A lot of homeownwers ask: Is it cheaper to rekey or replace locks? Perhaps you just arrived at your new home, or maybe you’ve been living in a particular house for quite some time, you might be planning on changing the locks of your house.

Will you have to tamper with your savings to replace the locks entirely? Or will it be even cheaper for you to rekey the whole thing and save yourself some money? There are a few home warranties that promise to help its tenants with certain things such as lock replacement. But some do not.

If you don’t know how to rekey or replace a lock yourself, simply call a locksmith to do it. Rekeying a lock is a kind of skill that will become useful to you when you move into a new home.

A lot of people advice that one of the first things you should do the moment you move into a new home is to replace your locks. Because someone somewhere might have a key in their possession that can open your door.

So if you’ve been living in a particular house for many years, then it would be wise to change the locks, or maybe you’ve been living with a roommate and one day they happen to move out, then it’s best to change your locks as well.

REPLACING A LOCK

When you decide to change your lock, you get to remove the old lock hardware and put in new hardware. And if you’re hiring a locksmith to change your lock, then they’ll be doing the same thing. They take off the old hardware and replace it with a new one.

Although you should know that changing your locks in the UK can be quite expensive. Also, it is not necessary. but if you do decide to go ahead and change your locks, well then you’re going to have new keys and new locks, but it’s going to cost you.

It is highly advisable to call a locksmith and have them change your locks only in the case of an emergency.

Such as a burglar entering your home, a thief sneaking in, or nasty hoodlums breaking into your house.But other than that, changing your locks for new ones is more expensive than just having a locksmith rekey them.

There are instances when you will be forced to change your locks without reason, and it may not be due to an emergency or someone entering your home.

Locksmith working on a white door

When your locks become old and are starting to look rusty, you should have them replaced for new ones. Rather than having them rekeyed.

Also, if all the doors in your house use separate models of locks, and you want to avoid looking for different keys by opening them all with a single key, you will need to replace them. Furthermore, if you misplaced key, replacing it will be cheaper than having it rekeyed.

Although, there are professional locksmiths that might be able to rekey a lock without the lost key.

REKEYING A LOCK

Rekeying your lock means you’re changing the mechanism of the old key. Your old key will cannot be used to open your door. Once a lock has been rekeyed, the lost key becomes useless unless. Your newly rekeyed key becomes your new relevant key.

Hiring a locksmith to rekey your lock has proven to be less expensive than having the entire lock replaced. For instance, if the entire locks in your house are the same or use the same kind of keyhole but separate keys, you can have a locksmith rekey them to enable you to operate using the same key.

Read also: How Much Does It Cost To Call Out A Locksmith

Or you misplaced your key, and you’re terrified that someone might pick it up and gain access to your home. What you have to do is rekey the locks, making the lost key useless. Even if someone findS your lost key, it will no longer work on your lock because you’ve rekeyed your lock.

CONCLUSION

If you just arrived at your new place, rekeying is a less expensive way to ensure your safety. This is a crucial step to take. Because the former owners may not have had the thought of having their locks rekeyed.

You never know who out there has a copy of your house key from the recent owners. Which is why it’s best to rekey your locks as soon as you move into a new home. Replacing your locks mean you get new keys, a new fancy looking lock, but it’s more expensive.

Rekeying your lock means you keep your old lock, just that it’ll be rekeyed. Which means the old keys won’t be important . Your locksmith will hand over new keys to you. Rekeying process is also cheaper.