6 Best Refrigerator Locks for People With Dementia

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Accident proofing a home has become a priority for Dementia caregivers. You can help your care recipient live safely at home by restricting them from gaining access to household electrical appliances.

Most informal caregivers have a day job. It is common for them to leave their family member with Dementia alone at home. This is where it becomes quintessential to accident-proof your home, especially the kitchen. 

This post is about easy-to-install locks to secure your refrigerator or a freezer at home. These locks are also suitable for cabinets. A Dementia patient will find it extremely challenging to remove, break, or unlock them. 

If your care recipient forgets they have eaten, a locked refrigerator door will prevent them from eating earlier than regular lunch/dinner hours. Further in this post, I have reviewed the best refrigerator locks for people with dementia.

Jump directly to:

1. Keyed lock – Baoweijd Store White Refrigerator Lock – 2 Pack
2. Strap lock – Jool Baby Strap Locks for Fridge – 4 Pack
3. Dual button operation – Munchkin Xtraguard Dual Action Latch – 2 Pack
4. Easy install – Eudemon Home Refrigerator Lock
5. French door with shorter handles – Eudemon French Fridge Lock 
6. French door with longer handles – UrbanAugust Multi-Functional Cable Combination Lock

Frequently Asked Questions(FAQs)

Here Are The Best Refrigerator Locks For People With Dementia

1. Baoweijd Store White Refrigerator Lock – 2 Pack

keyed lock

Baoweijd lock is suitable for refrigerators with side-by-side and french doors. It comes with a key so you can lock it after use. The locking mechanism is easy, and it takes a couple of seconds to lock/unlock. 

You can keep the key hidden somewhere near the door so you don’t have to hunt for the key every time you wish to use the fridge. Just make it difficult for the person with dementia to find it. 

The two plates have strong 3M adhesive strips pre-installed on the rear side. 3M adhesive is known for having high shear and peel strength. The bond will last even after multiple attempts to pull the locked door.

Note that the plates are bigger than most other locks on the market. The 3.2-inch x 3.2-inch plates are square-shaped. They are coated with white paint. 

Lastly, a heavy-duty cable (7.5-inch long) connects the two plates. The cable is coated with transparent vinyl. The surface of the fridge won’t get scratched during attempts to open the locked door. 

Pros

• Tool-free installation
• Package includes extra keys and extra adhesive pads 
• Package includes an installation manual 
• Package includes a cleaning cloth 

Cons

• 24-hour adhesion period. Pulling the string within the first 24 hours of installation may damage the product

2. Jool Baby Strap Locks for Fridge – 4 Pack

strap lock

Jool Baby strap is a perfect lock to keep a person with severe cognitive impairment away from a refrigerator. Note that this device has a simple locking mechanism— no keys, and no combination. 

The two clasps have a strong 3M adhesive pad attached to the rear side. You can install this device on the smooth surface of the fridge simply by pressing the pads against it. Installation is easy.

Once installed and locked, a dementia-affected person will find it challenging to open the latch mechanism. One of the clasps has a latch and the other has a notch.  

Open the latch side by prying it with your fingernail. You can also use a butterknife to do the prying. The latch can be opened by sliding it inwards. And slide it outwards to lock it.  

Pros

• Easy installation 
• Do not damage the surface of the fridge 
• Can also work with cabinets with sliding doors
• Affordable 

Cons

• Not suitable for folks with a mild cognitive impairment. They will eventually figure out this lock 

3. Munchkin Xtraguard Dual Action Latch – 2 Pack

dual button operation

Release and rotate dual-action latch from Munchkin is trickier to open. Instead of a single sliding button, it comes with two buttons. 

To open the lock, the two buttons need to be pressed at the same time followed by clockwise rotation. To lock this device, press the two buttons and rotate anticlockwise. 

You can perform lock/unlock operations with either of the clasps. The connecting strap is fully flexible. The strap is 6.75 inches long, however, the length is not adjustable. 

The strong adhesive is super secure. 

Hence, do not uninstall in a quick or rushed manner. Hasty uninstallation may result in damage to the surface paint. It is recommended that you wedge it with a butter knife or credit card to remove each of the clasps. 

Pros

• Easy to install
• Strong and durable
• Can withstand heavy pulling
• Can also be used for a cabinet, commode, dishwasher, etc 
• Right tool for caregivers

Cons

• Bulkier than other strap locks on the market stands out
• Surface paint may come off if uninstalled in a hurry
• Difficult to reposition once installed 

4. Eudemon Home Refrigerator Lock 

easy install

Eudemon brings you one of the best refrigerator locks for people with dementia. This lock is the easiest to install on classic (top freezer/bottom freezer/built-in freezer) refrigerators.   

