Tag Archives: locks

Different Types of Deadbolt Locks




A deadbolt lock, also referred to as a deadlock or deadlock, refers to a locking mechanism that is distinct from a spring bolt lock in the sense that it cannot be moved to the open position except by rotating the lock cylinder with a key. Unlike the common spring bolt lock, a deadbolt lock does not allow for retraction of the lock, therefore making a door more resistant to entry without using the correct key. It is therefore often used to complement a spring-bolt lock on an entry to a building.
There are different types of deadbolt locks, and most of them are determined by the strength or the material used in making the door knob on which most of them are fixed. Some of these locks are discussed below, thanks to some useful information provided by lakeoswegolocksmith.net.

A Single Cylinder Deadlock

This is the most common type of deadbolt locks. This lock is mounted inside a door and has a twist knob in the interior and key cylinder on the exterior of the door’s face. This therefore means that this lock can only accept a key on one side of the lock, but is operated by a twist knob on the other side.

Double Cylinder Deadbolt

double cylinder deadboltThese types of deadbolt locks are also mounted internally. What distinguishes the double cylinder deadbolt from the single cylinder deadbolt, however, is that this deadbolt has no twist knob but both sides have a key cylinder instead. The double cylinder deadbolt therefore requires a key to open the door whether you are inside or outside the house.
The advantage of the deadbolt lock is that it does not provide room for any intruder opening the door from outside using some of the conventional means such as breaking a glass in or near the door frame and simply reaching for the twist knob. Even after a successful breakage of the glass, the intruder would still require a key to open the lock.
This deadbolt lock, however, has a striking disadvantage. It is infamously known to hamper exit efforts in the event of an emergency such as fire, as it may not be easy to hand pick the correct key to the lock. Due to this tendency to violate safety regulations, usage of the deadbolt lock has been strongly discouraged.

Keyless Deadbolt

The keyless deadbolt lock is also mounted on the inside of the door, but has a keypad instead of a key hole where one can type in a secret pin code to unlock the door.
The advantage of using this keyless lock is that you completely do away with the need of a key, and there is therefore no chance of losing or misplacing the key. Another positive feature of this lock is that it is easier to change the pin code in case you feel someone has learned of it, as opposed to the key system where you would have to go through the rigor of finding a locksmith to do the same.
The obvious disadvantage of this lock system is that if it uses electric power, then its effectiveness will be ultimately dictated by power availability. This would therefore mean a power outage may lock you in or out of your residence.

Digital Deadbolt

Electronic deadboltThe digital deadbolt is a variation of the key less deadbolt that operates by means of batteries or electric current.

Rim Deadbolt

This is a type of lock that’s bolted to the inside face of the door.
The major advantage of this lock is that it locks automatically behind you each time the door is closed, thereby saving you the trouble of always having to remember to lock the door.

Vertical Deadbolt

The vertical deadbolt is also bolted to the inside face of the door. As opposed to some horizontal deadbolts, this lock is placed on top of the door, thereby making it difficult for an intruder to pry it open by placing a bar between the door and the frame.

Mortise Deadbolt

Mortise deadboltThe mortise deadbolt is the last type of deadbolt lock. It is merely an older style key lock that’s installed in a mortise or recess pocket that’s cut in the edge of the door so that it is tamper-proof. This lock is usually strong, even though the act of boring a large hole into its frame may weaken the structure of the door itself.

Deadbolt locks come in different types, but what is striking is that each type has one unique feature that makes it the most preferred in a given situation.




6 Home Security Tips To Keep You Safe




The home long ceased to be a safe haven. Today, you are at risk even when in the sacred environment – your home. Out there on the streets you are not safe, neither are you in your home. The safest neighborhoods are no longer safe. For the sake of your precious, irreplaceable life, personal security remains a first priority whether your neighborhood is considered safe or not. You alone is responsible for your personal security when at home. Some of the things you can do to make your home a safe haven include the following brought to you by our boys from Diamondback lock and key in Chandler

1. Having Quality Locks

Quality locksLocks are symbols of security and safety. All the doors, both interior and exterior should have quality locks. The locks should work without applying excessive force. Preferably, the locks should be dead bolt. They go a long way in preventing the door from being unlocked from the outside when glass from the window next to it, or from the door itself is broken. Door frames should also be strong. Check the locks to the front door, the garage door(s), guest house door(s), sliding glass door(s), patio door, rear door, swimming gate(s) and the main gate.

