Residential & Commercial Security - Locks, Keys & Dead Bolts - Lock stuck - latch won't retract

The lock on one of the outside doors is stuck shut. The knob turns from both inside and outside but the latch won't retract. The lock is a Schlage keyed knob (with deadlatch) and about five year old.

I have removed the knobs and am able to move the locking mechanism that should retract the latch but the latch wont budge. For the last few days I had noticed that the spring mechanism in the latch wasn't working too smoothly - I had to turn the knob to shut the door rather than just being able to push the door shut.

What can I do to pull the latch out of the latch hole and strikeplate?

Thanks for your help.

The lock on one of the outside doors is stuck shut. The knob turns from both inside and outside but the latch won't retract. The lock is a Schlage keyed knob (with deadlatch) and about five year old.

I have removed the knobs and am able to move the locking mechanism that should retract the latch but the latch wont budge. For the last few days I had noticed that the spring mechanism in the latch wasn't working too smoothly - I had to turn the knob to shut the door rather than just being able to push the door shut.

What can I do to pull the latch out of the latch hole and strikeplate?

Thanks for your help.

Hello alecu,

This sounds like it could be a couple things. First, try pushing the door closed as you turn the handle. The latch may have dropped into the strike hole completely, binding the latch. Or you may try lifting the door as you try and open it. Friction is the one thing that most often happens causing a latch not to retract.

Another possibility is that the latch may have become detached from the knobset. IF this is the case, you will have to remove the lock from the door, and from there you can open the door with a flatblade screwdriver. I recommend replacing the latch as well.

Hope this gives you some ideas. Let us know how it works?

cuedude

Cuedude,

Thanks for the ideas:

- I tried putting the knob back on and pushing/pulling/lifting the door while turning the knob, but the latch still won't retract.

- I didn't understand the part about opening the door with a flatblade screwdriver. Does this mean remove the trim piece and insert a putty knife/screwdriver between the door and frame and try to push the latch back? This lock has a deadlatch - is this method likely to work (I have read that the deadlatch is meant to prevent "credit-card" entry).

Other ideas are appreciated too.

I didn't understand the part about opening the door with a flatblade screwdriver

What I meant to say is if you remove the lock from the inside of the door, using a flatblade screwdriver you can pull the little 'T' that sticks out from the latch on the inside of the hole. This pulls the latch back away from the strike, allowing you to open the door.

There are different configurations of latches, and how they are activated however. You could run into a long latch the lock runs through. You can use a large flatblade to activate that. If you have the type with the half moon, use the outside of the lockbody, stick it into the half moon, and turn the whole thing to retract the latch.

Let me know if you have any more trouble. I'll do my best to get that thing open for you.

cuedude

Thanks for the ideas - much as I tried, I couldn't get it to open. Had to call a locksmith. The locksmith was able to work the latch out using a couple of thin tools (and friction) in the gap between the door and the frame.

The latch was broken - the spings inside were wedged sideways. Appears to be a mechanical failure of the lock - a Schlage with a lifetime warranty!

Hi alecu,

Sorry about that. A broken latch is something I didn't figure on. I thought it was OK. I'm glad the lock is out now, and the door is open. I'm also wondering why the lock wasn't removed from the door before the broken latch was found. It's much easier to work through the 2 1/8th inch hole than through the 1/8 inch space betwen the door and the frame. Glad it's open though.

cuedude

I had the same problem with a Kwikset doorknob. Various tools inserted in the crack of the door would not move the latch. The door could not be taken off of the hinges. My solution was to cut through the door latch with a hacksaw blade inserted in the crack of the door from inside the house. It took patience and about 45 minutes.

So I have the same issue desribed in the previous posts in which my door latch wont retract. I am willing to call a locksmith, but I want to give it the old college try first.

First I too tried pushing/lifting/twisting/etc the door to open the latch, but nothing budged. Next I removed the knobs and tried to manually force the latch back. I think I am working on the appropriate piece, but I'm open to suggestions. The knob has a long cylindrical metal tube that is half surrounded by a second tube. Both tubes (the full cylinder and the half cyclinder surrounding it) twit when I twist the knob. It seems the outter, half tube is supposed to catch a metal piece (part of the door innards) pulling that piece back causing the latch to retract. If I have this right, I should be able to manually force that metal piece. Muscles dont fail me know! It seems I am not strong enough to do this forcefully, so I sprayed WD40 on everything but still cant budge that metal piece.

I tried sticking a knife between the door and the jam but I have the same problem. I'm not stong enough to force the latch back using a knife. I dont have a hacksaw blade to cut through the latch (as texascharles describes). Does anyone have additional suggestions for me?

