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What happens to such a smart lock if it loses access to electric power (or internet access if it needs one)? Is there a key backup? Do you get locked out of you

What happens to such a smart lock if it loses access to electric power (or internet access if it needs one)? Is there a key backup? Do you get locked out of your home if you don't have said backup key with you?

ulucs 8y ago
My current apartment has a "smart lock" system for entry into the building. The system becomes unresponsive with no electricity, which means you're locked out. But you can kick open the door anyways, so at least that's an alternative to being locked out.
- lawlessone 8y ago
  Jesus, what if that failed in a fire?
  - ziari 8y ago
    Nearly all smart locks can be mechanically unlocked from the inside (as required by fire safety regulations).
  - more_pylons 8y ago
    In the case of a fire tenents try to get out of the house and usually there is a normal manual turn lock on the inside of the door that works without electricity. For the fire fighters, I assume they break down the door anyways?
- iamatworknow 8y ago
  In my apartment building all of the external access doors are held closed by electromagnetic "locks" that require a key fob to open, unless we lose power, in which case there's no battery backup and they're all unlocked.
CaptainZapp 8y ago
Add "or the manufacturer decides to deactiveate the servers on which the locks are dependent and the email informing landlord winds up in the spam folder" to the mix.
tboxer 8y ago
I was an early user of "unnamed" popular Kickstarter door lock and I took my dog out at 9pm and came back to find that the batteries were dead. I called the customer support and they told me the low battery alert message was sent after I had locked the door and left, which was about a 20 minute trip. They ended up paying for my locksmith, but I haven't felt comfortable using the lock since so it just sits on my door.
- mehrdadn 8y ago
  Wow, so it predicted its battery was low less than 20 minutes before it died? That's awful.
micmil 8y ago
Any GOOD smart lock that you'd want to put on your house will have key backup. You basically have to be a complete douche to install a keyless system in a residential application.
sakopov 8y ago
I just recently had this happen to me and I did get locked out when the battery in the lock died. It happened at 11 at night when I came back from a long trip and my landlord was not responding to calls. After about 10 minutes of Googling I figured out that there are 2 prongs at the bottom of the lock that you can connect a 9-volt battery to to give the lock temporary source of power. I went out and got a 9v battery and unlocked the door with my fob while holding the battery terminals on the 2 prongs.
- mehrdadn 8y ago
  I guess it's better than nothing but that still sounds awful...

ulucs 8y ago

My current apartment has a "smart lock" system for entry into the building. The system becomes unresponsive with no electricity, which means you're locked out. But you can kick open the door anyways, so at least that's an alternative to being locked out.

lawlessone 8y ago
Jesus, what if that failed in a fire?
- ziari 8y ago
  Nearly all smart locks can be mechanically unlocked from the inside (as required by fire safety regulations).
- more_pylons 8y ago
  In the case of a fire tenents try to get out of the house and usually there is a normal manual turn lock on the inside of the door that works without electricity. For the fire fighters, I assume they break down the door anyways?
iamatworknow 8y ago
In my apartment building all of the external access doors are held closed by electromagnetic "locks" that require a key fob to open, unless we lose power, in which case there's no battery backup and they're all unlocked.

CaptainZapp 8y ago

Add "or the manufacturer decides to deactiveate the servers on which the locks are dependent and the email informing landlord winds up in the spam folder" to the mix.

tboxer 8y ago

I was an early user of "unnamed" popular Kickstarter door lock and I took my dog out at 9pm and came back to find that the batteries were dead. I called the customer support and they told me the low battery alert message was sent after I had locked the door and left, which was about a 20 minute trip. They ended up paying for my locksmith, but I haven't felt comfortable using the lock since so it just sits on my door.

mehrdadn 8y ago
Wow, so it predicted its battery was low less than 20 minutes before it died? That's awful.

micmil 8y ago

Any GOOD smart lock that you'd want to put on your house will have key backup. You basically have to be a complete douche to install a keyless system in a residential application.

sakopov 8y ago

I just recently had this happen to me and I did get locked out when the battery in the lock died. It happened at 11 at night when I came back from a long trip and my landlord was not responding to calls. After about 10 minutes of Googling I figured out that there are 2 prongs at the bottom of the lock that you can connect a 9-volt battery to to give the lock temporary source of power. I went out and got a 9v battery and unlocked the door with my fob while holding the battery terminals on the 2 prongs.

mehrdadn 8y ago
I guess it's better than nothing but that still sounds awful...