Change or rekey · Palmer
Lock Rekeying in Palmer
Your basement tenant has given notice, and a new one arrives on the first. The lock on the separate entrance works perfectly well.
Call now · open 24/7(289) 816-4986In 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.
How the visit goesYour roommate moved out last weekend. Rent is settled, the room is empty, and the key is still on their ring. You trust them, but the lock on your front door should answer to the people who actually live here.
Lock Rekeying · Palmer
How the visit goes
- 1
The condition of every cylinder
A cylinder about to be pinned to a new key should be worth pinning. The locksmith turns the existing key in each lock and feels for a plug that drags, soft springs, a wobbling cam or a keyway packed with grit and old oil. A cylinder in good order is rekeyed as it is. A worn one is cleaned and given fresh springs while it is apart, and one that has truly worn out is pointed out so you can choose a replacement rather than have new pins dropped into a tired lock. A bolt that binds against its strike gets noticed here too, so the strike can be adjusted while the locksmith is at the door.
- 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
Knowing when to rekey again
Rekeying is not a once-in-a-lifetime event; it is a habit tied to changes in who holds keys. The moments to think about it are the same ones that brought you here: a move, a tenant or roommate change, a key lost with anything identifying the address, a contractor who has finished, or a relationship that has ended. Between those events there is nothing to schedule. Because the house is now on a known system with a record, a later rekey is a shorter visit, and any new lock you add along the way can be pinned to the existing key so the household never drifts back to a ring full of mismatched keys.
In the van
- Retaining clip tool
- Cylinder shim
- Pinning tweezers and tray
- Key tags and keying record
- Reset tool for user-rekeyable cylinders
What affects the quote
- 1
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.
- 2
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.
- 3
Records, tags and labelled key sets
A homeowner needs a short note. A property manager may want a keying chart, tagged sets for each suite and a key-issuance log, which is more office work and is quoted as such.
Same fees day, night or weekend.
Lock Rekeying: questions
Can a smart lock or keypad deadbolt be rekeyed?
The mechanical part of it can. Many keypad or app-controlled deadbolts hide a small keyed cylinder under a cap for the day the batteries fail, and that cylinder can be pinned to your house key so the backup key on your ring is the same one that opens the other doors; some models are key-free and rely on an external battery backup instead. Codes are a separate matter: the locksmith will suggest deleting any code belonging to someone who no longer needs access at the same time.
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.
Do the old keys really stop working?
Yes, at every cylinder that was rekeyed. Once the bottom pins are changed, a key cut to the old combination lifts them to the wrong heights and the plug will not turn. The locksmith proves this at each door by trying the old key after the new one, because any door missed from the list would still answer to the old key. That is also why the walk around the property at the start matters: every door meant to be included has to be on the list.
Halton, Ontario
Palmer information
- Town
- Palmer, Halton, Ontario
- In business
- 16 years
- Hours
- Open 24/7 · nights, weekends and holidays, same fees
- Phone
- (289) 816-4986
- Visits
- On-site assessment preferred. Request a visit or call.
What the census means at the door
47%
Homes of every age. About 47% of homes in Burlington were built in 1980 or earlier, according to the 2021 Census.
Where housing is mixed, doors that have been replaced sit beside doors that never were. A new door in an old frame, or an old door in a repaired frame, needs its strike and hinges checked together so the whole assembly works as one.
50%
A mix of homes. Single-detached houses make up about 50% of homes in Burlington (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.
Open 24/7
Request a visit
Your basement tenant has given notice, and a new one arrives on the first.
Call now · open 24/7(289) 816-4986- On-site assessment preferred
- Same fees day, night or weekend
- 16 years in business