Lock Rekey in Sun Valley, CA

What does it mean to rekey locks, and what does it leave alone?

Rekeying is the quiet fix a lot of people overlook. Inside most door locks is a cylinder with a row of small spring-loaded pins. Your key lifts each pin to exactly the right height so the cylinder can turn. To rekey a lock, we take that cylinder apart, replace the pins with ones sized for a new key, and put it back together. The lock stays on your door. The old key stops turning it. The new key works.

That is why lock rekeying is usually the more economical route when your hardware is in good shape. You are paying for a change on the inside, not for new knobs, deadbolts and strike plates. The door looks exactly the same afterward, which matters if you rent, if you like the hardware you have, or if the finish is something you want to keep.

It helps to be clear about what a rekey does not do. It does not repair a worn or sticking lock. It does not make a weak lock stronger. It does not fix a door that has warped or a frame that has loosened. It answers one question only: who has a key that works? If that is the problem you have, rekeying is the right tool. If the problem is something else, we will tell you so before you spend anything.

When does it make sense to rekey your locks?

Most of the rekey calls we take come from one uncomfortable fact: you cannot know how many copies of a key exist. Previous owners, tenants, contractors, relatives, agents with lockboxes and old roommates all may have handled one. A rekey resets the count to the keys in your hand.

• Rekey locks after moving: you have just taken over a place and have no idea who else holds a key.
• Rekey locks after buying a house: the seller handed you their keys, but they may not have handed you all of them. This is the first job we suggest before the boxes come in.
• Rekey locks after a tenant moves out: tenant turnover is the most common reason property owners call. The next occupant should be the only person with a working key.
• Rekey locks after losing keys: if a key went missing with your address nearby, or a wallet or bag was taken, changing the locks' key is safer than hoping for the best.
• After a roommate, partner or employee leaves: getting a key back does not prove no copy was made.
• Rekey all house locks to one key: if you carry separate keys for the front door, back door and side entry, we can often put them on a single key so you carry one.

How we rekey your locks, step by step

Here is what actually happens when you call, so nothing about the visit is a surprise.

1. Call (213) 577-1366. Tell us how many doors, whether the property is a house, apartment or business, and how many new keys you need. A quick photo of the lock or its brand name helps us bring the right parts.
2. We tell you up front whether your locks sound rekeyable and explain what will affect the price, so you can decide before a van is on the road.
3. A technician from our own team comes to you in a mobile van. There is no outside dispatcher passing your job along to whoever is free.
4. We confirm that you are the owner or occupant, usually with an ID that matches the address or a lease. We do this on every rekey, because changing who can get into a home is not something to do for just anyone.
5. We test each lock with the key you have, remove the cylinder, and re-pin it to a new key pattern. While the cylinder is open we clean out old grit and lubricate it properly.
6. We cut the new keys and test every lock with them. We also confirm the old key no longer turns the lock. That last test is the whole point of the job.
7. We check how each door actually works: does the deadbolt throw fully, does the latch line up with the strike? If something is worn or misaligned, we tell you plainly and let you choose what to do about it.
8. We hand over the keys and explain what we did. If you want extra copies, make them from the new key after the rekey, not before. We can handle key duplication on the same visit.

What affects the cost of rekeying locks in Sun Valley?

Rekeying is priced by the work involved, and we would rather explain the drivers than throw out a figure that does not fit your situation. These are the things that move the cost up or down:

• How many cylinders you have. A single front door is a smaller job than a house with a front door, back door, side door and garage entry.
• The brand and keyway. Common residential locks are straightforward. Some brands and restricted keyways need specific parts, which takes more effort.
• Whether you want everything on one key. Keying several locks alike is usually easy when they share a brand and keyway, but mixed brands can mean swapping a cylinder.
• How many new keys you need. Each key is cut and tested.
• Condition of the locks. A clean, working cylinder rekeys quickly. A gummed, corroded or damaged one takes longer and sometimes cannot be rekeyed at all.
• Residential or commercial. Padlocks, gate locks, roll-up door locks and business cylinders each have their own parts and procedures.
• Time of day. We answer the phone 24/7 and go out at night and on weekends, and after-hours calls are priced differently from a daytime appointment.
• Travel. Sun Valley is about 17 miles from our Westwood storefront, and where our vans are at the moment affects the trip.

