Sound familiar?Broughdale
- The call
- The whole key ring went missing somewhere between the grocery store and the bus. You got back in with the spare, but a set of keys is out there, and you would sleep better knowing they open nothing.
One key for the front door, another for the back, a third for the side door into the garage, and a fourth for the shed. You stand on the step every evening flipping through them in the dark, trying each one until something turns.
In plain words
A rekeying visit follows a straightforward order. First the locksmith confirms you are entitled to change the locks, which for an owner is identification and for a tenant includes the landlord's agreement. Next comes a walk around the house to list every door to include, read the keyway on each cylinder and check its condition. The cylinders come out one at a time, are pinned to the new key and go back in. Every door is then tested with the new key and with the old one, spares are cut and tried in each lock, and you receive a note of what was done.
Lock Rekeying · Broughdale
How the visit goes
Scene 1
Walking every door that should be included
Before a single cylinder comes out, the locksmith walks the property with you and lists each opening: the front door, the back and side doors, the door from the garage into the house, a walkout basement, a gate with a keyed latch, a shed, a mailbox, and any interior door you want on a key. It is surprising how often the garage's side door or the storm door is forgotten and left on the old key. The list becomes the plan for the visit and, at the end, the record of what was done. A door that is not on the list is not rekeyed, so the walk is worth two careful minutes.
Scene 2
Taking the cylinder out of the lock
Each type of lock releases its cylinder in its own way, and the locksmith works door by door, finishing one before opening the next, so every entry stays lockable throughout. On a knob or lever set, the handle comes off after a retaining clip or set screw is released, and the cylinder slides out of the handle. On a deadbolt, the interior thumb-turn and housing are removed and the cylinder is withdrawn from the outside body. On an older mortise lock, a small set screw on the door edge is backed out and the cylinder unthreads from the case. Nothing is pried or forced; the door and trim stay untouched throughout.
Scene 3
Handing keys out with a little method
Rekeying gives you a clean start on who holds a key, and a few habits keep it clean. Give a key only to people who need one regularly, and know who they are. If a dog walker, a cleaner or a contractor needs access for a season, a lockbox with a code you can change afterwards is simpler than a key you have to ask for back. Tag spares with a colour or a number rather than the address. When a key does leave your control, a lost ring, a departing tenant, a relationship that has ended, that is the trigger to rekey again, and the next visit is simpler because the doors are already on one system.
In the van
- Cylinder shim
- Code cutter or key duplicator
- Key gauge
- Pinning tweezers and tray
- Reset tool for user-rekeyable cylinders
What shapes the quoteCalamity Corners Locksmith Co.
- No working key for a door
- When a cylinder must be shimmed, decoded or picked open before it can be repinned because no key exists for it, that extra step is included in the quote for that door.
- Several units in one building
- A landlord rekeying a duplex, a triplex or a small apartment building, with each suite on its own key and a common entry shared, has more cylinders and a keying chart to build, and the quote grows accordingly.
- Condition of the existing cylinders
- A clean cylinder is repinned as it is. One with collapsed springs, a plug packed with old oil or a worn housing needs service or replacement while it is apart, and that shows separately.
FeesSame any hour
Let's clear a few things up
How often should locks be rekeyed?
There is no calendar for it. What matters is who holds a key, not how many years have passed. Think about it when occupancy changes hands, when someone who had a key no longer needs one, or when a ring goes missing along with something that shows where you live. Between those moments a well-kept cylinder may need no scheduled care, and when it does, use whatever that cylinder's maker specifies. With the doors already on one recorded system, any repeat is a short piece of work.
Will my door hardware look any different afterwards?
No. The work happens inside the cylinder, so the bolt, handle, finish and strike plate stay exactly as they are, and nothing new is cut into the door. The only visible change is the key in your hand. If a cylinder does have to be replaced, because its keyway is incompatible with the others or it has worn out, the locksmith picks one in a matching finish so the door keeps a consistent look.
I rent. Can I have my locks rekeyed?
Yes, with your landlord's agreement, which is what the tenancy rules here expect before a tenant changes a lock. Most landlords are glad to consent when a key has gone missing or a former roommate has moved out, and the locksmith will want to hear that the landlord knows and will be holding one of the new keys. The rekey itself runs the same as for an owner, and a short note listing the doors done is handy to pass to the landlord.
Change or Rekey Locks
- Lock Replacement & UpgradeSomeone tried the back door while you were away.
- Vintage Mortise Lock ServiceThe brass knob on the front door of your century home turns, but nothing happens on the other side.
- Smart Lock InstallationThe rental turns over every few months and each time you drive across town to swap keys, then wonder whether copies were made.
- Gate & Building Entry LocksSomeone pried at the gate latch overnight, and now the strike plate hangs by one screw and the cylinder spins loose in its…
- Mailbox Lock ReplacementThe mailbox key snapped clean off in the lock last week, and the stub is still sitting somewhere inside the cylinder.
Broughdaleinformation
MiddlesexOntario
Lock Rekeying · London, Lucan Biddulph, Middlesex Centre, Calamity Corners, Masonville, Orchard Park, Sherwood Forest, Stoneybrook, University Heights, White Hills, Northcrest
- Town
- Broughdale, Middlesex
- In business
- 27 years
- Hours
- Open 24/7
- Nights, weekends and holidays, same fees
- Phone
- (226) 271-6061
- Visits
- On-site assessment preferred. Request a visit or call.
2021 census: what it means at the door
Every square is one home in a hundred.
- 52 in 100 homes · older homes
- 49 in 100 homes · mixed housing
- About 52% of homes in London were built in 1980 or earlier, according to the 2021 Census.Older housing means older frames. Wood that has settled for years leaves strikes slightly out of line, so a bolt drags or needs a lift of the handle. A locksmith expects this and brings the shims, longer screws and strike plates to correct it.
- Single-detached houses make up about 49% of homes in London (2021 Census).In a mixed area, a locksmith's advice bends to the building. For a house, the side door and garage entry get attention. For an apartment, the suite door's closer, strike and viewer do. The principle is the same: look at how the door is actually used.
Nearby
On-site assessment
Request a visit.
One key for the front door, another for the back, a third for the side door into the garage, and a fourth for the shed.
(226) 271-6061, open 24/7.