Passage, Privacy, Thumb Turn, Entry or Dummy: Which Set Goes on Which Door

Most hardware orders go wrong in the same place. Someone chooses a lever they like, orders one for every door in the house, and finds the bathroom doesn't lock and the wardrobe handle rattles because there's no latch behind it.

Door handles come in different functions. The lever itself looks the same across all of them. What changes is the mechanism behind it, and that's decided by what the door needs to do.

There are five. Here's what each one is, and which door it belongs on.

The five functions

Passage set. Latches the door shut but doesn't lock. Turn the lever from either side and it opens. The default for any internal door that needs to stay closed but never needs to lock.

Privacy set. A functional lever with a built-in latch and a simple push-button lock on the inner rose. Designed for rooms where you want privacy rather than security, and there's a release on the outside so a bathroom can be opened from the hallway if someone needs help.

Thumb turn set. A lever on a backplate with a separate deadbolt below it, operated by a turn on the inside. This is a genuine locking mechanism rather than a privacy button, and it holds a door properly shut. No key involved, so it locks from inside only.

Entry set. The same backplate and deadbolt arrangement as the thumb turn, with a keyed cylinder added outside. You keep the thumb turn inside, so locking up from within doesn't mean finding a key, and the key handles access from outside. This is what goes on any door you lock behind you.

Dummy lever. No mechanism at all. A lever fixed to the door face as a pull. For doors that don't latch, or are held shut by something else.

The distinction that catches people out is privacy versus thumb turn. A privacy button stops a door being opened casually. A thumb turn deadbolt actually secures it. Both lock from inside, but they're not doing the same job.

Room by room

Front entry. Entry set. You need to lock it behind you when you leave, which means a key from outside.

Back and side doors. Entry set if you use them as an access point. Thumb turn if the door is only ever locked from inside, such as a door onto a courtyard that's never entered from outside.

Bedrooms. Privacy set in most homes. A push-button lock is enough for a bedroom, and nobody wants to carry a key around the house. Some parents prefer passage on a child's room, which is a reasonable call and worth deciding per door.

Bathrooms and ensuites. Privacy set, without exception. This is the one door where the emergency release outside genuinely matters.

Toilets. Privacy set, same reasoning.

Hallways and living areas. Passage. These doors need to close against draughts and noise, but nobody locks a lounge room.

Studies and home offices. Usually passage. Privacy if the room doubles as a guest bedroom, or thumb turn if you keep anything in there you'd rather secure.

Laundry. Passage in most homes. If the laundry doubles as external access, that door needs an entry set.

Internal garage door. Usually an entry set, since it's effectively an external door. Worth confirming against your plans, because fire-rated doors between a garage and living space have their own hardware requirements.

Walk-in wardrobes. Passage if the door latches. Dummy if it's a pair of doors held by magnetic or roller catches, which is common in built-in joinery.

Linen and storage cupboards. Usually dummy, since these are typically held by a catch rather than a latch. Check what's behind the door before ordering.

Double doors and French doors. Usually one active leaf with a passage or privacy set, and one fixed leaf with a dummy lever plus flush bolts. Ordering two full sets is a common and expensive mistake.

Sliding and pocket doors. None of the above. These need a cavity pull rather than a lever, because a protruding handle can't pass into the cavity.

Counting your order

Two things catch people out.

A set covers one door, both sides. You don't order two.

Some doors need hardware on one side only. A wardrobe with a dummy lever outside usually needs nothing inside. A bathroom needs both the button inside and the release outside, and that comes as one privacy set.

A typical three-bedroom house works out something like:

• 1 entry set (front door)
• 3 privacy sets (two bedrooms, one bathroom)
• 4 to 6 passage sets (hallway, living, laundry, study)
• 2 to 4 dummy levers (wardrobes, linen cupboard)

Thumb turn sets are more situational. Most homes need none, some need one or two on side doors and studies.

Walk the house with a list before ordering anything.

What to confirm before ordering

Function is one variable. Three others decide whether the hardware physically fits.

Backset. The distance from the door edge to the centre of the spindle hole. Australian internal doors are usually 60 mm, though 45 mm is common on narrow stile and French doors. Measure several doors rather than assuming they match, particularly in a house that's been extended.

Door thickness. Typically 35 mm to 40 mm internally, 40 mm to 45 mm externally. Measure at the lock stile.

Existing preparation. If you're replacing rather than fitting to new doors, check the new rose or backplate is large enough to cover the old holes. Thumb turn and entry sets use a full backplate, which covers more than a rose, so they can sometimes solve a problem rather than create one.

If you have more than one external door

Entry sets use a euro cylinder, which is the standard removable keyed core used across most modern hardware. Two things follow from that, and both are worth knowing before you order.

You can key alike. A locksmith can supply matched cylinders so a single key opens your front door, back door and garage. On a house with three or four external doors, this is the difference between one key on the ring and four. Decide before installation rather than after, because it's simpler to order matched cylinders than to rekey later.

You can rekey without replacing the hardware. If a key goes missing, or you take over a house and want fresh keys, the cylinder swaps out on its own. The lever, backplate and deadbolt stay where they are.

If you're specifying several external doors, mention it when you order and we can talk through the options.

Choosing the lever

With functions settled, the aesthetic decision gets simpler, because you're choosing one design and one finish rather than deciding per door.

Consistency does more visual work than any individual piece. The same lever in the same finish throughout reads as considered. Mixing designs between rooms rarely does, unless there's a deliberate reason such as separating a heritage section from a new extension.

The same applies beyond doors. Coordinating door handles, door knobs and cabinet hardware in one finish is the detail that separates a considered fitout from a set of individual purchases.

One practical note: thumb turn and entry sets sit on a backplate rather than a rose, so they read differently from the passage and privacy sets elsewhere in the house. That's normal and expected on an external door, but worth picturing before you order.

Before you commit

Order a sample. Finishes look different under warm domestic lighting than they do on a screen, and aged brass in particular varies more than photography suggests. A single sample checked against your joinery and tapware costs almost nothing next to a full house of hardware you're not sure about.

If you're working through a schedule and want the functions confirmed against your door list, send it through the contact page. It's usually a five minute conversation that prevents a reorder.

Frequently asked questions

What is a passage set? A lever that latches but doesn't lock, for internal doors that need to stay closed but never need locking.

What is a privacy set? A lever with a built-in latch and a push-button lock inside, plus an emergency release outside. Used on bedrooms and bathrooms.

What is a thumb turn set? A lever on a backplate with a separate deadbolt operated by an internal turn. It locks from inside only, with no key.

What's the difference between a thumb turn and an entry set? The mechanism is the same. An entry set can also be unlocked with a key from outside, so it goes on doors you lock behind you.

What is a dummy lever? A lever fixed to the door with no mechanism behind it, for doors held by a catch rather than a latch.

Can I use one key for all my external doors? Yes. Entry sets use a euro cylinder, so a locksmith can supply matched cylinders keyed alike across several doors. Worth arranging before installation.

Can I change the keys later? Yes. The cylinder is a separate component and can be swapped without replacing the lever or backplate.

Do I need one set or two per door? One. A set includes hardware for both sides.

What goes on a sliding door? A cavity or flush pull rather than a lever, since a protruding handle won't pass into the cavity.