Installation on door handle instead of cylinder

This will be a bit of an unusual question - but did anyone manage to install Nuki so that it replaces a door handle/knob itself instead of over a lock cylinder? I’m thinking of doing that, and there’s an issue of no existing adapter for the handle rod - I think the standard here in EU is 8mm - I could 3D print something though. On the other side of the door is a fixed knob, so it doesn’t depend on what’s going on at the inner end.

For some context, the scenario I’m dealing with is as follows:

  • there is a communal parking garage with around 100 people using it
  • it has multiple pedestrian entrances over two levels - around 10 of them
  • all entrances have a standard euro profile double cylinder which don’t have an emergency function or knob on the inner side
  • all locks were changed earlier this year
  • the entrance doors are not usually locked, and are just latched so they can easily be open from the inside, but that they require a key from the outside

I really don’t want to initiate another lock replacement for everyone, and I do wish for everyone to be able to use a single key to open any garage entrance. I live some 300m from the garage, and I really wish I could enter it with just my phone, and installing nuki instead of the current inside knob seems like the least disruptive way for everyone.

Glueing the Smart Lock directly on the door with the standard mounting plate could work. An 8mm rod might need a modification to the plastic part that holds the key (which should be possible, but voids the guarantee).

A problem could be that inner and outer „keys“ are not interconnected and that the leeway is not enough for a successful calibration of the lock.

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Hi there,

NO - there IS an adapter!

I use one of my Nuki Smartlocks on a patio door, which also has only one handle on the inside and no lock cylinder. Here, as with the windows, an 8mm square handle rod is used.

This can easily be connected to the Nuki lock. For this, you simply take the KESO adapter offered by Nuki (even for free!):
https://shop.nuki.io/de/ersatzteile/nuki-adapter/ (this is the link to the German page)

It can be (was at least with me so), that the existing square handle rod for the admission in the lock is too long, then you must either replace this (there are on ebay) or saw off.

More problematic is that a handle is often much more sluggish than a lock. This can overload the motor in the Nuki Smartlock. It then reports that the door is stuck or the battery drains relatively quickly. But it always depends on the individual case - does not necessarily have to be a problem.

For mounting, I have otherwise simply used the standard mounting plate for gluing.
Since the solution only uses original Nuki parts and does not require any modifications, it should actually have no effect on the warranty …

I thought about using a KESO adapter as well, if it’s to tight, filing it would probably do. I’ll mull over this a bit, and report back if I ever set it up.

Thanks everyone!