There are a whole range of different types of cylinders. The most common are the double cylinder, the knob cylinder and the half cylinder. But there are many other types of cylinders, which we describe below.
Double cylinder
The double cylinder is the classic locking cylinder for front doors. With this type of profile cylinder, the lock can be locked from both sides with a matching key.
With a standard double cylinder, the door can no longer be unlocked if a key is already inserted from the other side. To ensure that this is still possible, the double cylinder must be equipped with an emergency and hazard function.
To increase the security of such a locking cylinder, core pull protection or drilling protection is recommended.
Knob cylinder
A knob cylinder is also often used on entrance doors. It differs from a double cylinder in that it can be operated with a key on one side and a knob on the other side.
The knob cylinder is always a good choice when protection against burglars is only required on one side of the door. It is less suitable for doors with windows. Burglars could then break the window and gain access to your home via the knob. If there are small children in the house, a knob cylinder can also be suboptimal because children may be able to turn a knob quite early.
Half cylinder
A half-cylinder is a type of cylinder that can only be locked from one side. This means that a half cylinder can do exactly half of what a double cylinder can do. Classic areas of application include garage doors, key boxes, alarm systems and much more. In other words, everything that only needs to be locked from one side.
Short cylinder
Strictly speaking, a short cylinder is not a separate type of cylinder, as it can be used as a double, knob or half cylinder. The special feature of a short cylinder, however, is that the short side is fixed at 27 mm. The long side can be freely configured from a length of 35 mm. The short length of the cylinder means that the security of this type of cylinder is somewhat reduced. For this reason, a short cylinder is primarily used for garden gates and thin entrance doors.
Lever cylinder
The lever cylinder is also one of the cylinder types. This locking cylinder can be opened and closed from one side with a key. On the other side, there is a lever that determines the locking state of the lock. When the lock is closed, the lever blocks the opening from the inside. If you now unlock the lock from the outside with a suitable key, the lever moves to the neutral position and the door/hatch can be opened.
The best example of the use of this type of locking cylinder is a mailbox.
Padlock / Padlock
The padlock is not permanently installed and is instead simply hooked into the eyelets provided. A padlock can be used to lock doors that do not have a door lock or that you want to secure additionally.
Classic areas of use for padlocks are garden arbours, garden sheds or garden gates.
Outer cylinder
The external cylinder gets its name because it is attached from the outside. In the case of the box or additional locks that are installed inside, it is attached from the outside and connected to the locks with a metal tongue.
Blind cylinder
Blind cylinders are designed for all doors that do not need to be locked. The blind cylinder simply blocks the door lock and prevents smoke or toxic fumes from passing through the opening of the door lock in the event of a fire or other incident. The blind cylinder is used primarily for passage doors.
Cylinder Types: How do I determine the length of a cylinder?
To determine the length of a cylinder, you can either remove it and then measure it, or you can measure it when it is installed. It is usually easier if you measure the locking cylinder when it is installed.
To do this, you have to open the door and need a folding rule to measure. You need two measurements: the inside and the outside. Now measure from the faceplate screw to the inside of the door to the point where the profile cylinder ends. This will determine the inside measurement. For the outside measurement, measure from the faceplate screw to the end of the profile cylinder on the outside.
Which locking cylinder for the front doors?
Double cylinders and knob cylinders are ideal for front doors. The double cylinder is a good choice for almost every front door. The knob cylinder should only be used if the door does not have an excessive amount of glass.
