Having a fully functional locking door, whether it’s to your home or office, is vital for your security, and the minute the lock develops any sort of problem – big or small – it makes sense to have it repaired as soon as possible by a licensed locksmith.
Below are 3 of the most common issues property owners experience with their door locks, and what you need to do to get them fixed:
- The door won’t latch properly
Usually indicating that the strike plate and the latch are out of alignment, if your door lock won’t latch properly, you’ll need to get a 24 hour locksmith to come and repair the damage. While it might be a simple task that your locksmith will get fixed within minutes, it could also mean that the entire door needs to be adjusted, and this is always best done by a professional.
- The door lock is frozen
During the winter months, or even during an unseasonably cold spell in spring or autumn, exterior locks may freeze up, leaving your home or business vulnerable. In some instances, interior locks can also freeze up due to dirt, wear and tear or a combination of both. This may mean that you need to get a replacement lock from a locksmith, or you may be able to fix the problem yourself.
Sometimes, a little graphite in the keyhole will unfreeze the lock, or a de-icer sprayed into the lock may work effectively during cold weather, and even for unblocking grimy deposits inside the lock.
If the above two techniques aren’t effective, you’ll likely need the lock to be disassembled by a licensed locksmith.
- The key has broken in the lock
When this happens – and it does happen quite often – trying to remove the key yourself can cause damage to the entire locking system, and for this reason, hiring a local locksmith to come out and remove it for you, is the smart choice. In many towns and cities, there will be at least one emergency locksmith who can come out and fix lock and key related problems at any time of the day or night, and having their number programmed into your cell is a good idea, so that you’re not scrabbling around searching for it when you really need to get inside your home or office.
Don’t forget that they will be able to get you into your car quickly if the key snaps off in the ignition, too.
While it may be tempting to try and fix door lock issues yourself, especially if you’re in a hurry to get back inside your property, or to make the building secure, it usually only results in making the problem worse, since the average person doesn’t have the skills or knowledge that a licensed locksmith will have.
