More than 1.1 million home invasions occur in the United States every year. In the vast majority of those cases, the criminal does not pick a lock. He kicks in a door. According to FBI Uniform Crime Reports, 93% of burglars who attempt forced or unlawful entry gain access to a home through exactly that method, and most succeed in under 10 seconds.
The reason is straightforward: the lock is not the weakest part of a door. The frame is. Standard door frames rely on short screws driven into thin wood strike plates, and a single well-placed kick transfers enough force to split that frame regardless of how strong the lock itself may be. Deadbolts, smart locks, and alarm systems do nothing to address that fundamental vulnerability.
Ron Olberding understood this problem firsthand. Working alongside homebuilder Dave Allen and in close collaboration with law enforcement in the Kansas City area, Olberding spent years testing door assemblies, witnessing force attacks, and identifying why standard residential construction fails under criminal pressure. In 1997, that research led him to found Physical Home Defense and develop Door Guard, a patented door reinforcement system engineered to eliminate the entry point criminals rely on most.
What Door Guard Does
Door Guard reinforces the three weakest components of any exterior door: the frame, the jamb, locks, and hinges. The system uses a heavy-duty aluminum plate that reinforces the door frame from the inside, making it virtually impossible for an intruder to kick, pry, or force his way through the doorway. The reinforcement is concealed behind the trim and cosmetically designed to be undetectable from the outside and the inside.
Installation follows three straightforward steps:
- Secure the frame with the patented Door Guard system
- Install a Grade 2 deadbolt or better
- Install a patented Door Guard L-shaped door edge protector
The result is a door assembly that takes less than 10 seconds for a criminal to kick through without Door Guard, and becomes virtually impenetrable with it. Unlike alarm systems, Door Guard does not require electricity, monthly fees, or any ongoing maintenance. It works during power outages and requires no monitoring service to function.
Tested to Hurricane Impact Standards
Door Guard is not just field-tested. It has been independently evaluated by Underwriter Laboratories in accordance with ASTM F476-84, the standard test method for door security. In that testing, Door Guard exceeded the hurricane impact standard of 350 foot-pounds, making it the only product of its kind to meet that threshold. The system is also tested to the hurricane standard, with an L-shaped door edge reinforcement component built with super-strong 20-gauge steel that protects the most attack-vulnerable point of the door assembly.
For additional protection, an optional L-shaped escutcheon plate is available in Brass, Antique Brass, Satin Nickel, Black, and White, and can be painted to match any finish. It is invisible from outside the home.
From a Kansas City Suburb to City Building Codes
The credibility behind Door Guard was not built in a marketing department. It was built in collaboration with police. After working with the Overland Park Police Department’s Crime Prevention Unit to test door assemblies and witness force attacks, Olberding and Allen’s research contributed directly to the City of Overland Park revising its residential building codes in 1998 to require improved door security in new home construction. The cities of Shawnee, Lenexa, and Olathe followed by adopting the same residential security ordinance.
Since then, multiple U.S. cities have made reinforced door frames mandatory in new construction codes and was recently adopted into the IRC (International Residential Code) for the 2027 code book, and Door Guard has become the preferred product for meeting those requirements. Working with suburban police departments across the country, Physical Home Defense tested Door Guard against dozens of other theft-deterrent systems. The results consistently demonstrated that Door Guard outperformed the alternatives, leading police departments to recommend it directly to homeowners and contractors.
“I founded Physical Home Defense in 1997, inventing our flagship product, the Door Guard, to assist law enforcement in crime prevention after a series of horrific local home invasions.” -- Ron Olberding, Founder, Physical Home Defense
Why Contractors Choose Door Guard
Door Guard is made in the U.S.A. and is available through an authorized dealer network. It is the go-to choice for law enforcement and contractors looking for a security solution that does not depend on electricity, subscriptions, or ongoing monitoring. The system works on virtually all entry scenarios and provides reliable protection that installs once and performs indefinitely.
For homeowners, the value is simple: some things are irreplaceable. Door Guard is the only home security solution that stops intruders from getting in with hidden door reinforcement, giving families the protection that locks and alarm systems alone cannot provide.
To learn more, visit PhysicalHomeDefense.com/DoorGuard.
