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Has anyone else found themselves locked in?

(77 Posts)
AGAA4 Wed 26-Feb-20 15:41:44

I was in the shed, when a very strong gust of wind blew the door shut. The door had been warped by recent rain and had not closed properly for ages but the gust closed and jammed it. I live alone so I knew I wouldn't be missed for ages. I banged on the door in the vain hope that someone might hear me. The shed is well away from the road and other houses.
After 10 minutes I decided that I would have to get myself out or I would be there all night (panic setting in) I tried a few things but no joy.
Eventually I noticed an old spade at the back of the shed used it to force the door open. Door and spade the worse for it but I was free!

Barmeyoldbat Thu 27-Feb-20 18:51:20

We don't have a lock on the bathroom/toilet door, just a heavy doorstop that you push in front of it. Daughter always use to have a fit in the bathroom, goodness knows why.

Daisyanswerdo Thu 27-Feb-20 23:15:20

I was staying with my brother, who has a shower cubicle in the corner of his bedroom. His flat is the ground floor of an older converted house. He went out, leaving me to shower and have breakfast etc. I had my shower and then realised I didn't know how to open the door to get out. Sounds daft, but there I was, wet, no towel (which was outside the cubicle), no phone, no one within calling distance. The shower cubicle went up to the ceiling so climbing out wasn't a possibility. In the end I did work out how to open the door, so all was well, but I still remember those moments when I felt trapped and helpless.

gmarie Fri 28-Feb-20 02:41:39

Wow, some unnerving experiences you've all had! I've never lived anywhere that had a room I could be locked inside of! confused The locks have only been to keep others out!! Re/ your shed experience, AGAA4, I agree with BradfordLass73, don't just rely on the phone, either. I'd redo/replace the door latch so that it opens from the inside, too!

Granny23 Fri 28-Feb-20 09:06:37

When my DH (with Dementia) was still living at home, he became obsessed with locks, spending hours each day (and night) locking and unlocking the doors. One early morning, having changed his incontinence pants, I, in my PJ's, nipped out the back door to pop the used pants in the wheelie bin, Cue DH locking and bolting the door behind me and going back to bed.

Thankfully we had a key safe installed at the front door. So round I went to retrieve the front door keys and let myself in - much to the amusement of the audience of teenagers waiting for the school bus at the bus stop opposite, who gave me a cheer as I managed to get back into the house blush

polnan Fri 28-Feb-20 10:09:15

ARGH! as I am claustrophobic, even reading some of the stories, can set my heart racing..

Theoddbird Fri 28-Feb-20 10:15:12

I was staying on a friends boat...first time I had been there. Had my morning shower but then found that I could not open the shower door. It took me several minutes to figure it out....was not straight forward. I did start to panic as they were not going to be back for a couple of days.

Scottiebear Fri 28-Feb-20 10:18:29

We live in a domer style house. DH was cutting back grass. I went to the upstairs loo. Wouldn't normally lock the bathroom door which is a small bolt, but we had painters in the house so I locked it. Unlocked it on leaving and to my horror the bolt push bit broke off. I was stuck. Tried everything I could to wiggle bolt along to no avail. Very hot day and I was getting hotter and hotter, as well as panicking. Eventually I opened the window, which was at back of house, and shouted to DH. And shouted. And shouted some more. He couldn't hear above mower noise. Tried jiggling bolt again but still no luck. Shouted out window again and he stopped mowing briefly to empty grass box and heard me. Told him what had happened. To which, to my astonishment, his response was 'what do you expect me to do'. What!!!! We have a flat roofed sun room directly under the loo window! I suggested a ladder might help and he disappeared to the garage. Whilst waiting I thought I'd give bolt one last jiggle. And lo and behold managed to get it to slide along. I was free. And before DH even managed to get up the ladder. His response was that I couldn't have tried very hard previously. The painters had been blissfully unaware of my predicament. I now keep small screwdriver in bathroom drawer.

missdeke Fri 28-Feb-20 10:22:07

When I was in my late teens a group of us went to the pub, me and two friends went to the toilet (very nice, spacious loo) as we went to leave I pulled the door knob and it came away in my hand! After about 10 minutes of us falling about laughing we started calling for help, eventually someone opened the door and we emerged to the sound of the whole pub singing 'Oh dear what can the matter be, three young ladies got locked in the lavatory'. grin

optimist Fri 28-Feb-20 10:32:58

No but I once locked my husband in the garden (locking the back door a habit!) and was on the bus with my grandson when I received a call, fortunately my husband had his mobile with him. It was raining. I was not popular!