Windows too should have strong locks. Ground floor windows are highly secure for the obvious reasons. The last thing you could wish is having your roof act as a stepping stone for an intruder. Your highest windows should therefore be fitted with locks. A window security film should not lack so as to prevent smash and grab intruders. If you have window bars and grills installed, review the fire safety. After you have locked all the doors and windows at night, leave the keys at a strategic place, in case the need for an emergency escape arises.

2. Keeping Your Keys and Entry Codes Safe

lock codeNever leave the spare key under the door mat or outside. Thieves know that hiding the key under the door mat is a much common practice. When they access your home, you can be sure it will be the first place to look for your keys. All the keys should be hid in a safe location. When moving into a new house, change all the locks. The same applies when you lose the keys. Changing the codes to the doors of strategic places such as the garage regularly also helps in keeping you safe.

3. Asking for Identity

The number of intruders that access homes through the front door is surprisingly high. After having quality locks and doors, the next thing to stop opening the door for strangers unless they first identify themselves. Many people make the mistake. Thinking that they are inviting visitors, they invite trouble. It is difficult to get help when the intruder has already made way to your home. Your front door should be well lit and have a peephole. It makes it a lot easier to see whoever is knocking before you open for them.

4. Making Some Noise

Intruders intending to harm have a tendency to sneak when you are not around then laying in wait for your return. Having unpredictable pattern can greatly help. No one will know when you are in and when not. When out for long period of time, especially at night, many people leave their television sets, their radio and any other devise on. They also close their curtains and use a timer to turn interior lights on and off. This helps it appear as if someone around, thereby keeping you, together with your property safe and secure.

5. Installing Home Security System

You cannot run out of choices when it comes to home security system. Installing security cameras and motion sensors is one of the best ways to have you and your family protected. The motion sensors alert you whenever there is unexpected activity going around your home. With them, an intruder has no where to hide. The sensors and alarms should be interlinked and have smoke detectors such that as one goes off, others do. Whereas the cost might be a hindrance, a display sticker of a home monitoring system in strategic places is enough deterrent.

6. Having a Panic Room

In case of home invasion, a panic room should be your last resort. Panic rooms have become quite popular. Whether a mirror doubling as a hidden door, or a panel opening into a conceal room, panic rooms act as a safe haven when the worse comes to worst. A panic room should be stocked with essentials such as a 5 day’s supply of canned food, water, candles, bedding, toilet facilities, fire extinguisher and weaponry.


TYPES OF KWIKSET LOCKS




kwikset logoKwikset is a manufacturer of all types of lock and hardware products. It is headquartered in Lake Forest, California, United Sates of America with branches in Victoria, Australia and Auckland, New Zealand respectively. It is a brand leader in the manufacture of locks. Re-keying their locks is also a breeze due to the great product.

We had some help getting all this data from the professionals over at Columbus Locksmith Pros in Columbus Ohio.  These guys really know their stuff.

The following are the Types of Kwikset Locks: Light Commercial, Electronic, Door Knobs, Door Levers, Dead bolts and Handle-sets respectively.

commercial door lock kwiksetLight Commercial door locks are those that are designed for use both in heavy duty residential buildings as well as for light commercial applications such stores, warehouses, pantries and cargo terminals. They come in various finishes such as Life-time Polished Brass, Antique Brass, Satin Nickel, Antique Nickel,Polished Brass,Polished Chrome, Satin Chrome and Venetian Bronze. They are certified by the American National Standards Institute and the Builders Hardware Manufacturers Association besides satisfying UL’s fire- rating standards and ADA safety standards. They are sold under three brand names, i.e. Carson, Kingston and Metal Interconnect respectively.

