The hall, the entryphone and the badge: what the lock does not control
In Cenon’s estates, access usually happens in two stages: a building door released by badge or entryphone, then the door to the home. Fitting a smart lock solves the second stage, not the first. A code sent to a home help, a tradesperson or a relative will be no use to them if they are stuck downstairs. So start by checking what your building’s access control allows and who assigns the rights to it: that answer determines how useful the device really is.
The second point to look at is the radio link. Blocks built with concrete shear walls attenuate signals heavily, and a metal flat door does not help: between a router at the far end of the flat and a phone held on the landing, the range printed on the box bears little relation to reality. Test the coverage at the exact position of the door before buying, and remember that nothing on a shared landing lets you plug in a device: it all runs on batteries.
Tenant, private landlord, hillside house: three different uses
In a rented home, the flat door belongs to the landlord: the model that clamps onto the existing cylinder from the inside, without drilling or altering the door leaf, is the only one that really fits. Inform the managing organisation in writing, keep the original parts, and the unit comes off without a trace when you leave. An owner letting property in the town gets something else out of it: revoking an access right at every change of occupant, rather than changing the cylinder each time a tenant moves on.
On the hillside, the logic is no longer the same: you think in terms of the whole plot. A motorised gate on the street, a front door at the top of a flight of steps, a garage opening onto the road below — the point becomes not to end up with a separate app and login for accesses that ought to work together. One useful reminder before choosing: resistance to a break-in remains that of the door and the mechanism already in place. Everyday convenience improves; mechanical strength is a separate matter.
How does this service work?
Techniques, typical situations, standards and things to watch out for: it is all on our smart lock page. This page focuses on what the service involves in Cenon.