One of the common misconceptions about sliding barn doors should be that there is no lock. This is far from true.

If you give up installing a sliding door for lack of privacy, you'll regret it later.

Various types of barn door locks are available. Signstek has listed 6 common types of barn door locks. Continue reading to choose the one that suits your sliding door.

How to lock a sliding barn door from the inside or outside?

For most people, opening or closing sliding barn doors is simply pushing or pulling the doors. They may think there is no way to keep their privacy.

If you have children or live with your family, you may not be disturbed when working or doing your own things. So, a barn door lock can be a crucial part of your barn sliding door.

Some sliding locks allow you to lock the door from the inside, while others make it possible to lock the door from both sides. And you can open your sliding barn door with a key or a set of code.

6 barn door locks for sliding barn doors

Here are 6 common types of locks that fit sliding barn doors:

Tear Drop Latch

How tear drop latch lock the door is really simple.

There are 2 parts: One part attaches to the door and the other part should be installed on the door jamb. Simply slide the ‘tear drop’ into the latch on the door to close the sliding barn door.

The shortcoming of the tear drop latch is that you can only lock the sliding barn door from the inside. But it can be an excellent option for sliding barn doors for bathrooms and studies.

Surface Mounted Slide Bolt

The surface-mounted slide bolt is as easy to install and operate as the tear drop latch, but more modern. It can be inserted to secure your sliding barn door. The installation of surface-mounted slide bolts is foolproof. Just screw the two parts onto the edge of the door and the door jamb.

Barrel Slide Bolt

The traditional barrel slide bolt is not different from the surface mounted slide bolt. But there are new barrel slide bolts that are designed with password setting. They allow you to open the sliding barn door by the code. And you can install a new-designed barrel slide bolt on the outside of your sliding barn door to keep intruders from your studies.

Hock and Eye Latch

It should be the easiest way to lock your sliding barn door with a hock and eye latch. The hock and eye latch helps you keep the sliding barn door closed from the inside.

If you are going to install a rustic sliding barn door, then choose a hock and eye latch. It will add a rustic look to your sliding barn door.

Cane Floor Bolt

The cane floor bolt is different from the locking systems above. You don’t have to install the bolt onto the door jamb, but to the floor. It requires you to drill a hole in the floor. When you lock it, the bolt is moved into the hole in the floor.

Hasp and Padlock

Hasps allow you to add a padlock for your sliding barn doors. This method can better protect your privacy, security and property.

You can lock the sliding barn door from the outside.