Before You Buy Lockers: 5 Things You Should Know
If you've found your way to this post, chances are that you need to buy lockers and you've discovered it’s a lot more complicated than you originally thought. Our essential locker buyer’s guide is designed to simplify the ordering process and help you get straight to the specifics. Whether you’re a school administrator purchasing new lockers for a hallway or locker room, or a business owner in search of staff room storage—we’ve got all the information you need to buy lockers online with confidence.
1. Locker Types
While metal is by far the most common material used in lockers, it may not always be the best fit for every setting or storage need. Lockers are primarily constructed with three main material types: metal, wood, and plastic. Each material has its own unique advantages and if you’re making a long-term investment, you should get familiar with all of them. You can find the best type of locker by considering your specific application, industry, and the conditions of your environment.
Estimated Budget
$90 - $280 per column
Metal Lockers
Traditional metal lockers are a classic favorite for many reasons, they’re strong, durable and versatile enough for many different applications. You can find them in endless styles, sizes, colors, and configurations so you’ll have all the options needed to perfectly complement your facility. When it comes to determining the right durability, you’ll need to decide if standard-duty or heavy-duty construction is best for your application. You may even want to consider fully welded lockers for more rugged settings like warehouses and some locker rooms.
If you think your lockers will encounter a lot of abuse, you’ll want to buy lockers that are built with heavier gauge steel.
☛ You can determine metal thickness based on the gauge size, just remember: the lower the gauge number, the thicker the metal (e.g, 14 gauge lockers are going to be much thicker than 24 gauge).
Ventilation is another feature to consider if you plan to buy metal lockers. For everyday use in hallways, offices and staff rooms, just the standard, slot-shaped louvers will do. For locker rooms or athletic centers, you’ll likely want ventilated metal lockers to provide the necessary circulation for damp clothing to dry. Another advantage to perforated doors is the ability to keep your user’s belongings in plain sight, for an added layer of security. These steel perforations are available in many different shapes and sizes but are typically seen in a diamond or rectangle-shaped pattern. Depending on the level of air circulation you require, you can opt for ventilated doors, side panels or both.
Estimated Budget
$150 - $300 per column
Plastic Lockers
Next, we have plastic lockers. These are a highly popular choice for healthcare and food industries, laboratories, swimming pools and spas where their antimicrobial properties offer invaluable benefits. These waterproof lockers are crafted with industrial-grade plastic known as High-Density Polyethylene Resin (HDPE) or Phenolic, melamine sheet layered with resin-impregnated kraft paper. Both materials have a nonporous structure that offers extreme resistance to mold, mildew, and bacteria. As such, they are a superior choice for wet or humid locker rooms and industries that need to maintain a sterile environment.
Not only are plastic lockers superior in resisting contaminants, but they are also a tough match for damage and vandalism. Plastic is known to have amazing impact and scratch resistance, even more so than metal. Plastic lockers are also incredibly easy to clean and maintain as they can tolerate a wide variety of chemical solvents, allowing you to wipe away graffiti, scuff marks, and other stains.
Estimated Budget
$200 - $375 per column
Wood Lockers
Lastly, are wood lockers—the perfect combination of function and style. These are the perfect lockers to buy for upscale settings like offices, spas, fitness centers and more. Wood laminate, solid hardwood, and wood veneer are all considered types of wood lockers and although they look similar, they have very different maintenance needs.
Wood laminate lockers are pretty straight forward, in a nutshell: you get the wood look with the sturdy benefits of plastic. Laminate offers resistance to scratches and moisture and is also tolerant of many chemical cleaners. If you can part from real wood, laminate can be a great economical alternative that will last many years. Wood veneer lockers take things a little further with an industrial core frame that features raised panel doors topped with a thin layer of real wood. If you're buying lockers on a budget, veneer offers a close second to real wood but with improved durability and a much more affordable price tag.
Lastly, you have the coveted designer appeal of solid hardwood lockers. These attractive lockers are used to make a statement in boutiques and hotels, country clubs, mudrooms, and other high-end settings. Crafted with furniture-grade quality, the charm of solid wood lockers is truly hard to beat. As you’ve probably guessed, the main downsides to real wood are increased maintenance due to their vulnerability for water and cosmetic damage, and a higher price tag. Although each wood locker type has its own benefits, you simply can’t wrong with the natural ambiance these lockers create.
2. Locker Tiers & Configurations
Understanding a few industry terms will be extremely helpful when determining your locker needs. You’ll definitely want to understand is what a “tier” is, as well as how a “column or frame” is defined, in addition to the various ways lockers can be configured as a set. 
For first time buyers, these terms are the most commonly misunderstood locker lingo out there, but understanding them will allow you to make the most of space and budget. Columns or frames, come into play when you’re deciding how many lockers will fit your floor plan. Columns represent each vertical unit, regardless of how many doors or compartments are in each.
Lockers can be combined to create endless configurations, but you will usually see them available for purchase as 1 column (1-wide) or 3 columns (3-wide) set. If you’re planning for a long row of lockers in a hallway or large space, the columns will have to be joined together on-site after delivery. When referencing locker dimensions, ensure the perfect fit by taking any additional height increases into account, especially if your lockers will include legs or slope top hoods.
