If you’ve ever lost your apartment keys or had to fire an employee or moved into a new place, you have probably been in a position where you considered getting your locks changed. Most people are unaware that instead of changing their locks, re-keying could be a better and sometimes cheaper solution.

In this article, we’ll be examining the pros and cons of rekeying vs. lock change and what each entails.

What is Rekeying?

While “lock change” refers to replacing an old lock with a new one, lock rekeying is a technical way by which professional locksmiths change the working key of a lock to another key, without replacing the original lock itself. In summary, you retain your lock, with the old key losing the ability to operate it. This is done by a locksmith who takes the lock apart to replace some of the parts inside called “key pins”.

You see, each series of key pins in a lock corresponds to a particular key so when those pins are replaced with different ones, a new key will be required to operate the lock. A locksmith may require a lock’s current matching key in order to rekey the lock.

Rekeying a lock does not affect the security of the lock in any way, and it’s a cheaper option than getting your locks entirely changed. When rekeying your locks, you’re often only charged for labor, whereas you’ll be charged for both labor and parts when you get your locks changed.

You don’t have to wonder if your locks are “re-keyable” or not as all locks often come with a built-in option to be rekeyed.

Rekeying is not only used for retiring an old key but also to match more than one lock for the same key. For instance, if a house has many locks and each lock has a separate key, which may be inconvenient, the homeowner may wish to rekey all the locks to match the same key. However, to match two locks or more with one key, the locks have to be the same brand or at least share similar keyholes. If your key fits into one lock but won’t go into the other, it’s an indication that their keyholes are different and they cannot be matched.

When should you Re-key?

The most common situations to Re-key your locks include:

1. For security i.e., if you are okay with your locks, but wish to replace the key with a new one so that the old key doesn’t work anymore.
2. For convenience case i.e. when you have separate keys for different locks and you want to match them all to a single key.

What is Replacing Locks?

Locks wear out, sometimes beyond rekeying. In this case, replacing the locks is a good idea. You may even want to replace your locks to accommodate disabilities or replace them purely for aesthetic reasons. Considering the people and property your locks will be protecting, it simply makes a lot of sense to purchase quality hardware locks.

When should you replace your locks?

1. For aesthetics: If you want locks in a different design, color or to generally get newer locks.
2. For security: You may want to upgrade your locks to high-security or electronic locks.
3. If you have locks of various brands in your house and you want them all to work on the same key so you can re-key them all to one key.

To get your locks changed or re-keyed, Littleton Locksmith CO is the professional locksmith you can trust with the security of your home. Call (720) 789-2987 to contact us today!

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