Opening the door without a key: This is what you need to do if you are locked out

A locked door is no reason to panic. There are always ways and means to get back into your own apartment.

The most promising way is the locksmith service. Call the locksmith, come Professionals come to you with expertise and the right tools Open your lock.

However, many people shy away from locksmith services. One reason is the quite high price. Depending on the effort involved, companies often charge well over €100 to open an apartment door. There are also dubious companies that deliberately charge astronomical prices in order to enrich themselves from people in emergency situations.

The But locksmith services don’t have to be absurdly expensive. On service provider portals such as Listando you can search and compare locksmith services in your area. The companies listed there are definitely reputable and have fair prices on average.

Tip: Also ask around among your circle of friends. Often you know someone across the street who knows a lot about locks and will be happy to help you out in an emergency.

However, it can’t hurt to first try to open your door yourself without a key before calling the locksmith as a last resort. There are some proven methods for doing this.

2.1. The old card trick

The most well-known way to open a door without a key is with a plastic card. The advantage is that that you almost always have the appropriate tool, i.e. the map, with you. In addition, damage to the door or lock is usually avoided in this way.

Slide the card between the front door and the door frame. The card must bend slightly. Now try to find the lock latch. This is at the level of the door handle or a little further up.

Now try to push in the lock latch with the card until the door pops open. This takes some practice. To be on the safe side, you can Practice on a room door beforehandbefore you’ve actually locked yourself out.

Please note that the trick only works if the door is closed, not if it is locked. If the locking pins are locked in the cylinder core, you won’t get very far with the card.

An alternative to the card is the wire. The procedure is the same here, but the technique requires a little more practice and sensitivity. If you don’t have a suitable wire on hand, you can use an old hair clip.

However, opening with a wire or hair clip doesn’t work if the key is inside.

Danger: It is definitely not advisable to break open the room door with a crowbar – this is dangerous for you and your door!

2.2. Opening locked door with plastic bottle

If you don’t have a map or other tools at hand, you can also use a plastic bottle.

To do this, cut off the bottom and neck of the bottle with scissors. You can cut through the remaining middle part again so that you get a rectangular piece of plastic.

Then proceed in the same way as with a card. The advantage here is that you do not expose your chip cards to any dangers.

2.3. Back into the house via the window

Did you leave a window accessible from the ground floor open when you left the house? Then you’re in luck! A tilted window can usually be easily opened from the outside. This way you can get back into your apartment and open the front door from the inside.

To do this, take a piece of string and pull them together at one end to form a loop. Then place the loop around the tilted window handle.

Now pull the window towards you with one hand, while simultaneously pulling on the string with your other hand. The handle should now turn so that the window is wide open and you can climb back into the apartment.

The advantage here is that you can get back into the apartment even if the door is locked if the key is inside.

Better safe than sorry. You can do this so that you don’t end up in the situation of locking yourself out and having to open your door without a key take the following precautions:

• Hide one Spare key in a safe place in the garden.
• Even better: give the spare key to a neighbor or acquaintance. Here’s how to minimize that Risk of burglary.
• Door wedges protect you from accidentally closing the apartment doorif you only leave the house for a short time.