Simply put, locker tiers are the number of doors, compartments or openings within each vertical column. Tiered styles range from single tier all the way up to 12 tier. Columns with three or more tiers are also referred to as “box lockers”. Whichever style you choose will all depend on how many compartments you want in a single locker column, as well as the individual storage capacity that each user requires. In applications with minimal storage needs, buying multiple tier lockers can be a great way to lower cost and conserve floor space.
3. Locker Handles & Lock Options
Knowing all the available options for locker handles and locks is important when considering accessibility and security needs. Not all locker styles can accommodate every handle or locker lock, so be sure to determine compatibility before making your purchase. The most common locker handle types are recessed handles and pull tab handles
. These handles are typically what you see on most modern lockers and they can support many different lock types. You can request to have built-in locks installed or you can use the padlock of your choice.
Recessed handles are the most popular style used with single to triple tier lockers. This sleek design features an inset, stainless steel pan for a smooth, catch-free surface. The recessed style helps to prevent injuries, especially in crowded hallways or rambunctious locker rooms. These handles operate with a simple, lift-style mechanism which makes them ideal for ADA-compliance.
With smaller, more compact styles such as box lockers, pull tab handles tend to be the preferred style. These handles operate by a finger pull on the small protruding, metal tab. Unlike recessed handles, pull tab handles have no moving parts which can be beneficial in reducing maintenance needs.
4. Shipping Your Lockers
Having a clear picture of delivery expectations when buying lockers is essential. First and foremost, make sure you review the shipping and return policies for the company you’re ordering with. Because all companies have different procedures and policies, as do freight carriers, there is no “one size fits all” scenario. The best thing to do is ensure you have all the delivery information you need upfront, directly from the supplier. Due to the larger size and weight of lockers, they are almost always shipped via freight carrier. Freight can be expensive to ship and as a result, return shipping may not be covered in every situation. To avoid costly mistakes as the buyer, always be sure to confirm you 
have the right sizes and quantities or contact a sales rep with any additional questions you have. Another major difference with freight shipping is the delivery methods themselves.
Unlike most standard deliveries where you receive a package on your doorstep, freight carriers are not required to transport large parcels up to your door and may require additional fees to do so. If you do not make any upgrades prior to the delivery, you may be responsible for removing the lockers off the truck or transporting them from the curbside.
As with deliveries of almost any kind, lockers are vulnerable to damage incurred from the shipping process. The person receiving the lockers will need to physically inspect the parcel(s) for any signs of damage before signing the delivery receipt. If there is verifiable damage, they should refuse the shipment. Refusing the shipment releases the buyer of any damage liability and ensures a much smoother, easier replacement.
5. Locker Assembly & Installation
When your lockers arrive, make sure you understand all the necessary components that go into a complete and structurally sound installation, this is especially crucial if you don’t plan to hire professional help for your project. Most companies offer fully assembled lockers for a small fee so you don’t have to build them yourself, ordering them this way can be a huge time-saver. If you do plan to do the assembly yourself, it is not overly difficult but you will need either a rivet gun or nuts and bolts to assemble the columns. One of the most 
important components in any installation is ensuring your lockers have solid support and are securely anchored to the floor, wall or both.
Safety & Anchoring
If your lockers have legs and will be freestanding with exposed backs, they must be anchored to the floor using a locker foot or floor anchoring kit. In single rows of lockers, both wall and floor anchoring are required to achieve the necessary stability. In double row installations, lockers must always be anchored to the floor.
**Keep in mind that improper anchoring or unsupported lockers can cause serious injuries and/or result in major damages to your facility. Always check with your local building codes to ensure your installation complies with all structural requirements.**
Filler Panels, Bases & Top Options
If you buy lockers without legs that don’t have a wood or concrete base, you may want to purchase a metal locker base (also called a “zee base” when ordered as a continuous channel for enclosing a row of lockers). 
Zee bases offer a more finished look and prevent debris from accumulating underneath the bottoms. Other important locker accessories you may not have considered are filler panels. These metal panels seal gaps when obstructions prevent installations from achieving a perfect fit. Fillers offer a seamless solution for filling any empty spaces left between columns, corners, locker hoods, and row ends.
Filler panels are finished in the same color as your lockers, they are available in multiple sizes and can be field cut to length. Another optional accessory you may need is slope top hoods. These slanted locker tops can be attached to existing lockers with flat tops and are designed to prevent items from being stored on top of them so you don’t end up with damaged or caved in hoods. The addition of a sloped hood also eliminates dust buildup and debris, so you can avoid unnecessary cleaning.
You've officially made it to the end of our guide and hopefully, by now, you feel ready to buy lockers. But, if you still have questions on which type is best for your application, how many columns you need, or need to estimate the cost of your project, don’t hesitate to reach out to our locker experts. Feel free to give us a call, submit a quote request or email your questions to lockers@schoollockers.com.
