What Should I Use to Lubricate my Gate Hardware?

All of us, to a certain degree, have the home improvement gene.  Every Spring we grab our tool belts, load them up with screws, glues, and tools and proceed on our handyman march. Our spouses cringe and hide their wallets as we head out the door for a “couple of things” at the local hardware store. No squeaky hinge or blown light bulb has a chance. I know my 9 year old son has this gene because he has taken the screw driver and over-tightened every electrical socket and light switch in the house.  I can tell they are over-tightened because they all have that tell tale crack down the middle.

When you get to the outside of your house and come to the gate on your fence, you may be compelled to lubricate your Magna Latch and Tru Close Hinges to ensure the effortless opening and closing of your gate.  But wait just one moment, did you realize that your favorite lubricant may be doing more harm than good?  The problem is that petroleum based lubricants, like WD40 and others, will react with the polymers in the Magna Latch and Tru Close Hinges.  This is why if you use a petroleum based lubricant on a product made by D&D Technologies (Magna Latch, Lokk Latch, Tru Close, Z-Lokk, etc.) it voids the warranty.

So what do we use? There is a product called Lock Saver that is not petroleum based, dries quickly, does not freeze and is recommended by D&D for use on all of their products.  It is environmentally safe and is also designed to be used on your household door knobs.

This is a picture I came across of my son Nate hauling some D&D hardware around on his John Deere tricycle.