, a hammer, a pair of long nose pliers, a pair of side cutting pliers, polypropylene handled chisel, screws, metal gasket (if needed), and door handle parts.

Step 2: study your broken handle


The goal of this step is to understand how you are going to remove the handle. You would not want to damage the texture or paint of the door, handle of which has to be removed. Some handles come with a top cover which conceals the screws. If that is the case then you should use your flat tip screw driver or polypropylene handled chisel to remove the cover from the side.

Step 3: Remove the broken door handle


The next step is to remove the broken handle from the door. Do it carefully, and do not lose patience. The process of removing the broken handle should be done carefully, or else, you may end-up scratching the door, or breaking the slot in which the handle was installed. You may need to use the pliers and a hammer for that.

Step 4: Install the new handle


After successful removal of the faulty door handle, you can put it on one side. Now the next step is to install the new one. Keep slotted tip screwdriver and screws, which must have been supplied with the replacement door handles, and hammer handy. You will need these to install the new handle. Go slow and install the door handle.

Conclusion


As you can guess from the door handle replacement steps that architectural door hardware replacement is not very tricky, but some of the replacement could be tricky. In those cases, you must call architectural door furniture replacement expert. They will do the work properly.

All about Ball catch door hardware?

People use ball catch door hardware on single or double closet doors where a latch cannot be used, or is not desired to be used. It is a perfect solution for many door hardware problems. That is the reason behind such a catching trend of ball catch door hardware use. Increasingly more and more people are using it to replace traditional solutions in 2-fold doors, as keeping double closet doors closed is slightly difficult, and magnetic catches, because it’s not so strong, do not successfully do the job of holding the doors together. People often use it as bathroom door furniture to close the bathroom cabinet.

How ball catch door hardware works


Ball catch is installed on the top of the door, and a strike plate is mounted on the door jamb. Ball catch hardware, working with spring loaded ball, catches and holds the door closed. After which, the door remains steadfastly closed, until some external pressure is exercised when the door handle is pulled to open the closet doors. The door hardware discussed here is not very expensive, and it helps you keep your house tidy.

Types of ball catches


There are several types of door catches available in the market. The working of all is same, but some of them would be more efficient and durable, while, others slightly less. A same set of steps is used to install all kinds of ball catches door hardware.

Ball catches made of solid brass works consistently for longer period of time because of the inherent nature of the metal used, whereas, a ball catch door hardware piece that comes with rubber rollers may not last very long because of the tendency of rubber. They get dried up and create more friction after some time. As we know, rubber is also susceptible to environmental exposure. Brass or any other solid metal ball catchers are supplied with screws which hold them tightly.

One ball catch door hardware type which remains always in high demand is adjustable brass ball catcher. These door catchers looks classy and are used extensively in the interior doors where installing a lock is not possible. This is also used a lot as bathroom door furniture in bathroom doors, cupboard doors, and closet doors. Adjustable brass ball catchers are easy to install. This when combined with their long life explains why there is so much demand for this kind of “door locking” solutions.

Conclusion


Ball catch door hardware, as explained above, is the most suitable solution for cupboard doors, closet, etc. As you can see from the above discussion that adjustable brass ball catchers are the best among all the ball catchers. Hence, I will recommend that one for bathroom door furniture.

1930s door furniture – How to Find 1930s Door Knobs

Living in a house made in 1930 gives you a sense of pride, as the houses built in 1930s were probably the last batch of homes constructed following the dying modernism philosophy of architecture. The only issue with such homes is finding replacement furniture parts like 1930s door furniture parts.

One of the most easily broken 1930s door furniture part is the door knob, which easily gets broken because of its extensive daily use. Replacing 80 years old door knobs with the ones created in 2011 will kill the aesthetic beauty of the house. So you need a door knob that comes from that era.

All is not lost if your door knobs are broken as there is a way to find 1930s door furniture parts. I will help you do that through this article, but before that let me tell you what to expect, in terms of condition of door knobs you will get.

1930s door knobs – what to expect


The first thing you need to know is the fact that you cannot expect to get brand new pieces of 1930 door knobs because very few unused original door knobs from that era have survived. There could be some, but the price of those knobs will be way too much. You should, rather, keep your expectation a little in check.

The door knobs that you will get may have some door paints of previous doors on them, or the paint may be broken at places. These are the things you can fix, but do not go for a door know which does not have back plates, tightening screws, etc. It may create a problem. You should also expect to get a door knob in excellent working condition, though old and used.

How to find 1930 door furniture – door knobs


Step 1: Know the make


The first step in the process is to know the name of the design of the door knobs you want to replace. You should also find the maker of the door knobs.

Step 2: Do image search


If you do not know the make and model number of door knobs then do Google image search using the relevant keywords (in this case 1930s door knobs). See if you find the knobs you are looking for. Note down the maker and model number of the door knobs on a sheet of paper or in notepad.

Step 3: Search for the sellers


Go to Google one more time and this time to search for a seller who sells the door knobs of the make your doors had. If you were not able to find any concrete information in the previous 2 steps then do not panic. Just do a search and find a reliable 1930s door furniture seller.

Step 4: Inquire about price and delivery


The next step is to ask the dealer about the availability of door knobs you are looking for. Also enquire about the price and tentative delivery date.

Conclusion


After you gathered all the information needed, you should place an order with 1930 door furniture seller. Make sure you have communicated effectively about your needs. If you are not certain then you can ask the seller to email you the pictures of 1930s door furniture knobs before you place an order. It will help you decide.