Electric door release buying guide

Updated: October 2026

You are at a timber frame with a worn keep, and a door-entry handset already releases the nightlatch.

You are at a timber frame with a worn keep, and a door-entry handset already releases the nightlatch. An electric door release buying guide has to settle four facts before a price means anything: what the door does in a power cut, whether the supply is 12 V or 24 V, whether the latch is sprung or a mortice deadbolt, and whether the strike plate is already in the frame. The electric door release comparison holds the six amazon.co.uk listings. Peter F. used those listings on 19 October 2026. There was no lab test. A qualifying purchase can earn a commission at no extra cost to you.

Our top picks

Badge	Product	Fail mode	Voltage	Strike plate	Note	Price	Offer
Best overall	effeff effeff 118E door opener	Not stated	10–24 V AC/DC	Not included	7.0	about £24.41	View offer
	AMALOCKS SecureMyDoor fail safe 12 V	Fail safe	12 V DC	Mortice and rim	7.9	about £32.97	View offer
	AMALOCKS SecureMyDoor fail secure 12 V	Fail secure	12 V DC	Mortice and rim	8.4	about £32.97	View offer

Best overall

effeff effeff 118E door opener

7.0/10about £24.41

View offer

Rank 2

AMALOCKS SecureMyDoor fail safe 12 V

7.9/10about £32.97

View offer

Rank 3

AMALOCKS SecureMyDoor fail secure 12 V

8.4/10about £32.97

View offer

On this page

1.What you are actually buying
2.Fail mode before brand
3.Voltage, latch and plate
4.What the listing still will not tell you

What you are actually buying

The part you are buying is the keep in the frame, not the lock on the door. Trade pages call it an electric strike. When the coil changes state, the jaw moves and the latch bolt can leave. A maglock opens when power is lost. A strike can be either behaviour, and the listing has to say which. The six listings sit at about £24 to about £63. Three SecureMyDoor units are each about £32.97 and each name one voltage and one fail mode. The effeff 118E, the best value, is about £24.41 and is sold as a body. None shows a milliamp figure or a fire-test report.

Fail mode before brand

Fail-secure stays locked if power fails. Fail-safe locks only while power is applied. CDVI calls that power-to-unlock against power-to-lock. The word secure is not a safety rating. A stockroom that must stay shut wants fail-secure, if it is not the way out. A door that must become free wants fail-safe, plus another lock for an empty building. M1ALOCK, the top pick, stays locked. M1AUNLOCK unlocks. Nothing on these listings says a jumper changes the mode. The side-door choice is on fail safe vs fail secure door release.

Testsieger

effeff effeff 118E door opener

7.0/10about £24.41

View offer

Voltage, latch and plate

Meter the supply before you trust the title. UK door-entry supplies are commonly 12 V DC or 24 V DC. Mains at 230 V does not go on the coil. A review of the 24 V unit wrote that 12 V was not enough. The effeff 118E accepts 10–24 V AC or DC and says too much voltage can damage the opener. A sprung nightlatch can fall back into the jaw. A mortice deadbolt does not throw itself. The effeff 118E has no strike plate, so buy it only if the matching plate is already fitted. The AOWINHIT listing states neither voltage nor fail mode. Offer the body up before you cut, as set out on how to fit an electric door release.

What the listing still will not tell you

A shelf price does not publish the current the coil draws. Meter a shared supply and stay inside what it is marked for. A fireproof line is not EN 1634 evidence. Leave fire doors until you have read electric door release on a fire door. The TIKATARER unit states 12 V fail-secure at about £62.50 with one review. That is not a reason to pay about twice the about £32.97 listing.

Common questions

Should I buy fail-safe or fail-secure?

Buy the mode that matches what the door must do with no power. Fail-secure stays locked in a power cut and needs power to open. Fail-safe unlocks when power is lost and needs power to stay locked. If people use the door as an escape route, do not settle that on this page. English guidance on the doors it covers expects unlock on power loss. The versus page walks the side-door choice in more detail.

How do I know if the door is already 12 V or 24 V?

Read the label on the transformer or the door-entry power supply, or meter the pair that feeds the old keep with the system idle and then with the release pressed. A 12 V supply will not run the 24 V SecureMyDoor unit properly. One review of that unit said 12 V was not enough. Do not connect the coil to 230 V mains. If you cannot tell low voltage from mains, stop and call an electrician before you order.

Will it work with a nightlatch and with a mortice deadbolt?

A sprung nightlatch can relatch when the door closes, which a review described for a Yale-type bolt on the 24 V unit. A mortice deadbolt does not throw itself. The release frees a bolt that is already withdrawn. It does not turn the key. If the door must lock again as it shuts, the latch has to be the sprung type, or you still throw the deadbolt by hand.

Does the box include a power supply and an exit button?

Not on these listings. The SecureMyDoor units do not include a power supply. One fail-safe review said frame screws were missing. The effeff 118E omits the strike plate. The TIKATARER included-components field is listed as no. Budget for the supply you already have before you compare about £24.41 with about £32.97.

What should I measure on the old keep before I order?

Measure the body in the frame, the faceplate, and the latch gap. Note whether the old jaw is free or blocked when you pull the door-entry fuse. Write down 12 V or 24 V from the supply label, and whether the latch is sprung or a deadbolt. Those notes decide the listing. The price is the last line, after mode, voltage, latch and plate are written down.

Best electric door release