It’s a T-shaped lock with super-strong 3M adhesive pads. You can stick this device on the side of a refrigerator door. The horizontal part must be attached to the door and the vertical part goes on the freezer wall.

Most modern refrigerators have a slender gap between the door and freezer wall. Eudemon lock needs a narrow gap (less than 2-inches) for it to function. If you have an older refrigerator, make sure to check the gap.

Note that this lock does not come with a key, combination, or even adjustable straps— it’s a compact unit self-locking system. 

It’s a one-hand operation lock. No effort on your part is needed to lock it— simply shut the fridge door close, and it locks automatically. Further, it can be unlocked by pressing the two buttons at the same time. 

It’s the double button design that does the trick. A dementia-affected person will most certainly struggle to open this lock. In addition, this is a sneaky device. Your loved one won’t even realize its presence.

Pros

• Aesthetically pleasing device
• Top brand for home safety 
• One-hand operation
• Self-locking system 
• Made with eco-friendly materials 

Cons

• This device is sneaky. Family members may not notice its presence. They might think the door is broken
• May not work with older refrigerators

5. Eudemon French Fridge Lock 

french door with shorter handles

As the name suggests, this lock is destined specially for side-by-side and French doors. If you are unsure about refrigerator door types; and the differences between them, take a quick peek at this article from Bosch. 

Eudemon has implemented a “special disengagement method” that only a healthy, well-functioning adult can comprehend. A toddler or a cognitively impaired person will struggle to open it.

This lock is designed essentially for a toddler, but the same system also works well for a Dementia patient. 

Out of the three buttons, only two are active— the middle one is a decoy button. The lock can only be disengaged by pressing the two active buttons one by one. The middle one is inactive and serves no purpose other than misdirection.

Lastly, make sure that your french door fridge does not have longer handles— that run along the outer edge of the fridge from the top to the bottom. This lock is meant for french door fridges with shorter handles.

Pros

• Integrates easily with other appliances in the kitchen
• Doesn’t look like a lock
• Inactive middle confuses the Dementia-affected person
• Designed especially for side-by-side and French doors

Cons

• Only works with french doors with shorter handles. Longer handles can prevent you from installing this lock

6. UrbanAugust Multi-Functional Cable Combination Lock

french door with longer handles

UrbanAugust has designed this lock after testing the handles of more than 200 of the most popular french door refrigerator modes in the US. This combination lock is designed for doors with both shorter and longer handles.

This cable combination lock is fully portable. 

This lock is perfect for caregivers who do not wish to risk damaging the surface paint of their refrigerator. It fits all types of side-by-side and french door handles.

The default combination for this lock is “0000”— it arrives already locked. You can keep the default settings or change it to another four-digit number. Just make sure you don’t forget the new combination. 

Here’s how you can change the combination: 

Step 1: Open the lock by dialing the default combination “0000”.

Step 2: Locate the small internal knob. Turn it clockwise 90-degrees.

Step 3: Locate the small median bar. Turn the dial to set your preferred combination.  

Step 4: To confirm the new combination, turn the same small internal knob in the anti-clockwise direction. 

Step 5: Note down the new combination so you don’t forget. 

The above-mentioned steps demonstrate how easy it is to change the lock combination. It is a foolproof way to prevent a dementia patient from gaining access to the contents inside the refrigerator. This is one of the best french door long-handle refrigerator locks for people with dementia.

Pros

• Also suitable for cabinet, commode, dishwasher, etc
• Excellent customer service
• Package includes an instruction manual
• Unbreakable body 

Cons

• No master reset key. The lock becomes useless if you forget the combination 

Frequently Asked Questions(FAQs)

Conclusion

It’s not hard to believe that older folks with memory impairment do not like to cook. They would rather eat cold meals than cook them themselves. And a refrigerator is a great place to find ready-to-eat food. 

The locks discussed in this post will prevent them from gaining access to the contents of the fridge, but you don’t want them to starve do you? What if they are really hungry and need a bite to eat?

To avoid such a scenario, you can store small portions of food in a microwavable Rubbermaid container. You can leave the microwave unlocked if you trust them to operate it by themselves. 

You were reading the review of refrigerator locks for people with dementia. 

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