Author: handle_plus

Door furniture is a term used to describe any items attached to a door to enhance its functionality or aesthetics. This includes door handles, lock cases and any other relevant fixtures. Correct maintenance techniques depend very much on the base materials and finishes of your door furniture.

Check the tension of fastenings

If you have level handles, then then you need to check the tension of their fastenings at least once a year. Any fastenings that have come loose should be tightened according to the manufacturer’s instructions. Pull handles, on the other hand, should be checked annually to ensure the fittings are mounted properly and all neck screws are adequately tightened.

Clean inside and out

If your door furniture is made of brass or stainless steel, they will require regular cleaning. Start by washing the outside surfaces with water and soap (or a mild detergent) and then rinse it with straight water. Be mindful to prevent water getting into the interior of lock cases. Make sure you follow up with a thorough dry and polish using a soft, dry cloth (ideally microfibre).

Remedy discolouration

Despite its name, stainless steel can develop discolouration if they it is not cleaned and maintained correctly. If you see any spots on your door handles or lock cases, you can remove them with a professional grade polishing agent. As a final step rinse the surface carefully with pure water and finish up with a dry and polish. Never use scouring powder, steel wool or other abrasive materials. The same care should be used for chrome finishes, with the addition of high grade chrome polish afterwards.
When it comes to oil-rubbed bronze, eventually it will wear down to a coppery colour. To prevent this, regularly wipe a small amount of vegetable oil on a soft cloth. You may be able to restore the high metal colour with household detergents and mild abrasive powder.
If you need new door furniture for your home, then contact Handles Plus today. Based on the Gold Coast, we have a range of door handles, lock cases and hinges for all door types, we pride ourselves on finding our customers the right product for any project, whether it’s changing a few handles or organising a house-wide fit-out.

Even if you are extremely careful opening your doors, without door stops you risk doing severe damage to your doors. All it takes is a strong gust of wind or a little too much exertion and your door handle can put a huge dent in your wall or door. While a door stop’s primary function is to prevent damage to your walls, there are also other benefits that they bring to your home.

Reduce injury

Doors can be a source of injury for both children and pets. If a door is caught by the wind or is swung shut quickly, unsuspecting fingers or paws can get caught in the door jam. By keeping your doors open with a door stop you can reduce the risk of injuries and keep your family safe.

Make them decorative

These days there are huge range of sizes and styles of door stops available. You can choose from half-moons, wall mounted, plunger, magnetic, square and round style door stops or opt for the more secure door holder. You can choose a style that complements the style of your home and matches your door handles.

Easier than door wedges

Instead of permanent door stops, many people have door wedges. While door wedges are cheaper than door stops, they are not fixed and tend to slip or slide on hardwood, concrete or tiled floors. Likewise, on carpeted floors where there is excess friction, door wedges can be difficult to remove.
If you need help choosing the right door stops for you home, then contact Handles Plus today. We have a range of door stops for all rooms and doors including pantry doors, French doors, office doors, panel doors and louvered doors.
When it comes to building or renovating your home, Handles Plus know that you need materials and products that you can trust. That’s why our Gold Coast showroom is stocked only with the best products, from the best door hardware manufacturers.

While planning a holiday is fun and exciting time, it does come with a lot of planning: organising flights, itineraries, pet-sitting and accommodation. While these things are all important, you need to ensure that your home is left safe and secure. To help you out, here are some simple tips to protect your home when you’re on vacation.

Get someone to check on the house

When you go away it’s always best to have a friend or family member check on your home. Ask them to put out and pull in your bins each week and to collect any mail. This way they can keep an eye on things and it looks like you’re home, making you less susceptible to theft.

Don’t leave spare keys out

Many people hide keys outside their home in case they forget a key or get locked out. While this may be convenient, it’s incredibly risky. Under door mats, in the mailbox, under fake rocks, thieves know all about the common hiding spots, so don’t risk it! Collect all your hidden keys and store them securely inside before you go.

Lock up everything

While this may seem like common sense, when you are rushing out the door to catch a flight it’s easy to forget to lock up properly. Ensure all doors and windows are locked up and dead bolted and that external gates are padlocked or locked up securely.

Install high quality locks

Over the years the locks on your home can deteriorate and the alignment of your door can compromise your lock’s integrity. If you have locks older than seven years, then it’s time to invest in new lock cases.
If you need new lock cases, then contact Handles Plus today. We stock a huge range of reputable lock case brands in a range of beautiful finishes including brass, chrome plate and Florentine bronze. If your home needs new locks, then give us a call or visit our Gold Coast warehouse.

Kitchen cabinets are one of the most used and chaotic cabinets in your home. It doesn’t take long for your cabinets to become chock a block with cutlery, crockery, utensils, bottles, jars and various kitchen gadgets. To help you better organise your kitchen cabinets, check out these five helpful tips.

