Entrance doors: protection classes and their characteristics

One of the main attributes of any house or apartment is the entrance door. It has many functions, from protecting the house from unwanted guests to the first impression of the apartment. Doors should definitely have a reliable security lock, have good sound and heat insulation, as well as have an attractive appearance. But what do you need to know about the protection classes of entrance doors when buying them?

Protection classes of entrance doors

To begin with, let's define the concept - protection class. Door protection class is its resistance to mechanical impact, in other words - resistance to burglary. Basically, this concept is formed from a combination of several indicators, such as: the material of the door, the thickness of its lining, the fastening of locks and much more. In the European standard all doors are divided into 6 classes of protection:

• 1st protection class. The door must be able to withstand break-in from human contact with the use of physical force without the use of additional means. That is, the door can withstand a blow from a foot, hand or other part of the body.
• 2nd class of protection. The object should protect the room from burglary with the help of elementary auxiliary tools (screwdriver, pliers or other).
• 3rd Class of Protection. The entryway must protect against entry with more massive tools, such as a crowbar or something similar. There should also be protection against breaking and entering with homemade thieves' tools.
• Class 4 protection. Protects against break-ins using a drill, axe, hammer and chisel.
• 5th protection class. Considered already one of the higher classes, it promises to protect the house from intrusion with electric tools, for example: electric saw, drill, grinding tools.
• Class 6 protection. The highest class of protection, prevents the door from being broken into from the use of the most powerful electrical or other tools.

Each door when it goes on sale passes certain tests to assign it a class of protection. This is tested by the burglary methods that are specified in each class. Thus, the testing goes as follows:

• Static load resistance test.
• Test of resistance to dynamic loads.
• Test of resistance to manual burglary.

There are also documents that determine the error of physical changes. The time of exposure to the test object is also taken into account. After passing all tests, the door becomes certified. She is assigned one of the classes of protection.

When choosing an entrance door, it is important to take into account all the characteristics and components, but first of all pay attention to the resistance to burglary. It is best to immediately look at the technical passport of the model, it describes all the characteristics: the material of the door, the components of the lock and so on. Often the price can be inflated because of the brand or other components, but at the same time do not present maximum protection. In the documents you can immediately see the entire composition of the door, the type of locks, and based on this, to be guided in the choice.