Deltana DG525 Door Guard, 5"

The DG525 is a swing-bar style door guard that lets an entry door open partway while staying secured, so you can see and speak to someone at the door without releasing the opening. It is a 5 inch guard in solid brass, and it ships with a protector plate and matching screws in an individual poly bag. It is a secondary security device that mounts to the door and frame, not a latch or lock in its own right.

No extra hardware to order. Each DG525 comes packed with a protector plate and matching screws, so the mounting hardware and the frame-side piece are in the bag. Screws are finish-matched to the guard you order.

The DG525 mounts with wood screws supplied in the pack, which is a wood door and wood frame installation. On a hollow metal frame or a metal door you would need to drill and tap for machine screws or use appropriate anchors, since the supplied screws will not hold in steel. That is the main thing to settle before ordering for a commercial corridor with HM frames.

Deltana lists the DG525 as commercial. That matters for multi-family and hospitality work where guards go on every unit entry door and take daily use. The body is solid brass rather than a plated pot-metal casting, which is what holds up under that traffic.

Nine finishes: PVD Polished Brass, Polished Brass, Antique Brass, Oil Rubbed Bronze, Brushed Nickel, Antique Nickel, Polished Chrome, Brushed Chrome, and Paint Black. If you are standardizing a building, the PVD Polished Brass is the one to pick over standard Polished Brass where the door sees weather or heavy handling, since PVD is a harder coating than lacquered brass. All nine are available in the 5 inch size, and screws come matched to the finish.

The 5 inch figure is the guard's own length, not the gap it leaves. On a swing-bar guard the door opens roughly the travel of the bar once the bar is engaged, so a 5 inch DG525 gives you a narrow crack to see and talk through, not enough to pass a package. If you want more opening for deliveries, look at a longer guard in the same Deltana door guard line rather than a different type of device.

Not the same. A chain guard uses a loose chain and a slide track; a solid bar guard like the DG525 uses a rigid brass arm, so there is nothing to swing, rattle, or get caught in the strike as the door closes. The bar style is the one to specify on unit entry doors where tenants use it daily, because there is less to fail. Chains are the cheaper fix on an existing door that already has a chain prep.

No handing to specify. The DG525 is ordered by size and finish only, so one part covers both left and right hand doors; you set the orientation when you lay out the mounting on the door and frame. Order the finish, and that is the whole decision.

A surface-mounted guard that requires screws through the door face is not something to add to a fire rated door assembly without checking the door manufacturer's listing, because field-applied through-fastening can void the label. Deltana publishes no fire rating for the DG525. On a labeled unit entry door, confirm with the door manufacturer what surface hardware their label permits before you drill.