Invest in space saving containers

To maximise the space in your cupboards and pantry, then purchase a range of uniform storage containers and decant pantry staples such as sugar, lentils, flour, cereals, dried fruit and nuts. Square and rectangular canisters fit together better and can stack on top of each other. Just remember to label your containers to keep track of what’s what.

Think about placement priority

No matter what size your kitchen, there just never seems to be enough space. Think about the items you use daily and place these in easy to reach places. Weekly use items should be placed up a little higher and monthly or occasional use items can be places in the highest cabinets.

Utilise versatile utensils and crockery

Most kitchen have far too many utensils and crockery, which clutters your cabinets and draws. If you want to reduce clutter and organise your space better, invest in items that have multiple uses. For example, Pyrex and cast-iron basking dishes can go straight from the cooktop, to the table, to the fridge.

Utilise hanging space

To maximise your space hang hooks or racks inside your kitchen cabinet doors. You can use this space to hang measuring cups and spoons and other utensils freeing up room in draws for other items. Otherwise use racks to store herbs, spices and sauces.

Install new kitchen cabinet handles

Many cabinet handles make accessing your kitchen cabinets extremely difficult. This is extremely tiring when you are cooking or putting away the dishes. If you’re looking for new kitchen cabinet handles, then contact Handles Plus Gold Coast. With a range of cabinet handles to suit your existing style, or to completely makeover your kitchen.

Contrary to popular belief, there are many kinds of door hinges. To help you understand the different types of door hinges and their uses, here is a list of the most common hinges and their possible applications:

Ball Bearing Hinge

This heavy-duty hinge is great for use on heavy doors. These hinges are permanently lubricated allowing for a much smoother door swing.

Double Action Spring Hinge

While this lighter weight hinge is not recommended for heavy doors, it is commonly used on kitchen doors, dining room doors and two-way swinging doors.

Flush Hinge

A very commonly used hinge, this variety is most often used on cabinet doors and lightweight doors. These hinges aren’t the most appealing are best when concealed.

Swing and sway Hinge

This hinge is popularly in commercial building in café style doors. These hinges are quite temperamental and require perfect alignment for full functionality.

Continuous Hinge

These distribute the weight of a door across the entire length of the hinge. They are commonly used in the fabrication of toolboxes, canopies, caravans and trailers.

Butt Hinge

Probably the most common hinge of all time, butt hinges come in all different sizes. Reliable, durable and neat, these hinges can be used on almost any door. Most butt hinges are made of steel but can be combined with other materials to prevent corrosion.

Concealed Hinge

These hinges are subtle and discreet and can be adjusted after they are installed. They generally come in two sizes: 25mm and 36mm.

Bi-Fold Hinges

This flexible hinge has multiple pivot points, allowing a door to swing more tightly or open from both directions.

Heavy Duty Hinge

These durable, industrial strength hinges are used for heavy duty doors and come in a range of styles.
Still not sure what door hinge you need? Speak to the team at Handles Plus or come visit us at our Gold Coast showroom. Our friendly staff are always happy to help.

If you are redecorating or renovating, then there are lots of small, simple things you can do to give your home a makeover without spending a fortune. To help you out the team at Handles Plus have put together these simple tips.

Fresh coat of paint

Yes, it may seem like a cliché, a fresh coat of paint can really breathe life into a tired looking space. For a timeless look, opt for neural colours such as cream, white, beige or stone. For something a bit funkier, then integrate a pop of colour with a carefully planned feature wall.

Buy a new rug

You’d be surprised how much a new rug can zhoosh up a space. Rugs are particularly effective when laid on top of tiled or wooden floors. For a cosier look, opt for a shag or wool rug, or for something a little fancier, opt for a Persian or a hair of hide rug. For a Boho vibe, choose a natural fibre or patterned synthetic rug.

Declutter

Clutter is out, and minimalism is in. if you’re redecorating then try reducing the amount of clutter in your home. Select a few key items to leave on display on shelves and tables and store the rest away in cupboards and storage. This will open your space and make your home look far more modern.

Replace your door handles

Most older homes have dated door handles. To modernise your home, replace any knob style door handles with more sleek lever style door handles. The finish you choose will depend on the look you are going for and the décor of your home. A popular choice for modern homes however is chrome, stainless steel or silver plating.
If you need help choosing the right door handles for your home, then contact Handles Plus. We have a range of level door handles in a range of materials and finishes. To range our full range of door handles, visit our Gold Coast showroom.

We use door locks every day, more than once or twice. But do we maintain it as much as we use it? Locks are mechanical hardware that needs maintenance just as much any other machine does. The average lock lasts about approximately seven years, but lack of proper maintenance might reduce this time.

