Friday, December 23, 2005
Somebody Done Changed That Lock On My Door
Well, the lock isn't actually changed, because there previously had been no lock at all, but today I managed to put a sliding lock on the first-floor bathroom door.
This is all the more remarkable because I had to do it twice. Mechanically inept as I am, I went to the hardware store and bought a little lock and a screwdriver. I spent half an hour trying to screw the screws in. They were all tilted at various angles and wouldn't go in any further. The lock was loose. Especially traumatic for me was trying to match an overlayed piece to the holes below. I went to another hardware store and got a ratchet, a vice-grip (which I thought I might need for pulling the screws out, inasmuch as the tops of the screws were stripped) and another screwdriver. These new items seemed tough. I noticed another lock and looked at it. It didn't have a piece which had to sit on top of another piece. I bought it, too. When I got home I took my new screwdriver and easily removed the twisted, bent lock. Then I studied the ratchet. It had six or seven different types of screws in little compartments in the handle, and each of these had a different type of screw on either end. I removed the screw the manufacturer had put in the top, turned the bottom of the handle so as to leave an opening under a screw that I needed and removed that. I put it in the slot at the top of the ratchet. I put it down and took the new lock and held it against the door. I marked the door where the screws would be and placed the tip of the first screw where it was going to go. I took the ratchet, and, using it as a screwdriver, inserted it in the tip of the screw. I began turning the ratchet clockwise. The handle spun, but, it was spinning around the part which I'd been hoping would turn as well. But, having seen my childhood friend Stephen use ratchets in our high school days (which is the reason I even know of the existence of ratchets) I pushed the little corrugated, oval-shaped button on the handle forward and began to turn the handle clockwise again. This time the insert spun as well and, in five minutes, I had each screw screwed in completely and the lock was up. I had to re-adjust the position of the part the bolt slid into, because the bolt just missed it, but that only took sixty seconds. So, the recent problem with my bathroom door, which is that it doesn't close all the way because the semi-triangular piece of medal which sticks out doesn't stick all the way out after the door is closed, is compensated for by the fact that I there's a sliding lock which somebody rattling the doorknob in an attempt to get the door to shut may notice. This means many of the people visiting on Christmas will be able to relax in the bathroom and not worry that somebody will waltz in unannounced.
This is all the more remarkable because I had to do it twice. Mechanically inept as I am, I went to the hardware store and bought a little lock and a screwdriver. I spent half an hour trying to screw the screws in. They were all tilted at various angles and wouldn't go in any further. The lock was loose. Especially traumatic for me was trying to match an overlayed piece to the holes below. I went to another hardware store and got a ratchet, a vice-grip (which I thought I might need for pulling the screws out, inasmuch as the tops of the screws were stripped) and another screwdriver. These new items seemed tough. I noticed another lock and looked at it. It didn't have a piece which had to sit on top of another piece. I bought it, too. When I got home I took my new screwdriver and easily removed the twisted, bent lock. Then I studied the ratchet. It had six or seven different types of screws in little compartments in the handle, and each of these had a different type of screw on either end. I removed the screw the manufacturer had put in the top, turned the bottom of the handle so as to leave an opening under a screw that I needed and removed that. I put it in the slot at the top of the ratchet. I put it down and took the new lock and held it against the door. I marked the door where the screws would be and placed the tip of the first screw where it was going to go. I took the ratchet, and, using it as a screwdriver, inserted it in the tip of the screw. I began turning the ratchet clockwise. The handle spun, but, it was spinning around the part which I'd been hoping would turn as well. But, having seen my childhood friend Stephen use ratchets in our high school days (which is the reason I even know of the existence of ratchets) I pushed the little corrugated, oval-shaped button on the handle forward and began to turn the handle clockwise again. This time the insert spun as well and, in five minutes, I had each screw screwed in completely and the lock was up. I had to re-adjust the position of the part the bolt slid into, because the bolt just missed it, but that only took sixty seconds. So, the recent problem with my bathroom door, which is that it doesn't close all the way because the semi-triangular piece of medal which sticks out doesn't stick all the way out after the door is closed, is compensated for by the fact that I there's a sliding lock which somebody rattling the doorknob in an attempt to get the door to shut may notice. This means many of the people visiting on Christmas will be able to relax in the bathroom and not worry that somebody will waltz in unannounced.
# posted by Fredwemyss @ 9:45 PM 