Electronic locks kwiksetElectronic locks are those operated by touch screens or electronic keypads and also have a back-up key ways. They are activated and opened by entering personalized access codes and are locked by the touch of a button. They are available in five finishes, i.e. Lifetime Polished Brass, Satin Nickel, Fob,Satin-Chrome, Venetian-Bronze and Polished Chrome. They are sold under eleven brand names namely: Powerbolt; 909 SmartCode Deadbolt; 910 Contemporary SmartCode Deadbolt with Home Connect; 910 SmartCode Deadbolt with Home Connect; 911 SmartCode Lever; 912 SmartCode Lever with Home Connect; 913 SmartCode Deadbolt; 914 SmartCode Deadbolt with Home Connect; SmartCode 916 Touch screen Electronic Deadbolt; 909 Contemporary SmartCode Deadbolt and Kevo Bluetooth Electronic Lock.

door knob kwiksetDoor Knobs are specifically designed for use in ordinary private residential houses with specific designs aimed at enhancing the home’s interior decors. They are available in eleven finishes namely: Life-time Polished Brass, Antique-Brass, Polished Brass, Antique Nickel, Satin Nickel, Satin Chrome, Polished Chrome, Rustic Bronze, Venetian Bronze, Rustic Pewter and Iron Black. They are sold under nineteen brand names namely: Combo Pack; Tylo-Combo Pack; Tylo; Tylo Knobs; Polo Combo Pack; Polo; Mobile Home Knob; Cove Combo Pack; Cove; Phoenix; Laurel; Juno Combo Pack; Juno; Hancock; Copa Combo Pack; Copa; Circa; Cameron Combo Pack; Cameron and Abbey.

door lever kwiksetDoor Levers are shaped in the form of levers and just like the Door Knobs, are suited for private residential homes and are specifically designed to complement and enhance the interior decor of a home. They are also available in eleven finishes namely: Life-time Polished-Brass, Antique-Brass, Polished Brass, Antique Nickel, Satin Nickel, Satin Chrome, Polished Chrome, Rustic Bronze, Venetian Bronze, Rustic Pewter and Iron Black. They are available for sale under twenty-one brand names namely: Dorian Combo Pack; Doran; Delta Combo Pack; Delta; Balboa; Milan; Halifax; Vedani; Tustin Combo Pack; Tustin; 911 SmartCode Lever; Pembroke; Lido Combo Pack; 912 SmartCode Lever with Home Connect; Lido; Katara; Avalon; Commonwealth; Austin; Ashfield and Brooklane.

kwikset deadbolt lockDead Bolts are designed to protect homes from break-ins, thefts, burglary, arbitrary trespasses and unauthorized entries. They come in a plethora of styles and security grades. They are available in twelve finishes namely: Life-time Polished-Brass, Antique-Brass, Polished Brass, Antique Nickel, Satin Nickel, Satin Chrome, Polished Chrome, Rustic Bronze, Venetian-Bronze, Rustic-Pewter; Iron Black and Fob. They are sold in thirty-two brand names, which are: Tylo Combo Pack; Powerbolt; Polo Mobile Home Lock;Combo Pack; Dorian Combo Pack; Delta Combo Pack; Cove Combo Pack; 663/667 Single-sided Deadbolt; 660/665 Deadbolt; 660 Deadbolt Combo Pack; 909 SmartCode Deadbolt; Milan; 910 Contemporary SmartCode Deadbolt with Home Connect; Halifax; Tustin Combo Pack; 910 SmartCode Deadbolt with Home Connect; Lido Combo Pack; Key Control Deadbolt; Juno Combo Pack; 913 SmartCode Deadbolt; Gatelatch; 914 SmartCode Deadbolt with Home Connect; Copa Combo Pack; Austin; Cameron Combo Pack; SmartCode 916 Touchscreen Electronic Deadbolt; 980/985 Deadbolt; 993/994 Square Deadbolt; 993/994 Round Deadbolt; 780/785 Deadbolt; 909 Contemporary SmartCode Deadbolt and Kevo Bluetooth Electronic Lock.

handle set kwiksetHandle-sets are those that are designed for use in the front door entries since they have both secure deadbolts and stylish handles. They are available in eleven finishes namely: Life-time Polished-Brass, Antique-Brass, Polished Brass, Antique Nickel, Satin Nickel, Satin Chrome, Polished Chrome, Rustic Bronze, Venetian Bronze, Rustic-Pewter and Iron Black. They are sold under thirteen brand names which are: Dakota, Belleview, Wellington, Tavaris, Shelburne, Montara, Hawthorne, Avalon, Austin, Chelsea, Ashfield, Arlington and Amherst.

