I have the following door handle / lock combination that leads out to my garage. The key for the door has long been lost and sometimes someone will turn the internal lock and the door cannot be opened from the garage side. I wish to disable this lock, how do I do that?
Glue could fail and/or look ugly. Other options cost money. When you remove the inside knob, you will see a connecting rod protruding from the latch mechanism that engages the lock button. Cut this off so it no longer engages the lock button. Do not cut the semi circular shaft that engages the main lever! Ensure the remaining stub is turned to the unlock position and reassemble the knob. The lock button will now turn freely, but it's impossible to lock the knob without a key or disassembling the knob.
Another option is to take the lock to a locksmith and have it re-keyed to a new key (and get a bunch of copies of that key). I have heard that this can cost less than the cost of a new doorknob.
However, as this would involve removing the knob and taking it the locksmith, I would probably just get a new knob and replace it (unless you really like the style/color/etc of the current one).
First, unlock the door. Now place a piece of tape across the small knob you use to lock/unlock the door so that it doesn't move. Next, take off the handle and glue the knob in place so that it cannot be operated. Re-install the handle.
I have a residential Family Care Home and the state requires that a business such as this have doors throughout the home that will not lock regardless of whether it has a locking mechanism. I could have gone out and purchased the ones that won't lock,but they cost almost $40 a piece (I needed 6), so I placed a magnetic metal strip over the door jamb to prevent the door from locking, and the door still closes perfectly. Ace, Home Depot, and Lowe's stock these strips, and most hardware stores will cut them to your specifications for less than $2 a piece. This way if you decide to sell the home, you simply remove the strips.
Doing this saved me a lot of money, and it works!
I had the same problem, different keys for the bolt lock and the knob. In the picture I show what I cut on my knob to keep it from ever locking. You may find that your center post looks more like a flat bar but it does the same thing and will need to be cut.
you can remove the handle take the lock apart and remove the pins. You could also bring the handle into a hardware store that cuts keys and get a set of keys made or you can get the lock re keyed to work with your front door key or another.
A very simple, subtle and reversible solution is to put something in the frame-side slot. I had a similar problem and found it was trivial to cut the leftover cork from a wine bottle to fit in the slot where the bolt would otherwise automatically spring-load in. So, now, even if someone pushes in the door handle lock button, the bolt remains retracted and the door opens easily.
I solved the problem by removing the knob side of the handle and then driving the knob out hitting it very gently. A hammer and a small diameter socket will do
