If you have ever had your house burgled or have angry hoodlums find their way in quickly, then you will have to change your locks. You say to yourself that it’s the best thing to do in order to be safer and keep your kids safe. One thing that most people don’t consider is that instead of changing or entirely replacing the locks to your house, there is a much cheaper alternative. REKEYING YOUR LOCKS.
If you don’t know what it means to rekey a lock, then don’t worry, as you’ll be getting all the relevant information you need on rekeying a lock. Some people choose to change their locks completely, as they feel it is a much safer route. However, should you decide to save yourself a considerable amount of money each year, then you should stick to rekeying your locks instead.
There are some locksmiths out there who take advantage of the fact that most people, especially the elderly, have no idea about anything called rekeying. Some don’t know about rekeying, and while some may know about it, they are unable to differentiate between rekeying and changing a lock.
So some locksmiths will save themselves the stress of having to explain the difference to such people and have them pay for a complete lock replacement, which is more expensive than just having your locks rekeyed and saving some money.
Read: What is a Euro cylinder lock
Before diving into how you can rekey a lock, let me make the difference clear between changing a lock and rekeying one.
Changing a lock is quite simple. It has to do with replacing an old, rusty lock with a new one. Maybe you’re scared that someone somewhere might have the keys to your house, so instead of using the same lock, you decide to change your locks entirely.
Rekeying, on the other hand, can be a little bit complicated for some people to understand. But we’ll try to put it in a simple definition. Rekeying a lock means that you change the old lock keys to a different one. This leaves you with your old lock, but new keys.
In a simple sentence, changing a lock means getting a new lock and new keys. Rekeying a lock means keeping your old lock but getting new keys without changing the lock.
Rekeying a lock is something that is usually done by a locksmith. And for any locksmith to rekey a lock, they need the locks matching key. If they don’t have a matching key, then they will have to pick the lock open. Any profound locksmith with expert skills can do that, but it’s going to incur additional charges on your end. And in such a case, rekeying becomes even more expensive than changing your lock entirely.
Now you may decide to replace the lock considering the cost, but such damages only arise if you happen to misplace your key, doing the job a lot harder for the locksmith. But with your matching key in place, a locksmith wouldn’t charge much for rekeying.
Read: Is It Cheaper To Rekey Or Replace Locks
Rekeying a lock yourself
If you want to change your standard house lock, it can be a straightforward task, and can efficiently be executed using a Phillips screwdriver. But when it comes to rekeying a lock yourself, you need to have practised and learned it to become able to rekey a lock on your own. It’s not just about having Phillips screwdriver or having some other tools on demand.
If you are keen on rekeying a lock yourself, even if you possess some lock rekeying technique, you will need to have the right tools for the job, and these tools aren’t exactly cheap. You will need a professional pinning kit in order to rekey most locks out there. And such a professional pinning kit costs over £200. That’s like buying 11 brand new essential locks.
Also, if you decide to replace your lock yourself and end up failing, there isn’t a lot of damage that can occur with the lock. You’d either try again or get a locksmith to their job. On the other hand, if you become unsuccessful in rekeying a lock, you might’ve ruined it entirely.
Nowadays, there are newer fashions of modern locks that offer individual options of having them rekeyed easily in your house, and without even calling out a locksmith. Many of such locks are becoming more and more frequent and more popular as technology grows each day. Most people prefer them to others. You can get such locks in your nearby hardware store.
But like everything else, these locks aren’t perfect. They have certain flaws. If rekeying a lock isn’t something you’ve practised or something you often do, then we suggest saving yourself any future troubles by calling a locksmith to get the job done or stick to using your regular locks until you’re comfortable with spending a few bucks on expensive locks.
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