What style and color of interior door hardware is most popular?

12 years ago

We are replacing the knobs and hinges on all interior doors. Wondering if venetian bronze or antique brass is more popular? Are levers better than knobs? Anything else we should consider?

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PRO

HomeStory Doors of Orange County

12 years ago

According to the AARP America's aging population wants to age at home as long as possible. So baby boomers and those caring for an aging family member are remodeling to make their homes easier to live in, an approach called Universal Design. They consider lever style handles on doors an essential design feature because they require no gripping or twisting to operate.

If you intend to live in your home as long as possible or care for an aging family member, you might want to consider lever handles. Here is a link to some information from the AARP about considerations for future renovations. http://www.aarp.org/home-garden/livable-communities/info-07-2011/is-your-home-livable.html

Canada recently banned door knobs for the same reason. Here is a link to more information. http://www.businessinsider.com/why-vancouvers-ban-on-doorknobs-makes-sense-2013-11

There are lots of different styles of knobs and levers out there, so whatever you select, pick something you love.

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Comments (16)

maisonmonceau
12 years ago
Have you considered polished chrome? It's a terrific look, especially with glossy black doors and white trim.
PRO
Door Corner
12 years ago
Bronze has been the most popular over the last few years, such as Oil Rubbed Bronze and Venetian Bronze. Bronze usually provides a greater contrast, as many homes have white interior doors. Satin and Brushed Nickel is nearly as popular as Bronze, and will probably stick around as a trend longer than Bronze.
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indianpatti
12 years ago
I am not in the majority, but I prefer knobs. My jackets/sweaters/purse always seem to get stuck on lever handles.

What color are your doors and floors? If you have very light wood, the venetian bronze would look very nice.
alyesea
11 years ago
I like black. Bit like these: http://www.hardwarebox.com.au/door-handles/

Also works if you have black tapware and other black fittings in your house.
charleee
11 years ago
I agree with HomeStory, levers all the way. I just finished this exact project in my house, we used brushed nickel levers and hinges and gave all the doors a fresh coat of paint. Before we started I thought the project would be a waste of time, kind of like the lipstick on a pig thing, boy was I wrong. It looks great!
teamaltese
11 years ago
I would go with levers, even though we don't have any on interior doors. Harry Houdini has reincarnated as our cat, she can open most levered doors. The outside door is too heavy for her to open, but inside doors she handles easily!
curlsusan
10 years ago
hi
do I get my remofel. buying white two panel doors. need feedback between satin nickel or oil bronze door levers and hinges
PRO
Glenview Doors
10 years ago
From what we have seen Oil Rubbed Bronze and Satin Nickel are best sellers. ORB looks great on light/white units or dark stained wood units, SN can look good on anything. Also levers are more popular, and many people have spoken for them above. Ultimately there is really no right or wrong - go with what you think you will like. Visit a local store to see finishes in real life. Best of luck on your project!
curlsusan
10 years ago
Hi thanks for ur feedback on interior hinges and door knobs. I also have a question about doors.

I have aColonial style house with 6 panel oak wood doors and 2/3 grid panel windows.
I am updating the house but love to keep the character as well. I would like to change my doors to a two panel with an arch on the top and square on the bottom in white

I also put in French grid panel doors in the den and a French 15 panel patio door in the family room

I would like your feedback.
PRO
Glenview Doors
10 years ago
Is it possible for you to snap few photos and upload for us to see? White/light painted doors will brighten everything up, will give an illusion of more space too - we see this often. However, as a solid wood door manufacturer, we are also sad to see wood doors replaced.
mscary
9 years ago
We have a Labrador Retriever to has figured out how to open doors by pushing down the lever! We had to replace a few of our levers with knobs because he would let himself out of the house (leaving the door open) and open the pantry door to get himself a snack! So now we have both knobs and levers, thanks to our crafty canine.
rjbglb
8 years ago
We are updating the interior knobs, pulls, and door handles in our home. What hardware finish should we choose? Oil rubbed bronze? I love the resurgence of antiqued brass, but is that too trendy? We live in a traditional home in the Midwest.
jddeppe
8 years ago
I am also considering updating our shiny brass knobs, etc to something else. I chose knobs when the house was. Idiot because we had little ones. We had 6 more months before kiddos could open the doors. Worked well for us as we had 3 children when we moved in and added 3 more children since. They are all older now but I still want to consider grandchildren.
Kim Loesing
8 years ago
levers don't work well when you have little children in the house. My daughter let herself right out of the house at 2 because of the beautiful lever handle my husband installed. Now her children are doing the same. At least with knobs you can buy plastic covers that both childproof and grandparent proof the knob making it quite difficult to get a grip tight enough to open the door.
tqtqtbw
8 years ago
I would pick levers in order to age in place and add door flip locks at the top to keep toddlers in. I switched from cheap brass to satin nickel on white doors. Unfortunately we went with knobs due to the budget.