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Wasaga BeachLock Services · Wasaga BeachOpen 24/7(249) 492-2389Request a visit
Two detached brass lock cylinders and four house keys on a wooden counter. — Lock Rekeying, Wasaga Beach

Change or rekey · Wasaga Beach

Lock Rekeying

The previous owners left a coffee tin of keys on the counter, some labelled, most not. The house is yours now, but you have no idea how many copies were cut over the years or who still has one in a drawer somewhere.

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Lock Rekeying

In plain words

One key for the whole house is a common request and usually achievable. Cylinders that share the same keyway, the shaped channel the key slides into, can all be pinned to the same new combination, so the front door, back door and garage entry answer to a single key. Where a door carries a lock from a different family with its own keyway, that cylinder is swapped for a matching one rather than repinned, and then it joins the group. The locksmith checks each lock face before the work begins so you know exactly which doors will share the key.

Sound familiar?

The builder handed over your new home with a stack of identical keys, and you know the framing crew, the painters and the flooring installers all used a construction key during the build. The doors are brand new, but the key that opens them should be yours alone.

How the visit goes

Wasaga Beach

How the visit goes

  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.

  2. Sliding the plug and changing the pins

    With the cylinder in hand, the locksmith removes the cam or tailpiece from the back, inserts the existing key and turns the plug slightly so the top pins clear, then pushes a plug follower in behind the plug as it slides out. The follower holds the top pins and springs in the housing so nothing springs loose. The plug now sits on the bench with its row of bottom pins exposed, and those pins are tipped out. This is the heart of rekeying a pin-tumbler cylinder: the pins that decided which key worked are gone, and the plug is ready to receive a set that matches a key nobody has ever carried.

  3. Looking after a freshly pinned cylinder

    A cylinder that has just been rekeyed turns as smoothly as it ever will, and a little care keeps it that way. Once or twice a year, a puff of whatever lubricant the cylinder maker specifies into the keyway and a few turns of the key is all it needs, since some current cylinders use oil while too much graphite can itself gum a cylinder. When you need more copies, cut them from one of the locksmith's originals rather than from a copy, because each generation drifts a little from the true depths. A key that starts to need a jiggle is the cylinder asking for a clean and a new key, not a sign of anything serious.

Lock Rekeying

In the van

  • Cylinder shim
  • Graded bottom pin kit
  • Code cutter or key duplicator
  • Retaining clip tool
  • Replacement cylinder for odd keyways

What affects the quote

Same fees day, night or weekend

  1. 1Mailboxes, padlocks and cabinets

    Small cam locks on mailboxes and cabinets are usually replaced rather than repinned, and padlocks vary in whether they can join the house key; each of these is priced as its own item.

  2. 2Interior doors added to the plan

    Bedroom, office or storage-room locks brought onto a key are lighter work than exterior deadbolts, but each is still a cylinder to pin and test, and the count includes them.

  3. 3Upgrades chosen during the visit

    Some people take the opportunity to replace a double-cylinder deadbolt with a thumb-turn model, add a reinforced strike or move to a heavier deadbolt. None of it is needed to rekey; each is a separate line.

What to have ready

0 of 3 ready

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Lock Rekeying: questions

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.

Should I rekey when I move into a new home?

It is the single most common reason to rekey, and a sensible one. A resale home has typically passed through owners, agents, inspectors, cleaners and trades, any of whom may have had a key cut. A newly built home has been opened by construction crews using a builder's key. Rekeying on move-in means the only working keys are yours, and the same visit can bring every exterior door onto a single key, retiring the assorted keys you inherited.

How is rekeying different from replacing the lock?

Rekeying keeps your existing deadbolt or handle set and gives it a new key, commonly by changing the pins inside, though some cylinders reset a different way. Replacing removes the whole lock or cylinder and fits new hardware. Rekeying suits locks that are in good condition and simply need a fresh key. Replacement is the better call for hardware that is worn or damaged, built to a low grade, on a keyway the other doors cannot share, or due for a change of style or a keypad.

Change or Rekey Locks

Close view of a satin-nickel deadbolt thumbturn and edge faceplate on a painted timber door. — Deadbolt Installation, Wasaga Beach
Deadbolt InstallationThe front door has a handsome lever and a keyed knob, and that is all.

Lock Rekeying near you

Whatever brought you to this page from Wasaga Beach, whether it was a lockout, a lost key, a move, a break-in or simply a door that has annoyed you for months, one of the services below fits. Each is written to tell you what happens, what it involves, and what you have when the locksmith leaves.

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