How To Barricade A Door That Opens Outward (Emergency Solutions)

Doors are designed to create a sense of privacy. They divide up our spaces, ensuring that our property flows properly from one room to the next. Although designed to be useful, they also allow intruders in. In many cases, this could mean active shooters, burglars, and other criminals that threaten your safety.

What can you do to protect yourself and your loved ones? Learning how to barricade a door is one of the best options, but it’s easier said than done. You can be caught unprepared and left vulnerable, especially if you are not familiar with how your current door works.

The outward swinging door is prevalent in most homes. While considered secure, they hold flaws that can easily be breached. It can’t be forced open by kicking, but the door hinges can easily be manipulated using common tools. 

Thankfully, you don’t have to live in fear. There are ways to ensure that your home security remains intact even in the face of an emergency. We’ve searched through countless resources to bring you this guide. Read on to learn more. 

Barricading a door when you’re in danger can be extremely difficult to do. The amount of pressure you get can cause you to panic and make mistakes, which is why the process should always be simple. 

That said, it’s first important to know and understand the type of doors you may be dealing with should an emergency arise. Here are some of them:

Inward Opening Doors

As the name suggests, an inward opening door swings inward. It essentially swings forward and away from you, towards the room’s interior. 

How To Barricade Inward Opening Doors

Lock the door first before trying anything else, but one of the best methods you can use is to simply wedge a chair underneath the doorknob. You can also block the door using heavy furniture or objects. 

Outward Opening Doors

An outward opening door requires you to pull the door toward you, away from the interior you’re currently facing. Again, this is one of the most commonly used doors in American homes.

How to barricade outward opening doors

Before anything else, make sure to lock the door. Unlike inward swinging doors, there are plenty of ways you can barricade an outward swinging door. You can use a rope, for instance, knotting it to a nearby heavy object so the door won’t open. You can also use a belt or a power cord, whichever you have available. 

Since outward swinging doors are vulnerable, make sure to secure the door hinges with a belt. It’s also best to create obstacles, so make sure to pile the entryway with heavy objects and furniture.

Doors Without Locks

Since you’re at home, you’ll likely have doors that do not have locks. These simply have door knobs for convenience but no added security. 

How can you barricade them?

The best way to barricade a door without locks is to use a combination of the methods mentioned above. You can secure the door by tying a belt, rope, or power cord around the doorknob and securing it to a heavy object. After this, make sure to create obstacles and pile as many things as you can. 

DIY Emergency Solutions For Barricading Your Outward Opening Door

If you do not have the products mentioned above and are in an emergency situation, you must use some DIY solutions for barricading your outward swinging door. Here are some things you can try:

Tie The Outward Opening Door’s Handle To A Heavy Object

One advantage of an outward opening door is its resistance to kick-ins. However, intruders can forcibly pull it out. To prevent this, get a strong rope, power cord, or belt. Then, tie the door knob or handle to a heavy object, such as a cabinet or couch. You may also tie it to a pillar or other stable, unmovable object.

Use A Sturdy Broom Or Mop As A Barricade

If you have a sturdy broom or mop, you can also use that to barricade your outward swinging door instead of a heavy object. Tape the broom’s handle perpendicular to the door frame, then tie the door knob to the broom’s handle with a strong rope or power cord.

Pile Heavy Furniture On The Doorway

You can also keep yourself safe by piling large and heavy furniture, such as cabinets, dressers, couches, and chairs in the doorway. Doing so can help buy some time to call authorities or make a quick escape.
What Products Can You Buy To Barricade An Outward Opening Door?

Seeing as most homes are equipped with outward swinging doors, we’ll focus on this today. While the methods above can help save lives, it’s essential to focus on prevention. That said, you can further improve your home’s security by investing in the following tools:

Door Security Bar

If you wish to secure your outswing door from inside the room, invest in a door security bar. You can install this either perpendicular to the door or under the doorknob. Should an intruder attempt to open it, the door will be inaccessible, as it is being blocked by the bar. While you can easily do this with DIY tools, investing in a proper tool means it won’t be easily compromised.

Latch Guard 

A latch guard is a plate cover that extends from the door’s opening. It’s designed to prevent forced entry, including kicking, pushing, and punching. It comes in various sizes, but they’re made small to ensure that they remain concealed. This tool is more common with outswing doors, and installation is quick and easy!

Door Lock Hinge Protector

A hinge protector functions exactly like its name—it prevents burglars, shooters, and other criminals from compromising your door hinges. Keep in mind that they can easily remove hinge pins and open your door, so investing in a door lock hinge protector adds an additional layer of safety. Even if the intruder ends up cutting the hinges off, they still won’t be able to open the door. 

What Else Can You Do To Protect Your Home?

Use Specialized Portable Door Jammers To Barricade A Door

1. DoorJammer Door Lock Brace

The DoorJammer portable door lock brace comes with a security alarm. When pressure is applied to your door, the alarm will sound up to 120dB. It’s also extremely easy to install, as you don’t need a wire to power it—batteries will be enough! Of course, it’s also portable. Apart from your home, you’ll now be able to barricade dorms, hotel rooms, and other temporary shelters for your peace of mind. 

2. ZZRUI Door Stopper Floor Wedge 

You can also invest in the ZZRUI door stopper and floor wedge! It’s non-skid, meaning that it also doubles as a door stopper to make sure you can properly barricade the door when necessary. It also comes with a high sensitivity and vibration-sensing alarm, ensuring that you remain safe and sound even as you sleep.

3. Nightlock Residential Door Lock Barricade

A Nightlock Lockdown is mostly used for schools, which are installed on classroom doors in case an emergency happens, such as a school shooting. However, did you know the Nightlock also sells barricades for residential homes? Intruders can come at any time, and not just in schools. For your outward swinging doors, the Nightlock Residential Door Lock Barricade is worth investing in. 

Planning Your Exit Strategy 

You barricade the door to ensure you and your loved one’s safety, but you should never stay in a single place. The tools and methods discussed above are designed to hold off the shooter or burglar, but you will need to come up with an exit strategy.

Sooner or later, they might be able to barge in, especially if they have dangerous weapons with them, like a gun. For your safety, make sure that you come up with an exit plan. You will want to study the windows carefully, trying to see if there’s a way you can climb down or up to the roof. 

It’s also vital to keep essential items right next to you, especially as you sleep. If you can, always have a backpack filled with emergency items by your bed. This can include your mobile phone, extra food, and of course, a portable door stopper device so that you can run and barricade the door when necessary. 

When it comes to emergencies, you need to be prepared and quick on your feet. 

The Takeaway

Although outward swinging doors are common household features, only a few options are available when it comes to additional security measures. These doors are already more secure because of how they are designed, and the only weak parts are the hinges. The intruder may end up manipulating the lock with a few tools, so make sure to consider the methods listed above and invest in the proper barricading devices. 

Armed with newfound knowledge, we hope that the information listed here can put your fear and doubts to rest—especially when it comes to your home’s outswing doors.