Unboxed the Eufy Security Retrofit Smart Lock with Wi-Fi Remote and found a very well-made kit. It included the replacement unit for the inside of an existing deadbolt, the keypad, batteries for both the keypad and unit, four adapters for a variety of deadbolt manufacturers, a window sticker, and mounting hardware, and a quick guide. Just about everything you need to retro your manual deadbolt into a keyless entry. I would suggest including a few alcohol wipes to clean the areas for mounting the keypad and unit’s 3m tape.
I’ll start at the end first. Once the lock-in is installed, the installation is fairly straightforward. It all makes sense, but not from the start. The user’s guide is fairly small, and the illustrations are hard to view. It’s all black and white and not clear, at least not to me. I mounted the mounting plate but had to remove it to see how it fit in the unit. Neither way fit so I looked back and forth at the unit and the guide before figuring out the hinged (wings) hold downs open up and then lock on the mounting plate after installation. Okay, the guide shows that, but again, not very well. So, I remount the plate and get the unit locked on. After that, it’s a breeze. Insert batteries, cover replaced, and finish the passcode on the keypad. It’s all done via the Android app, but the mounting part wasn’t there either. That alone would have made this 15-minute job a 5-minute job. With that knowledge, anyone can do the installation.
So, how’s it work. The unit itself works flawlessly. My old deadbolt on the other hand, not so much. I’ve never had an issue with it, but after installing the smart lock, I see that the old cylinder binds as it goes in and out. I used graphite and WD40 to lubricate it, but over the years it must have gotten bent. I went as far as using emery cloth on the exposed shaft to remove any burrs, but it still binds a bit. With that issue, the smart lock had the power to fully lock the deadbolt about 75% of the time, but every few tries, the lock would only go in about half a turn and stop. I’ll have to go buy a new deadbolt or combo set and have it rekeyed. Maybe for the best as I have an old brass set and with the Indian bronze color of the smart lock, I can bring this door up to date. Other than the issue with my current deadbolt and the wing-hinged installation, I can’t think of any other negative. The lockset looks great, it doesn’t change the look of the door on the outside and the inside looks great, and the unit is pleasant to look at. For any homeowner looking to upgrade to a keyless entry and you don’t have the skills to change out an entire lockset, this one is for you. Just remove the old deadbolt on the inside and leave the outside as is. Maybe put a couple of pieces of masking tape over it to keep it on the door. Install the new smart lock on the deadbolt using one of the four matching adapters (there’s one for Kwikset with the arched arm, a straight slot one, a diagonal slot one, and another that I can’t remember…plus sign maybe?) screw in the mounting plate with the old deadbolt screws and the stainless ring adapters if you need them. Then spread open the wings (my bad) and put the unit on the mounting plate. Close the wings to lock the unit on the plate and you're done with the installation. Have the app running and press next each time you complete a step, and you should be able to enter your 4-8 digits passcode. Tada, all done.
As my long-winded paragraph states, this installation is easy, and I’d recommend it to a friend or anyone wanting to add a smart lock to their home. It works with both the Alexa app and Google Home, so if you’re like me and have both systems running items in your house, it’s great to buy items that can work with either app. It also works with iOS as well as Android.