lock
I have the following door handle / lock combination that leads out to my garage. The key for the door has long been lost and sometimes someone will turn the internal lock and the door cannot be opened from the garage side. I wish to disable this lock, how do I do that?
Door latches (door handle you're referring to) are made to close while locked, they're a spring-loaded device that does not care that the door knob won't turn or lever actuate as the latch bolt gets pushed back against its spring by the striker plate before dropping into the pocket. It works this way whether the lock is engaged or not. Nothing in the lock mechanism is connected to this portion of the latch.
He might be onto something if he's talking about the deadbolt but the reason why would be obvious to you. I only mention it because I flipped the deadbolt lever in the dark in one of those bu'duh moments and left a nice permanent dent in the casement molding beside my front door.
I've locked the latch from the inside all my life as well. Took apart my first mortise type lock with the old ward keys somewhere around 10 and managed to get it back together and in working condition. Did the same with the Kwikset dual door set of the day. The latch part hasn't changed much in its operation over the ensuing four decades and the latch was made to spring actuate then as it does now.
Tell him it saves wear and tear on the pin tumblers in the lock and the key for the door latch as they only get used half as much as the deadbolt key.
How old is this lockset? Normal wear and tear kill them.
If the lock is separate from the handle and turns freely, my guess is the handle is the issue, not the lock. Overhead garage doors almost always latch by extending pins through the tracks on either side of the door. It is likely that one of these just got bound due to expansion, contraction, ice lifting, or whatnot. I'd try a couple things before doing anything with the lock itself. First, grab the handle and alternate between jerking the door up and down while you try to turn it. If this doesn't work, you may be able to carefully remove the trim on either side of the door. Usually there will be enough of a gap to slide in a flatbar or something similar to tap on the latching pins. If they're stuck, knocking them up and down a couple times will usually free them.
Best Answer
Glue could fail and/or look ugly. Other options cost money. When you remove the inside knob, you will see a connecting rod protruding from the latch mechanism that engages the lock button. Cut this off so it no longer engages the lock button. Do not cut the semi circular shaft that engages the main lever! Ensure the remaining stub is turned to the unlock position and reassemble the knob. The lock button will now turn freely, but it's impossible to lock the knob without a key or disassembling the knob.