Change or rekey · Toronto
Lock Rekeying in Toronto
The whole key ring went missing somewhere between the grocery store and the bus. You got back in with the spare, but a set of keys is out there, and you would sleep better knowing they open nothing.
Call now · open 24/7(289) 804-7704In plain words
Rekeying is a change made inside the lock rather than to the lock itself. Many keyed cylinders hold a row of small pins that have to sit at exactly the right heights before the plug will turn, set by the cuts on your key, though some residential cylinders use a side-locking bar instead of pins. A locksmith slides the plug out, removes the pins, and loads a new set matched to a freshly cut key. Reassembled, the lock looks and feels exactly as it did, except that the new key turns it and every key cut before today does not. Your hardware, finish and door stay as they were.
How the visit goesThe whole key ring went missing somewhere between the grocery store and the bus. You got back in with the spare, but a set of keys is out there, and you would sleep better knowing they open nothing.
Lock Rekeying · Toronto
How the visit goes
- 1
Who is entitled to change the locks
Rekeying decides who can enter a home, so the first check is about the person asking. A homeowner shows photo identification and something tying them to the property, such as a tax bill, a closing document or a utility statement. A property manager brings authorization from the owner. A tenant is asked whether the landlord has agreed to the change and will receive a copy of the new key, because tenancy rules here expect both sides to hold one. Where a unit is in a condominium, the locksmith asks whether the building has a rule about suite-door locks. None of this is an obstacle; it is the part of the job that protects the home being worked on.
- 2
When a cylinder is swapped instead of repinned
Sometimes the right move for a particular door is a new cylinder rather than new pins, and the locksmith says so before doing it. A cylinder with a keyway that cannot join the household key is replaced with one that can. A plug that has worn oval, springs that have collapsed, or a cylinder someone has already drilled is replaced because fresh pins would not fix its feel. In each case the replacement is pinned to the same new key as the rest of the house, so the swap is invisible in daily use. The old cylinder is handed to you or taken away as you prefer.
- 3
Living with one key for the house
If the visit brought your doors onto a single key, daily life gets a little simpler: one key opens the front door, the back, the garage's side entry and the shed, and the ring in your pocket shrinks to the car key and one for the house. Anyone you give a key to gets the same freedom, which is convenient for family and worth thinking about for anyone who should only reach one door; that is what a separate group is for. Keypads and smart locks keep their codes, and their override cylinder now takes the same key. If you add a door later, its cylinder can be pinned to match.
In the van
- Dry graphite or PTFE lubricant
- Reset tool for user-rekeyable cylinders
- Pinning tweezers and tray
- Retaining clip tool
- Code cutter or key duplicator
What affects the quote
- 1
Number of keys cut
Keys are cut and tested individually, so the total depends on how many the household or the tenants need. Say the number when you book and the quote reflects it from the start.
- 2
Smart lock override cylinders and codes
Pinning the backup cylinder of a keypad or app lock to the house key is a small extra task, and reviewing or deleting user codes at the same time is another, each named in the quote.
- 3
Mismatched keyways needing a cylinder swap
Where one door's cylinder cannot take the key the other doors share, a compatible replacement cylinder is fitted and pinned to match, and that hardware appears as its own line in the quote.
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.
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.
Can all my doors be made to work with one key?
Usually, yes. Where the cylinders accept the same style of key blank, each can be pinned to one new combination, so a single key runs the front, back, side and garage doors. A lock from a different keyway family is brought into the group by exchanging its cylinder for a compatible one in the same finish. During the first walk around the property the locksmith reads every keyway and tells you up front which doors can be keyed alike.
Toronto, Ontario
Toronto information
- Town
- Toronto, Ontario
- In business
- 16 years
- Hours
- Open 24/7 · nights, weekends and holidays, same fees
- Phone
- (289) 804-7704
- Visits
- On-site assessment preferred. Request a visit or call.
What the census means at the door
58%
Older homes. About 58% of homes in Toronto were built in 1980 or earlier, according to the 2021 Census.
Layers of paint build up on older doors and frames, and a lock that seemed to fail is sometimes a latch glued shut by the last coat. Part of the visit in an older area is freeing hardware, cleaning the edges and checking the door swings true.
23%
Single-detached houses make up about 23% of homes in Toronto (2021 Census).
Townhouse rows often share a keyway chosen by the builder. A locksmith can move a household onto a keyway of its own so a neighbour's key, or a key from the construction phase, no longer has any chance of fitting.
Nearby
Open 24/7
Request a visit
The whole key ring went missing somewhere between the grocery store and the bus.
Call now · open 24/7(289) 804-7704- On-site assessment preferred
- Same fees day, night or weekend
- 16 years in business