Should you rekey or replace? We will tell you honestly

We would rather lose a bigger job than sell you something you do not need. If your locks are sound, rekeying is usually the right answer. There are cases where it is not.

If a deadbolt is loose, worn out or broken, new hardware makes more sense, because a fresh set of keys on a failing lock still leaves you with a failing lock. If you want a different style or a higher level of protection, lock replacement is the better route. If you just want a clean slate across the whole property, our change locks page explains how that differs from rekeying.

Some very old or very inexpensive locks cannot be rekeyed at all, or the parts are not worth the labor. Some smart locks have a mechanical cylinder underneath that we can rekey, but the codes and app access are managed separately and have to be reset on their own. In every case we will look at what you have and say which way we lean and why. The decision is yours.

How does a business lock rekey work along San Fernando Road?

Sun Valley has a large industrial and recycling corridor along San Fernando Road, and the locks there look nothing like a typical house. You find roll-up doors, yard gates and commercial padlocks alongside office and entry doors. A commercial rekey on this kind of property is about control: who can open which door, and what happens when somebody leaves the company.

Employee turnover is the usual trigger. If a key walked out the door with a former worker, or you cannot account for every copy anymore, rekeying the affected doors and padlocks closes that gap without replacing hardware that still works. Many commercial padlocks and gate locks are built to be rekeyed. Cheaper padlocks often are not, and we will say so rather than charge you to try.

For properties with several doors and several people, a single key for everything stops being practical. A master key system lets each person carry a key that opens only what they should, with one higher-level key above them. If your problem is bigger than a few cylinders, our commercial locksmith page covers the wider work. If a yard gate lock is damaged rather than just needing new keys, gate lock repair is the right place to start.

Rekeying homes and apartments around Sun Valley

Sun Valley is mostly postwar single-family bungalows and ranch houses from the 1940s to the 1960s, with apartment pockets along Glenoaks Boulevard and the other major corridors. Those different building types lead to different rekey jobs, and your ZIP code, 91352, covers all of them.

In the Stonehurst tract, the 1920s river-rock cottages often still have vintage hardware. That is part of the charm, and it is also why rekeying can beat replacing: you keep the look of the house. Whether an old lock can be rekeyed depends on the cylinder inside it. Some can, some need a matching cylinder fitted, and some are simply worn out. We look at each one rather than guess.

Along Glenoaks Boulevard, tenant turnover drives most of the work. A unit changes hands, the locks should change keys, and the door hardware stays put. If you manage rentals, our page for locksmiths for landlords covers how we handle several units. Mailbox locks are often forgotten in a turnover, and the old key can still open the box, so ask about mailbox lock replacement at the same visit.

Near the Shadow Hills edge there are horse-zoned lots, and rekeying ranch properties looks different from a standard city lot. There is usually a main house plus gates and other secondary locks, so the real job is deciding which doors and gates should share a key and which should not. We can plan that with you on the phone before we arrive.

Sun Valley's hot, dry summers can swell wooden doors and frames, and seasonal Santa Ana winds carry dust that works into exterior lock cylinders. A rekey is a good moment to deal with the dust, since we have the cylinder open anyway. A swollen door that makes a deadbolt bind is a separate issue. We will point it out if we see it, because new keys will not cure it. Whether you are by Roscoe Boulevard, Sunland Boulevard, the Sun Valley Park area or near Hansen Dam, the same approach applies.

Why call Wilshire Lock & Key for a rekey?

We have been in business since 1987. Our storefront is at 10740 Wilshire Blvd in Westwood, and our mobile vans bring the work to you. When you call, you reach our company, not a call center that sells your job to whoever picks it up. David, the owner and lead technician, oversees the work, so there is somebody accountable behind it.

Our phone is answered 24 hours a day, 7 days a week, year-round at (213) 577-1366. If you have a key problem on a Sunday night, we are the ones who pick up. If you are not sure the job is a rekey, talk to us first. We would rather tell you what you need than sell you something else.

A word on credentials: California requires locksmith companies to hold a BSIS LCO license, and you should ask any locksmith you are thinking of hiring for it. It is a fair question and we encourage you to ask it of everyone, including us.

More locksmith help in Sun Valley

• Change Locks in Sun Valley
• Deadbolt Installation in Sun Valley
• Gate Lock Repair in Sun Valley
• High Security Locks in Sun Valley
• Key Duplication in Sun Valley
• Lock Installation in Sun Valley
• All services in Sun Valley

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