Welcome to the forums, TiffanyK!

Cutting the latch or brute force are probably your best options at this point. I have torn stuck latches apart a couple of times using a screw driver and vise grips. The strength/quality of the latch will contribute to how hard this is.

Hacksaw blades are cheap and you can get a small holder for the blade or wrap tape around one end if you want to try and cut it.

Thank you Mr. Moderator! Before I try cutting with a hacksaw, I want to make sure I understand what I should be accomplishing. Should I be positioning the blade between the door and the jam and cutting through the latch? Once I do that I should be able to open the door but will I be able to get the latch out of the jam? I fear I may be left with a small piece of the latch still stuck in the jam and no leverage to pull/dig it out. Are you expecting the latch will simply fall out of jam when I open the door? Please advise...

Here is a suggestion that most locksmiths will not advise as it is possible to cause damage to the jamb.

I have used this method successfully a few times, but you need to be careful.
It's hard to describe...but I'll try.

1. Get a piece of 4x2
2. Take your car tire jack and place the base of the jack against the hinge side of the jamb.
3. wind the jack open and place the 4x2 long ways into the jack head (the part that lifts the car) so that the end of the 4x2 presses on the opposing jamb.
4. Continue to wind the jack open. This will put pressure on the jambs causing them to bend slightly and increase the gap between the jamb and the door frame.
5.When the jamb opens enough, try pushing the latch back with a screwdriver or steel rule or chisel.

Door should open easily.

For cutting, yes between the door and the jamb. The trouble with this, unless you can remove the stop is limited space preventing a long stroke with the hacksaw.

GlobalLocky makes a good point-what kind of gap do you have between the door and frame? If it is fairly large, you may not even need heavy equipment just pry bar or large screw driver to spread it a bit. This can leave at least surface wood damage though.

There was a bit of room between the door and the jam (maybe an 1/8") so I could really stick a knife or flat head screw driver in there to push back the latch. The only problem is the space between the door and the jam was not on the side of the latch that is angled. So it was a bit awkward to work from the "wrong" side. In any case, I still couldnt push the latch back manually.

I also tried taking the pins out of the hinges to swing the door open from the hinge side (hoping the latch was not strong enough to resist the force from the door). I couldnt get the pins out of the hinges so I picked up a $5 hacksaw and spent 30 minutes sawing throught the latch. Afterwards, it was fairly easy to pick the broken pieces of the latch from the jam...sorta like playing that game Operation :)

Now my door swings right open with the slightest breeze! Thanks everyone for your suggestions!

Oh and it turns out the piece of the metal I worked on after removing the knobs (hoping it would push the latch back) was the wrong part. Now that the door is open, I can push the remaining piece of latch back with my fingertip, but I cannot see the part in the lock I should have been working on. It is hidden within the lock innards.

So I couldnt have dont it without your suggestions. Thank you very much! Score one for the do-it-yourself-ers!

Same problem here with a Schlage lock.

Door knob turns both ways, but bolt won't retract.

I was able to remove the lock from both sides of the door.

Rotating the innards of the lock with a screwdriver does not move the bolt - clockwise or counter clockwise

If I jiggle the door, I am able to move the bolt using a putty knife and thought I could use 2 putty knifes to move, hold in place, move a bit more, hold in place etc... but the bolt moves only so far and then I cannot get it any further... not enough to open the door.

As soon I as release the putty knifes, the bolt springs back to its full extended position... so some kind of spring action is working.

I just cannot see where the movement of the bolt is being limited.

Any ideas are really appreciated.

Good idea with the putty knives.

Can you remove the hinge pins and remove the door?

If not twist the latch to pieces with vise grips or pliers as mentioned above. Once enough pieces are removed you should be able to pull it back.

I think the other posts covered about all available options.

Yes, the putty knifes worked very well in tandem... one to move the bolt, the other to hold it while I repositioned for the next push.

However, I couldn't get it to go far enough to open. Tried removing the pins on the hinges, but after having someone use a rubber mallet against a 2x4 on the other side of the door, it was clear the door was not going to clear the hinges.

Ended up calling a locksmith who used my putty knifes a a "tool" I created to move the bolt as far as I did... he then used a small crowbar to spread the door and door jamb apart just a wee bit more which gave it the clearance it needed to swing open.

He then removed the latch and replaced it with a new one (~$20) and we kept the existing knobs, face plates, lock and keys. Labor and service call was an additional $150.

I guess it worked out OK, because I probably would have gone out and bought (in my ignorance) an entire new lock and end up having to rekey everything.

Thanks for your reply.