Here’s how to get out the most off your door locks,

Is your door properly installed?

A lock only works correctly if the door is properly installed. A door that is improperly installed causes pressure on the lock’s latch or bolt, leading to its damage. Make sure your door is properly hung when it’s being installed, the gap between the frame and the door should be uniform across the top and the sides.

Check the adjacent hardware

Your door’s position also depends on other door hardware like the hinges and strike plates. The door might sag if the screws used in the hinges are not long enough. It will also help prevent break-ins. Just like the hinge screws the plate for deadbolts should be secured to the wall frame with long screws.

The dead-latch and the deadbolt should be properly aligned so as to prevent dysfunctional locks. The deadbolt should operate freely with the door closed, you should not have to push, pull or lift the door to operate the lock.

Clean the locks properly

Cleaning locks is really easy, just use a damp piece of cloth or mild detergent soap water to clean the outside of the lock and the door handle. Make sure not to use any abrasive chemical cleaner, because that will damage the lock more. Most lock has a protective coating that lasts years, but not in case of heavy abuse.

Lubricate

Usually locks need to be lubricated regularly. Make sure not to use petroleum based products, because it might damage the lock more. Graphite lubricants works well, but Teflon and other types of dry lubricants are easy to apply and works best. Spray the lubricant into the keyway, then put the key in and turn it in and out repeatedly. If any debris comes out with the key wipe it off. You can do this once a year. The lockset need to be removed from the door before applying lubricant if you need more through lubrication.

Looking to but premium quality locksets? Choose Handles Plus for a huge collection of door hardware such as handles, locksets, hinges, door stops and more!

When you are making important decisions while renovating or building your home, you already have a lot on your plate without worrying about small door hardware! You need solid facts to make some quick but informed decisions, so here are a few factors about levers and doorknobs you should know before buying them:

Door Knobs

Door knobs are classic additions to your door, they give a look of class and style to your door. They are perfect for aged houses if you are renovating them. Also the locks used in old fashioned homes goes with doorknobs. There are a number of style, finish and shape to choose from; so they are more aesthetically suited for the door than other options.

Doorknobs needs twisting, which requires added force. This makes doorknobs inconvenient to use for people with arthritis in the hands and wrists, for toddlers, or just wet hands. Although oval or egg shaped knobs provide more grip than traditional round shaped doorknobs.

Door Levers

Lever handles are the thing of the present; which is available in both modern and traditional styles. They can be uses indoors as well as outdoors, and they are more user friendly in terms of the additional force needed.

One can just open the door using the elbow even if their hands are full, and that makes handles suitable for almost every door possible. Also, since lever handles are fitted away from the door of the frame, there is no chance of catching one’s knuckles on the frame. Lever handles are available in many finishes, size and styles so as to fit any architectural design.

Although easy to use and aesthetically pleasing, lever handles need regular maintenance as they contain springs. The basic shape of the handle might cause catching loose clothing, which is a con of using a lever. Although it’s user friendliness beats all the cons, as it’s great for people who are busy.

If you are looking to get door hardware such as handles, hinges, locks, door stops etc., your search is over! Visit Handles Plus for any door hardware you need.

When it comes to building your dream house, every little detail need to be perfect. Before buying the hardware for your doors, you can use some information on different types of door handles, locks etc. There are many types of doors in a home, and they need different types of hardware depending on their variety.

Here are an overview of commonly used type of door handles and locks:

Lever Handles

Lever handles are a type of lever attached door latch. They do not need firm grasping and twisting to open the door unlike doorknobs, so they are more user friendly option compared to other types of door handles. They offer a wide variety of options to use different types of lock cases and back plates. You can use these handles on a variety of type of doors, using round roses to long back plates. Entrance, passage or closet, privacy, bedroom or bath, classroom, office—lever handles can be used on any door.

Pull Handles

Pull handles are the ones you grip and pull to open a door. They are modern, sleek and gives a modern look to any door. They are specially used on double doors, to grip on side and pull the other to open the doors. They are often used to make a dramatic statement to adorn a contemporary styled property.

There are four basic types of lock sets being used in door hardware nowadays:

• Passage lock set, which actually includes no lock. They are generally used in general passage rooms, door to hallway, closet etc.
• Then comes privacy lock sets, and just as the name suggests they are used in bedrooms and bathrooms. The privacy side is lockable, and there is a keyhole on the outside.
• Keyed locks come next. They are mostly used in entrances and can be locked on both sides. They have a wide range of indoor and outdoor applications.
• Dummy handles are non-functional, and there is no locking and latching mechanism.

If you are looking for door handles, locks, hinges, lock cylinders, door stops, door signage etc., call Handles Plus today.