A guide to UPVC door handles

UPVC, or PVC, stands for polyvinyl chloride, and was invented by Eugen Baumann in 1872. In 1913, another German, Friedrich Klatte, developed a "new method of the polymerisation of vinyl chloride using sunlight." However, PVC was not considered until 1926, when an employee at BF Goodrich, Waldo Lonsbury Semon, created a plasticised version of PVC. His intention was to create an "unsaturated polymer that could bond rubber to metal." Nowadays, Semon's invention is applied to door handles.

Exterior handles: Two levers

UPVC door handles can be an excellent choice for replacement handles for your exterior glazed doors. These door handles can have a keyhole. When replacing an existing door handle with a UPVC handle with two levers, make sure that you measure the distance from the centre of the handle and the widest point in the keyhole.This measurement must be the same as the handle that you're replacing. Moreover, match the distance between the screw holes, the distance between the bottom screw hole and the middle of the widest point of the keyhole, the overall width of the back plate as well as the with of the handle's spindle. These handles come in various finishes to gold, brass, semi-gloss,
white semi-gloss, and silver matt.

Exterior handles: Lever and pad

This type of UPVC handle for doors is similar to the lever and lever configuration, and must be fitted in the same way. Make sure that you measure it properly before using it as a replacement handle. When you look at the lever and pad handle, you will notice one major difference
- beyond the fact that the two handles are not the same. Unlike the lever and lever configuration, the two handles don't have to be directly lined up with each other, or in-line. These handles can be offset, with the pad handle slightly lower than the lever handle. The handles also come in gold, brass, semi-gloss, white semi gloss, and silver matt.

Exterior handles: Snib latch

The snib latch refers to a type of latch which can be activated to hold open the door. When these handles are installed, they will look similar to the ones that they are replacing, except that they will look more discreet due to the position of the latching system. Measure the handle carefully when seeking to use it as a replacement handle. The finishes are the same as the two above.

Exterior/Interior: Slave handle

The name "slave handle" refers to the fact that these handles don't have keyholes. They can be used as storm door handles as well as interior handles. They should be measured carefully when installing them. You won't be able to use the measurements involving the keyhole - the other measurements will be very important.