Growing0ldDisgracefully Fri 28-Feb-20 10:34:16

I've been locked in once, and locked out twice!
Locked in by my husband who had deadlocked the front door when he left for work. No back access to get in or out of the house. Had to be rescued by a colleague who was waiting for me at the end of the road to give me a lift, realised something was wrong, came to my house and I had to post my front door keys out through the letterbox for her to let me out!
Locked out by our 2 dogs who managed to bang the front door shut (with my keys on the front doormat) while I was outside on the front step taking my muddy wellies off. Pre mobile phone days - had to walk to a public phone box (remember them?!), and luckily had enough change to phone his work to ask him to come home. Took a while as he was a bus driver the and was out on the road!
Locked out by my 2 year old son when I nipped out to the dustbin and he put the security chain across the door! He then became very panicked and I couldn't get him to understand how to remove the chain and I had to do a macho police shouldering the door open act to break the chain! Can't have been much of a chain if I managed to break it.
Clearly a conspiracy against me by dogs, husband and son .....

Rosina Fri 28-Feb-20 10:35:04

I once got locked in a bedroom when the door handle broke off completely - and nobody else was home. The only person visible from the window was a very deaf neighbour, and it took what seemed forever for me to alert him and ask him to get my next door neighbour to come through the gate in the fence and release me! My dog didn't assist the situation - she was outside the room barking like a mad thing and deafening my calls for help!

annemarg Fri 28-Feb-20 10:36:47

Many years ago I got locked out with my two girls when one was a baby and the other a toddler! I can't quite remember how it happened but obviously I must have left my key indoors. There were no mobile phones in those days so I had to find a public telephone to ring my husband at work and then wait until he arrived!

More recently I got locked in the garage! I had just gone in and the wind must have caught the up-and-over door and it slammed shut with me inside!!! There is a window in the garage so I climbed on a table beside the window and was able to open it but when I looked down I realised it was quite high and I could have hurt myself if I jumped down. Husband was at work and I hardly used my old fashioned mobile phone so I didn't have it with me.

Then I looked at the mechanism on the back of the door and pulled a wire - and wonderful to relate - the door slowly started to open!!!

Now I make sure that the garage door is fully open so that the wind can't catch it - but I still feel a bit unsure going in there!

lovebooks Fri 28-Feb-20 10:37:34

Me. I'm a writer, and years ago was invited to speak at a very posh boarding school in the country. Long drive, so we both - my driver husband and I - were invited to sleep over. Left slightly deaf husband in bed with a book, and walked down a long corridor to the bathroom for a nice relaxing bath. Got out, towelled dry, bathroom door wouldn't open. Called husband - this was the age before mobiles - and of course he didn't hear, and hosts were in another part of the very big house. Lock eventually gave, but not a good start to a somewhat nerve-wracking occasion anyway.

MiniMoon Fri 28-Feb-20 10:37:55

When we moved into this house all the internal doors had keys.
My daughter and granddaughter (under 2 at the time) were visiting. We were upstairs and granddaughter went into our bedroom as she liked to look at Granny's pretty things on the dressing table. She closed the door and turned the key. We couldn't persuade her to turn it the other way. The bedroom has velux windows and one was open, but we didn't have a long enough ladder and neither did the neighbours. Granddaughter was totally unconcerned and still wouldn't or couldn't unlock the door.
I called the fire brigade. They arrived in a very few minutes, put up their ladders and got into the bedroom through the window. The fireman unlocked the door and we retrieved the toddler. The firemen were quite happy to have had the extra practice.
Needless to say, we removed the keys from all the doors, only returning the ones to the two bathrooms when the grandchildren were old enough to use them properly.

inishowen Fri 28-Feb-20 10:53:10

Back in the seventies I nipped to the loo at work just as we were closing up on Friday afternoon. The lock broke as I tried to open it. I was frantic, tearing at the lock, making my fingers bleed. Eventually I got the door open and as I thought, the building was empty, so I wouldn't have been rescued. I'm really scared of locking bathroom doors now but have to in a public place.

jaylucy Fri 28-Feb-20 11:04:18

Being locked in like that would have been my worst nightmare!
I have been locked out - in a hurry to get to the airport to meet my mum, I started to panic when my now ex husband hadn't turned up to take me and my son. Thank fully, my friend's very kind husband had offered (ex and I were splitting up and mum was coming over to help me pack up to return to the UK) so I had to go across the road to ask if he could take me after all. Grabbed what I thought was everything before getting in his car - then realised my house keys were still on the hall table!
My friend's daughter's boyfriend said that it would be no problem - he'd locked himself out a few times, I had left the kitchen window open a tiny bit, so we left him to it.
Got back, and he had managed to open the window and climb over the draining board and sink to get in the house, pick up the keys and take them to my friends - before that, he mended the catch on the window , as well as a kitchen cupboard door that wouldn't shut properly and the hole in the back screen door!
Found out some time later that he had admitted to his then girlfriend that he hadn't been locked out, he'd actually been in juvenile detention in his early teens for burglary!!!!

