- You cannot know how many copies of the old keys exist, so plan on making them useless.
- Rekeying keeps your hardware and makes every old key stop working.
- Replace locks that are worn, loose, damaged or lighter duty than you want.
Step 1: Count the keys you cannot account for
The sellers may have handed you a neat little bundle of keys at closing, and that bundle is almost never the whole story. Over the life of a house, keys go to relatives, contractors, cleaners, babysitters, real estate agents and the neighbor who watered the plants one summer. Nobody keeps a list, and nobody collects them all back.
- Relatives and friends of the previous owners
- Contractors, painters and inspectors who worked on the house
- Real estate agents and the lockbox used during showings
- Cleaners, caregivers and anyone who checked on the house while it sat empty
- Former tenants, if the house was ever rented out
Step 2: Understand what rekeying does
Inside a typical door lock is a row of small pins in different lengths, set so that only one key lines them up. Rekeying means replacing those pins with a new set that matches a new key. The lock body, the handle and the finish stay exactly as they are. The only change you notice is that the old keys stop working and the new ones do.
Rekeying also lets you put every door on the same key, as long as the locks can be keyed alike. Front door, back door, side door and the deadbolts on each can all work with one key, which is a nice improvement over the jangling ring most new homeowners inherit. Our lock rekeying service does this at the house, door by door.
- Your locks turn smoothly and latch without pushing on the door.
- You like the style and finish of the hardware you have.
- You want every exterior door on one key.
- Your main goal is making the old keys useless.
Step 3: Know when replacing is the better call
Rekeying a tired lock leaves you with a tired lock that has a new key. If the hardware is worn, loose, damaged or simply lighter duty than you want on your front door, replacement makes more sense. It is also the way to go when you want something different, such as a sturdier deadbolt or a keypad that lets you leave the key at home.
- The key sticks, or you have to jiggle it to make the lock turn.
- The handle wobbles or the latch does not always catch.
- The deadbolt is missing on a door that should have one.
- You want a different style, finish or keypad entry.
Our lock replacement service swaps out knobs, levers and handlesets, and we can often handle deadbolt installation and smart lock installation on the same visit if you want them. For help deciding, see our guide to choosing a deadbolt for your front door.
Step 4: Remember the locks people forget
The front door gets all the attention, but it is rarely the only way in. When we rekey or replace locks on a newly bought house, these are the ones we ask about, because they are the ones new owners tend to miss.
- The back door, side doors and any sliding patio door with a keyed lock
- A basement or bulkhead door with its own key
- The mailbox, if it locks
- Any keypad or smart lock the previous owners set codes on
What to tell us when you call
A few details let us bring the right pins, cylinders and hardware so the job can usually be done in one visit.
- How many exterior doors the house has, and which have deadbolts
- Whether you want to rekey, replace or are not sure yet
- Whether you want every door on one key
- Any keypad or smart lock on the house
- The address and town, so we can tell you honestly when we can come
If you are not sure what you need, describe the locks when you call us at (484) 488-7719, and we will help you decide.
How to avoid this next time
The goal is to always know who holds a key to your home. Once the locks are fresh, a little record keeping keeps it that way.
- Keep a short list of who has a key and when you gave it to them.
- Ask for keys back when a contractor, cleaner or tenant is done.
- Rekey again whenever a key goes missing and you cannot account for it.
- Give out keypad codes instead of keys where you can, and delete codes when they are no longer needed.
Questions people ask
The sellers handed us four keys at closing. Do we still need to rekey the house after we move in?
Plan on rekeying anyway. Four keys at closing tells you what the sellers had on hand, not how many copies went to relatives, contractors or agents over the life of the house. We rekey the locks at the house so every old key stops working, and, when the locks share a compatible keyway, we can set all your exterior doors to one new key while we are there.
Can you make all the doors on our new house work with one key instead of a whole ring?
We can usually set every exterior door to one key by rekeying the locks you have, as long as they share a compatible keyway. If one or two locks will not take the same key, we tell you before we start and offer to replace just those, where matching hardware is available, so the whole house still runs on a single key.
The front door lock sticks and the deadbolt wobbles. Should we rekey it or replace it?
Replace it. Rekeying changes the key, not the condition of the lock, so a loose, wobbly lock will still wobble with a new key. We can install a new lock and deadbolt on that door and rekey the rest of the house to match where the locks allow it, so you carry one key for everything.
We are renting our new place. Should we rekey the locks when we move in?
Talk to your landlord or property manager first, because many leases say who may change or rekey the locks. Plenty of landlords rekey between tenants anyway and are glad you asked. If they agree to rekeying, we can do the work while you are there and you can arrange how they get their copy.
