Skoolie Door Lock and Handle (How to Lock a School Bus Door)
The front doors are hard to lock and they fold out of the way but it can be done. You just have to be a little creative and innovative when searching for solid solutions. Some owners use a U-shaped bike lock to handle the problem until they come up with something better.
Some owners have turned to deadbolt locks that you place on your traditional home’s doors. They are very effective on the rear door at least and make sure your vehicle remains secure and hard to get into. There are lots of good ideas for this problem.
To learn more about this issue and how to lock your school bus, just continue to read our article. It has the information you need to know about so that you can find the right solution to your locking door problem. Take a few minutes to see ow this important information can solve your problem.
Do Bus Doors Lock?
No, they do not, at least not in the conventional way you would understand locking. If the bus is moving, air pressure is used to ‘lock’ the folding doors in place but once the air pressure is removed, the doors can be opened.
Also, the driver’s door arm can lock the folding entry doors but no one is sure how secure that locking system really is. It doesn’t rate very high though. The reason most school bus doors do not lock is because of the students on board.
In case of an emergency, the students need to get out of the bus quickly and not be trapped inside. Then some school bus back doors have a lever or bolt lock but that cannot be locked from the outside.
Again, that design is for the safety of the children in the bus to keep intruders out and not to trap them inside.
How do You Lock a Skoolie Door?
The back door can be a problem as it cannot be unlocked from the outside unless you place your own lock on it. This can be somewhat of a chore as some skoolie doors are 2 inches thick and a standard RV lock does not work with that thickness.
If you do not want to have access from the outside, you have to rig an interior-only locking mechanism. What one owner did was drill 2 holes in the bar that releases the back door. Then they attached a steel cable through the hole and through a steel ring. The ring would go over the end of the lever until needed.
Over the iron handle, the owner placed a carabiner. When it comes time to lock the door, the owner moves the carabiner up to where the steel ring can get through the opening of the device. The door is then locked and very secure.
Skoolie Door Lock Ideas
There are lots of ideas out there and one owner decided that locking their front folding door with a U-shaped bike lock was very effective. They drilled holes and placed two eye bolts on either side of the fold and then slipped the bike lock through those bolts and locked the door.
Another idea has an owner using the Defender Security U 10817 Deadlock (still available at Amazon for $20 approx.). They just drilled the proper holes, attached the lock and they had inside and outside access to unlock the door. Other owners used traditional deadbolt locks you find on most homes these days.
For inside-only locking, some owners went with normal latch locks that seem to do the work but may not be the best option available. If you use the same eye bolts mentioned above, you can also use a tough chain and padlock.
These few ideas are just there to get you started on the right path.
Bus Door Locking Mechanism
There are different types you can buy. One website, All Points Bus Parts, has a fine selection of emergency door locking mechanisms. You have to contact them to see which of their parts will fit your bus and to find out the exact cost plus shipping.
There are other companies that will supply locking mechanisms to replace your current one. However, some owners did not like the way the folding doors locked so they got innovative and adapted a piece of hardwood and placed a traditional deadbolt lock inside the wood like you would on a traditional door.
This was his template to locate the deadbolt lock and drill his hole. He drilled a hole through the bottom of the folding door, and in the spot where the deadbolt would go. He then attached the lock directly to the school bus door and locked it like he would a traditional door.
Simple but very effective method.
School Bus Door Handle
This is not a difficult part to find. You would have to restrict your search to those companies that deal in school bus parts. There should be a lot of them around as almost every city and county use different types of school buses.
Or you can try the different junk, wrecking yards, or even used part s outlets. The cost at the websites we checked needed you to log in to get to the price but depending on the design and model you may be looking at paying under $30 for your bus door handle.
Some companies will have replacement window latches to make sure your new bus is totally secure from thieves. Not to mention they also have front door switches in case your current one breaks. A Parts Warehouse is one such company.
Prices will range but you should be able to find what you need for under $75.
Bus Door Lock Manufacturers
Corbeil is one such company, that is if you want to replace your current door lock with the same type of model and style. They seem to make a lot of school bus parts for older buses.
Then you can try HitoAuto as they make a lot of different locking mechanisms, or at least they are selling them. Finding a manufacturer is not going to be as easy as finding a company that sells these parts. Coach may be another manufacturer but their lineup may also include city and tour buses.
You can also contact Lippert to see their products. They advertise making locking mechanisms for school buses. They also make strong doors to replace the old ones on your older school bus. You have to contact them to get prices and designs.
School Bus Back Door Lock
Some owners get innovative when they take on this project. The back door is the hardest to find locks for due to its design and thickness. One owner went to a sliding bolt system to secure the back door. He can’t unlock it from the outside but it keeps the latch in place when he is not around.
He placed the sliding bolt next to the latch and when he closed it, he slid the bolt in place so no one could manipulate the latch from the outside and gain entry into his bus. The handle would be in the way of the sliding bolt blocking hands from reaching through the window from getting to the bolt.
Other owners went to a keyless locking mechanism that requires drilling holes into the door. One owner used the Defender lock mentioned above. He drilled a hole in the door for the key portion and then placed two pieces of steel with eye holes on them to hold the locking mechanism in place when he turned the key.
Bus Emergency Door Lock
There is a myriad of ideas you can use for your bus’ emergency door lock. You can go with the existing system if you have nothing of value inside the bus but those are not as secure as some of the ideas we have seen during our research.
The best systems will require some drilling through the door as that will give you access from the outside as well as the inside. With the number of traditional locks available, you have a wealth of options at your disposal to construct your own system.
Plus, those options should work on your folding front door as well. A little adaption will do the trick.
Some Final Words
Securing your school bus is not going to be a problem. If you are handy with tools you should be able to adapt any lock on the market today to work on your bus’ front and back doors.
A little ingenuity, creativity with a sprinkle of innovation, and your bus will be very secure. Do not be afraid to do some drilling as the bus can take it without losing any strength. Just use some common sense as well as you do need to get inside as well.
