The Best Methods For Installing A Front Door Knocker For A More Vintage Look

A striking and eccentric door knocker can elevate your home's exterior design by adding an air of vintage charm and intrigue. Even though these relics of the past can be decades, even centuries, old, they are far from being out of style, since treasured antique items dominated 2025 trends. Investing in little details like these could potentially be upgrades that raise your home's value, considering recent real estate trends show buyers are prioritizing homes brimming with character and bespoke historic details.

Transforming your front door with a vintage accent piece like a door knocker is a wonderful option. However, in a sea of various styles and eras of antiques to consider, it can be hard to determine which door knocker is the right match for your home and how to install it once you've found one for the job. Luckily, vintage door knockers and modern ones that evoke similar aesthetics are easy enough to come by if you know where to look. A quick stroll down the aisles of your local antique store or secondhand shop can prove very fruitful if you've got a keen eye and a bit of patience. 

There are also straightforward methods of installation that are reliable for doors of various sizes and materials, such as the surface-mount fixing method and the bolt-through fixing method.  Both of these methods are incredibly similar. Which option is better suited for your household ultimately depends on the thickness and material of your front door. Here are ways you can determine which method is best for you and how to source the perfect vintage or vintage-inspired door knocker based on your preferred style of mounting.  

Surface mounting and bolt-through fixings are incredibly similar. Surface mount fixing is ideal for thicker, sturdier doors made from materials like solid wood. This method involves screwing the door knocker or the door knocker's backplate directly into door but taking care not to go all the way through. For thinner doors or doors made of UPVC, however, this is not a suitable method. Instead, you should opt for the bolt-through style of fixing, which drills all the way through the door and is secured on the interior side to ensure stability. To begin you will need a power drill, a door knocker complete with a baseplate, a 1 to 2 millimeter pilot hole drill bit, a larger drill bit, screws, and a measuring tape and pencil to mark and measure. 

Start by determining your knocker's ideal placement, line up the baseplate, and mark the holes with a pencil so it's clear where to drill. Then position your baseplate and drill pilot holes into the marked spot where your screws will go. If your door knocker's design requires any larger holes for securing into the door, use your large drill bit. For surface mounting, you'll only need to drill two thirds of the way through the door. For bolt through fixing, drill through to the other side of the door to create bolt holes. Next mount the baseplate or striking plate with 20 millimeter screws using a drill, then secure the door knocker to its baseplate. If you used the bolt-through method, be sure to secure the interior fixing hole with washers and nuts.

It's important to consider your door's thickness and material and your preferred mounting method when shopping for the perfect vintage or vintage-inspired door handle. Some door knockers are designed to be mounted using a specific method, but once you've determined which style of fixing is best for you, you're ready to shop for a door knocker that's the perfect match. Most antique door knockers are designed for the bolt-through method, which is considered secure, and a good choice for mounting on thinner doors or modern doors made of UVPC. You can find a wide variety of vintage door knockers that are perfect for the bolt-through method online or at secondhand shops. Popular antique styles include striking animal designs, floral or nautical motifs, religious symbols, and ancient mythology-inspired door knockers.

You can also find more modern door knockers that are newly manufactured but reminiscent of decades past. Since drilling all the way through a solid wood door could be less than ideal for some, you can find vintage-inspired door knockers that are intentionally designed to be surface mounted. Antique-inspired door knockers can still effectively capture the aesthetics and charm of genuine antiques, despite being manufactured in the modern era. It is possible to find genuine vintage door knockers suitable for surface mounting, however they're less common. If you decide to opt for a more vintage-inspired knocker instead of the real deal, choose an appropriate finish like antique brass or black iron to maintain the air of historic charm.