All the products come along with warranties that are aimed at retaining customers with a view of long-term loyalty building.

Kwikset is a great company and we also offer Re-Key services for almost all of their products as well.


What Is Rekeying? Is It Expensive?




lock-rekeying-If you move into a new house, or rent a new commercial space or an apartment, change cleaning companies, or fire an employee, you may find yourself thinking about changing your locks. Even if you get back the keys from previous occupants, owners, contractors or employees, they do have had the opportunity to duplicate all your keys. So you don’t have a way to know how many duplicate keys have been made, or who all have them. In almost any situation where you feel lock needs to be replaced, a local locksmith can easily rekey your locks at a fraction of cost and time it would take to choose new locks and replace them. There’s no need to replace the entire lock for protecting your cash, files and property. We had a little help from the Arvada Locksmith Pros in the editing of this article as well.

lock and key doing rekeyUnless your existing locks are flimsy or have been irreparably damaged, both rekeying or replacing locks offer the same degree of security. Rekeyng offers many advantages. First, there no need to install new hardware as it uses the existing one, so the process is cheap. Secondly, rekeying is much faster than installing new locks. A trained locksmith can easily rekey the locks of entire house or building within few hours. What’s more, many businesses and homeowners end up buying locksets that aren’t simply made for their type/style of doors. In such cases, both your jamb and door will need to be retrofitted in order for new lock system to be properly fitted. And if you have to purchase a lock that matches other hardware in color, finish and style, it can be very difficult to find an ideal match. Where match is necessary, some homeowners find themselves buying the complete set of hardware which increases the cost manifold.

What Is The ReKeying Process?

In rekeying process, the locksmith changes the tumblers of the lock cylinder with new tumblers of varying sizes. Once you rekey lock, you can throw away old key as it will no longer be ale to open the lock. The lock will require new key that perfectly coincides with the new lock tumblers. Local locksmiths can easily rekey locks at significantly lower cost than full replacement of locking mechanism. If the lock has ANSI (Grade-1 designation) then there’s no need to replace the entire lock.

rekey processIn addition to rekeying locks to ensure safety, some homeowners also rekey their locks for convenience. An easy way to reduce weight of many keys and confusion is to have all your exterior or interior locks rekeyed to use just one key. A locksmith can easily rekey unlimited number of locks in your house to work seamlessly with the same key. For rental property owners, such as condominium associations and apartment buildings, it’s often necessary to have one master key to open multiple locks. These locks will also have one key that will only open the tenant’s locks. Locksmiths can easily perform master rekeying to almost any configuration to meter the requirements of businesses, property owners and home owners.

The decision to replace or rekey your locks may come down to the expense. In fact, in some states you’re required to rekey your old locks between tenants if you an owner a rental property.




SmartKey Re-key Technology – Locks You Can Rekey Yourself!




A new technology that has emerged in locks and security for the past few years have been the advancement of SmartKey Re-key technologies to help people rekey their locks. This can be especially helpful for homeowners that rent out rooms or guesthouses like on sites like AirBnb or Craigslist.

We found out about how popular these locks where getting from www.247brooklynlocksmith.net, a popular locksmith service in Brooklyn NYC.

We think these rekey-able locks are great for some applications, but if you need a more high security lock they probably won’t work. For most homes they could be an excellent addition though! Check out the videos below for a more visual demonstration about how they work!

Reviews of the Smartkey by Schlage:

When I decided to replace my entry lock to a combination capable deadbolt as well as conventional key, I had at least two brands to pick from. I primarily chose Kwikset because of the built in motor that activates closure of the deadbolt after I’m inside (after about 20-30 seconds), in case I might forget to manually lock the door. During the decision process, I noticed that the product I was considering, also incorporated a concept called SMART KEY, but dismissed the feature as an extra that I probably would never use. About a year later, I misplaced my keys OR LOST THEM, and was concerned about someone finding them and having access to my home.

