We all have things that we worry about. I worry that I've left my hair curler on and will set my house on fire. I refuse to leave any blinds open when I leave the house. (We're on the ground floor! People will see I'm not home and break in!) My husband, on the other hand, always thinks he hasn't locked the door, which leads to us constantly turning the car around or getting out of bed at 11 pm to double-check that the front door is indeed locked. It (almost) always is, but the fear is built-in now.
The solution is simple, though, thanks to smart home technology: a smart lock. Smart locks have been around for years, but Abode’s is one of the newest on the market. It’s designed to work with existing locks; I slapped it onto the back of my triple-paint-layered crappy renter door and waited to see whether it reduced the paranoia that ruled my husband’s life.
I’m relieved to report it did. It was easy for both of us to use and was handy in so many situations. I could lock the door from the car after battling my toddler into his car seat or check whether the door was locked from the gym or bed. But it did take a monthly subscription to get the most out of the lock.
Swap It Out
As renters, there are several smart locks that we can’t use in our door, because we aren’t allowed to completely remove or change out the lock. Luckily, Abode’s Smart Lock is a deadbolt replacement, meaning it swaps out only the back of the lock, letting my key (and the landlord's) work normally when we aren't using the smart features. It's also called a retrofit lock, since it can be added onto the existing lock. It's a good option for both renters and anyone who lives somewhere with housing rules, like a condo HOA, or anyone who wants to keep their smart lock a secret to outside observers.
I'm not a particularly handy person—replacing light bulbs in my pendant light is as technical a job as I can usually do—but installing the Abode was super easy. You'll need a screwdriver, but Abode includes everything else, including a strip of tape to secure the exterior part of the lock to the door while you switch out the back. There's the lock itself, the mounting plate, and the tailpiece adapter that connects the turning mechanism of the original lock to the Abode lock. Abode includes four different tailpiece adapters to match just about any lock you might have. It took me maybe 15 minutes, including time to lug my toolbox out of the closet and to watch this video from Abode to make sure I installed it correctly.
My only complaint for setup is that there's one set of very tiny screws that you'll want an equally tiny screwdriver to reach. I think a small, standard screwdriver is supposed to be able to reach it, but mine couldn't. I happened to have a set of precision screwdrivers similar to this set ($5) in my toolbox, which worked much better.