Door handles are often referred to as door furniture. There are several configuration of door furniture available and you must be careful to select the correct one for your application. The version you require will be determined by the type of lock or latch you need as well as the aesthetic you want to acheive.

Well, there are pros and cons for both.

Lever Furniture : The best choice for ease of use and works with the vast majority of locks and latches. If an unsprung lever handle is to be used then a heavier sprung or good quality lock or latch should also be selected to stop the lever from drooping when at rest. Levers are particularly suitable for use by elderly or disabled people.

Knob Furniture : Many people prefer the appearance of knob furniture especially on restoration projects and traditional buildings. They can be difficult to turn and specific attention should be given to the combination of the springing in the handle and the lock or latch. A larger backset lock or latch should also be used to avoid the user's hands coming in to contact with the door frame. We would recommend an absolute minimum of 57mm backset*, depending on the diameter of the knob and the width of the stop on the door frame.

*The backset is the distance from the edge of the door to the centre of the spindle, not the overall length of the lock or latch.

Round and square rose handles look great, but there are drawbacks with using this type of furniture. The fixings are very close together and any leverage applied to the handle naturally wants to rotate the base (rose) as well as withdrawing the latch. This can cause the fixings to work loose or even break. To overcome this, most round rose furniture is supplied with back to back bolt fixings. If, however, the lock or latch used does not have holes for these fixings to pass through, then clearly they can't be used and thought must be given as to whether they will be the best choice for your door. Our advice - works best with tubular latches or any latch with holes for the fixings.

A good handle for everyday use and a very popular choice. The only consideration is where you are fitting other types of door furniture limited to a long back plate (ie. lock or bathroom furniture), then as the title suggests these will have a different length of back plate.This could effect the aesthetic and therefore where a long back plate version is available, it could be a better choice. Works with all types of latch.

A popular choice where uniformity is the key to your desired aesthetic. This type of handle can also be useful to cover up damage to the face of the door from previously fitted handles. Works with all types of latch.

Bathroom furniture comprises of a lever handle and a thumbturn usually with external coin release in case of emergencies, which operate independant of each other, and on a long backplate. These should be used where a bathroom lock has been fitted. The lever operates the latch bolt at all times and the thumbturn / coin release operate the deadbolt, thus locking and unlocking the door. Care must be taken to ensure the bathrrom furniture selected has the correct centres (between the spindles) for the bathroom lock. In the UK this is usually 57mm but many imported locks and those for use by the disabled have different centres for ease of use. It's well worth checking this prior to purchase. The individual descriptions of the handles on our web site will state the centres.

A handle which locks the door using only a latch, normally on a short backplate. The handle still has a lever and a thumbturn with emergency coin release and two spindles, but rotating the thumbturn positions a cam on the back of the furniture, which stops the lever handle from being operated. This means that when engaged, the latch bolt cannot be withdrawn and the door is locked. You must, however, ensure that the latch selected does not block the patch of the thumbturn spindle, and therefore a tubular latch is the sensible option. This type of handle doesn't tend to last as long as bathroom furniture.

This type of furniture is generally on a long backplate and incorporates a key hole for a lever type lock (ie. 3 lever, 5 lever etc.). As with the all lock furniture, the handle and the keyhole can be at various centres and the correct combination of lock and handle is essential. The UK standard dimension for these centres is 57mm, but there are many, many locks that do not conform to this. The individual descriptions of the handles on our web site will state the centres.

This type of furniture is generally on a long backplate and incorporates a hole for a euro cylinder. As with the all lock furniture, the handle and the keyhole can be at various centres and the correct combination of lock and handle is essential. There is no real standard dimension for these and even a 1mm difference between the lock centre and the handle centre mean it will not work. The descriptions of the handles on our web site will state the centres.

This type of furniture is generally on a long backplate and incorporates a hole for an oval cylinder. As with the all lock furniture, the handle and the keyhole can be at various centres and the correct combination of lock and handle is essential. There is no real standard dimension for these and even a 1mm difference between the lock centre and the handle centre mean it will not work. The descriptions of the handles on our web site will state the centres.