PernillaVanilla Fri 28-Feb-20 11:07:44

Not locked in but strangely locked out, in my nightdress, with the dog when i was putting rubbish out and the door slammed shut. I lived in a council flat at the time and braved it out, tied the dog to a piece of string and went down to the local housing office, I was young enough not to be self conscious and found the incident hilarious rather than embarrassing.

Barmeyoldbat Fri 28-Feb-20 11:21:24

My teenage children locked me out one night. They came home assumed I was in bed as the door was closed so locked up securely and went to bed. Just after midnight I get home and can't in and you know how teenagers have the ability to sleep, nothing wakes them. Our dog just kept leaping at the window and wagging his tail and not barking. In the end I managed to open one of the little top windows by using the the spade to jump the catch up with the vibration from me banging on the window frame.

Riggie Fri 28-Feb-20 11:27:37

Years ago at primary school my ckass and another swapped classrooms (no idea why) and a load of us were tidying the walk in stockcupboard one lunchtime. Closed the door as we needed to get to shelves behind it.. and it wouldnt open.
A recent Thunderburds episode had been about people stuck in somewhere and the oxygen running out (!) so we were all relieved the door had a ventilation grate. I think we must have been in there half an hour or so until the bell rang and we heard people coming back into the classroom and were released. The teacher thought it was funny and mentioned that she knew the handle didn't work from the inside. But she hadn't bothered to tell us. Even at our young age we were not impressed and never volunteered to do it again even in different classrooms!!

Emelle Fri 28-Feb-20 11:47:42

When our daughter was on the NICU ward as a newborn, my OH went down late evening to feed her, take more milk supplies and managed to get locked in to the Maternity Unit. He spent an hour wandering round before he found a porter to let him out.

pollyperkins Fri 28-Feb-20 11:57:41

I was once locked in the bathroom in a holiday cottage with My husband, and also son & family. I had gone to the loo in the early morning and when I tried to open the door the doorknob fell off - and on the other side too. I banged on the door & woke them all up - my husband, son& DiL thought it hilarious and said things like at least you have somewhere to sit and water to drink. They offered to push a bit of toast under the door (it wouldn’t open on the outside either. Only the children were concerned and drew pictures for me and pushed them under the door. Son& husband tried to run at it to break it down but only hurt their shoulders. I suggested climbing out of the window but below the window Dow was a dilapidated glass roof and I was told that would be dangerous. Eventually son pushed a wire coat hanger under the door and I managed to twist it in the hole somehow and move the catch. I have never lived it down. Tge annoying gvthing is my husband said he thought the handle was loose and a bit dodgy earlier but hadn’t told me.
I’ve also been locked in the car a couple of times on hot days!

Joesoap Fri 28-Feb-20 12:08:42

AGES ago when I was young and out with friends I was locked in a loo ina restaraunt, on another floor, nobody about, I was agile in those days and fortunately there was a big gap beteen the door and the ceiling I mangaed to climb out, I wonder how long I would have been in there if it was today, not as agile any more! I try to have someone, anyone, to stand outside the loo door these days just in case no matter where I am.I am a bit claustraphobic.

BlueSapphire Fri 28-Feb-20 12:17:20

Never been locked in, but have managed to lock myself out. DH was working abroad, I took the dog out for her morning walk before I left for work, slammed the door behind me and at that moment instantly realised that my key was on the hall table. Neighbour saw me looking distraught, he came over and had to break a back window to get in. Had to ring my head teacher to explain I would be very late and then a glazier to come and board the window up till he could put a new one in. I was very careful after that!

ArtySue Fri 28-Feb-20 12:25:01

My lovely, buxom, 30-something daughter was staying in a Travelodge with her husband, got up in the dark to use the loo, took a wrong turning afterwards and ended up starkers in the corridor while the door slammed behind her. Eventually hubby woke up to her thumping on the door and fortunately no-one else came by! wink

Daddima Fri 28-Feb-20 13:02:25

Many moons ago I took books back to the mobile library, leaving baby asleep in his cot in our first floor flat. My neighbour’s son decided to be helpful and close my door, which locked. We had to borrow a big ladder from the nearby farm, and the librarian had to go through the living room window, which, thankfully, was open. Of course, the child slept through the whole proceedings!