Door Devil Employs Special Needs & Handicapped Workers - Consumer Home Security & Safety from a Little Angel

Every once in a while we all come across an individual or a company that seems to do "the right thing" and it is refreshing.  The Door Devil™ is a product of ArchAngel Home Security, LLC in Dallas, Texas and is manufactured in Ft. Worth.. ArchAngel was incorporated in 2008 in Texas, and is owned by Nicholas Fairless. ArchAngel was approved as a member of the White Settlement Area Chamber of Commerce in the Dallas/Ft.Worth, Texas area in January of 2011. Door Devil also received Better Business Bureau accreditation in June of that year.

I always find myself smiling when I say ArchAngel Door Devil, it seems like an Oxymoron of sorts, but it is no laughing matter. In fact, after learning more about ArchAngel as a company, I found less about a little devil in the details but more appropriately,  "Le bon Dieu est dans le detail", which means The good God is in the detail. 

In a world full of bad news and chaos there are moments of inspiration and the one thing that always captures my attention and respect is simple acts of kindness and giving someone disadvantaged a break, an opportunity and good old fashion dignity. ArchAngel, those little devils...they do something I personally respect and admire. 

Through Goodwill Industries, employment is provided by ArchAngel to special needs / handicapped workers who assemble the hardware packages.

The Product

The Door Devil ™ Door Security Kit provides reinforcement for all vulnerable areas of the standard residential door – the jamb, the door edge, and the hinge side. The heart of the Door Devil™ Door Security Kit is the four foot long 16 gauge steel jamb reinforcement, or “Anti-Kick-In device.” The jamb reinforcement, like the other parts of the kit, has a powder-coated white finish that can be painted, if desired. The jamb reinforcement is secured with nine 3-1/2 inch #12 wood screws. The screws have a matching white finish and are installed with a #3 square-drive bit. The Anti-Kick-In device has four cut-outs. The center two cut-outs are designed for use with entry and deadbolt locks at standard 5-1/2” center-to-center spacing. The additional holes are designed to allow for a second deadbolt or privacy lock. The design is reversible, for use with left or right-handed doors, in-swinging or out-swinging. 

With the Anti-Kick-In device installed, the door edge becomes the next most likely area to fail in case of attempted forced entry. The Door Devil™ Door Security Kit addresses this vulnerability with a Mini Door Shield, which wraps around the door edge where the deadbolt is installed.

With the lock-side jamb and door edge reinforced, the only remaining vulnerability is the hinge side of the door. The Door Devil™ Door Security Kit addresses this area two ways. First, three silver-finish, #2 square-drive 3 inch screws are provided to replace one mounting screw from each hinge. Additionally, the Kit provides two Hinge Bolts. These bolts are screwed into the edge of the door on the hinge side. The bolts are designed to be installed using the same #3 square-drive bit used to install the Anti-Kick-In device mounting screws. Two ½ inch holes are drilled into the hinge-side jamb to accept the bolts as the door is closed. Two reinforcement plates are included that are installed over the ½ inch holes. The Hinge Bolts also make the Door Devil™ usable with outward-opening doors, since they will continue to secure the door even if the hinges are removed.

As impressive as the design and quality of the Door Devil™ Door Security Kit is in creating a whole-door security package that achieves the desired goal of making the door and wall act as a single unit, the steps taken to ensure easy installation are equally impressive. All hardware needed to install the Anti-Kick-In device are included, even a 7/32” drill bit to pre-drill for the mounting screws. Particularly helpful are the two short temporary mounting screws that are included and used to hold the jamb reinforcement in place before installing any of the 3-1/2 inch screws. With the temporary screws in place, you can check for proper alignment of the device with the locks before installing the permanent screws. If the alignment is good, you can go ahead and pre-drill and install seven of the permanent screws; then remove the temporary screws, pre-drill and install the remaining two permanent screws. If the alignment is incorrect, the temporary screws make adjustments quick and easy. The temporary screws use the same #3 square drive as the permanent screws, which makes the screws far less likely to strip during installation than the more common Phillips-head screws.

Similarly, the hinge replacement mounting screws are a #2 square drive to make them less likely to strip during installation. Both #2 and #3 square-drive bits are included in the hardware pack. There is also a 1/8 inch brad-point drill bit included in the hardware pack. The 1/8 inch drill bit is intended for pre-drilling for the hinge replacement screws as well as the Mini Door Shield, Hinge Bolt, and Hinge Bolt reinforcement plate mounting screws. Unfortunately, this drill bit is not long enough to adequately pre-drill for the 3” hinge replacement screws, and is not suitable for pre-drilling for the Mini Door Shield mounting screws if you are dealing with a metal-clad door. The Mini Door Shield mounting screws and the Hinge Bolt reinforcement plate mounting screws are standard #2 Phillips-head.

The locksmith is uniquely qualified to offer professional installation services, which makes the Door Devil™ a great add-on sale when providing other services at residential locations. Their retail packaging and point of purchase display appeals to the DIY'er and sells itself. 

Installation is pretty straightforward and, as noted, Door Devil has taken steps to ensure easy installation. Still, there are certain steps that can be taken to make installation both easy and professional if faced with issues like a tight gap between door and frame or if there is not enough room to mount the Anti-Kick-In device and the Mini Door Shield between the door and jamb.

When this occurs, a mortising jig is available from Door Devil which is used to create a mortise in the door jamb that will allow the Anti-Kick-In device to sit flush with the surface of the jamb. After determining the proper position for the Anti-Kick-In device, mark the top and bottom of the reinforcement plate. Place the jig on the jamb with the top of the opening of the jig about 1/16” above the top mark. Make sure the jig is pushed firmly against the weatherstripping and use the provided screws to attach the jig to the jamb. Use a router with a 1/2” bit and a 5/8 ball-bearing guide (the same type as provided with most hinge and strike plate router mortising kits) to go along the inside edge of the jig, then over the entire open area of the jig over the jamb.

The jig is not long enough to mortise the full 4' length of the Anti-Kick-In device. When the area under the jig  has been mortised, the jig will need to be moved so that the bottom inside edge of the jig about 1/16” below the bottom mark. The upper end of the jig is now over an area that has already been morticed. The jig comes with a shim that must be placed under the upper mounting surface of the jig at this point so that the jig will remain level with the jamb surface. Again, be certain the jig is pushed firmly against the weatherstripping as it is attached to the jamb in the lower position. Use the router to mortise the additional area under the jig. A chisel will need to be used to create a square corner to the mortise at the top and bottom on the door stop side. The resulting mortise allows the Anti-Kick-In device to fit flush with the jamb, creating a very fine finished, professional look.

In all, the Door Devil™ Door Security Kit provides a complete door reinforcement package at a very reasonable price. They provide the tools to make even “problem” installations possible, with a professional look. 

For more information, or to get yours visit - http://www.doordevil.com/locksmith.html