I reinvestigated the SMART KEY feature key, and then contacted Kwikset tech support to confirm my understanding that I could re-key my lock using their SMART KEY kit….i.e., the kit, which could be ordered from AMAZON, would contain a replacement key. When I received the kit, it did include a new key plus several duplicates of the new key, together with easily understood instructions on re-keying the lock myself. IMPORTANT!!!! Although I had lost my keys, I did have a duplicate of the old key AND THAT DUPLICATE OF THE ORIGINAL KEY WAS NEEDED during the re-keying process. A slick concept, and if ever needed, a money saver for the home owner.

4 keys is perfect, If the tenant wants more keys, they can go make them, I only ever give the tenants two keys anyway. I’ve always made 4 keys, two for me, two for the tenant.

Before I’ve just told the locksmith to grab some old quickset from his dead pile and duplicate it, but this is just about the same cost as having the locksmith cut 4 keys anyway, plus the bonus of two more.

Here is a model made by Baldwin, another top security brand.




What Does It Mean To Re-key A Lock?




Key in LockChances are that you may have heard people talk about changing all the locks in a building many times. In most cases they may not have been aware of the option of re-keying the locks or may have been under the impression that re-keying will not fully protect them from those who may still be able to gain access using the old keys.

Actually re-keying is enough and one does not need to incur the much higher expense of changing the entire hardware and installing new locks. It is an unnecessary expense when re-keying is possible.

Resource: www.chandlerlocksmithpros.net

So what exactly is re-keying? What does it mean to re-key a lock?

Simply put this is the process of altering or making adjustments to a lock so that it stops using the old key and starts using a new designated key. It is a very simple procedure that will take an experienced locksmith only a few minutes to complete but it is as good as changing the lock because old keys will no longer work.

 

rekeyThe way it is done is that the interior chamber of a lock usually has a series of upper and lower pins. All the key does is to push this pins into alignment and the door opens. Now what the locksmith does when re-keying is to replace the lower pins in the chamber so that the ridges fit into the new key when it is inserted into the key hole. Thus only the new key will open and the old key will now be useless.

This process also means that countless number of locks can be adjusted (re-keyed) in exactly the same way so that they all use the same key. In this case one master key will open all the locks.

Re-keying is the best option and beats changing locks because the former costs only a fraction of what it would take to remove and replace entire locks.

Another Great Article On Rekeying:How To Rekey A Door Lock




Why Re-key Your Home?




A lot of people do not realize how important it is to re-key your new home. Also, re-keying your house from time to time is also a great idea for security reasons. You can easily re-key your entire home with the help of a locksmith like the Denver Locksmith Pros who helped us with the info for this article. If you are not convinced that re-keying your home is that important, then below are a few reasons why you should do it:

hand-putting-key-in-lock-blk-white

Security
Miniature House With Lock and ChainAsk any locksmith after a burglary, and he/she will tell you that you will be surprised how many homes are being burglarized with no signs of forced entry. In cases like these, it highly possible that the burglar used old keys that still work on your old locks and doors. Re-keying your home so that old keys would not work on your locks and doors is one of the primary reasons why you should hire a locksmith to re-keys the locks for you.

Insurance Requirements
insurance-papers filesAside from giving your new house a fresh set of keys, nowadays, most insurance companies already requiring that if you have a new house then you must re-key the locks before you can avail full insurance coverage on your property and the contents within it.

Convenience
It is possible to re-key multiple locks and doors to a single key and by doing so it will be more convenient for you and avoid confusing situations. Having a single key is also advantageous for property owners, such as corporate organizations, joint property owners and rental property owners, to better manage and secure their properties. With one master key, you should be open multiple lock and doors within the same property. With the help of a locksmith, you can also customize to which doors and locks will a master key opens.

Re-keying is crucial for new renters or property owners as it will offer many advantages such as increasing security, insurance requirements and convenience. If you are a new renter or bought a new property, then it is best that you consult the services of a local locksmith.