Our Lock Work Around Houston
Locks are small, but the work around them takes care. These photos come from our own jobs: a door cleared for new hardware, and the deadbolts, lever locks, glass door locks and electric strikes that businesses count on every day.
Rekeying and Lock Changes
Two bores in a light blue door show where an old knob and deadbolt came out, ready for new hardware. A replacement starts with the size of those holes and the backset, the distance from the door’s edge to their center, so the new lock fits.
When the old hardware is sound, rekeying changes the pins instead, and the old keys stop working while the lock stays on the door.
Someone else still holding a key? A rekey or a lock change makes it useless.
Commercial Lock Work
A satin chrome deadbolt holds its brass key in a white storefront stile, a lever lock sits behind a gray latch guard on a metal door, a keyed lock is fitted under the pull handle of a frosted glass office door, and an electric strike is set into a steel frame. Business jobs bring heavier hardware, doors in constant use, keypad entry, panic bars and the code rules that come with them.
Each piece has its own job: the latch guard keeps a pry bar off the latch, the glass door lock secures glass that can’t take a standard deadbolt, and the strike lets a keypad release the door.
Signs of a Well-Fitted Lock
Much of a lock job ends up out of sight, inside the door and the frame. Still, good work shows from the outside:
- The trim sits flat against the door, with no rocking or gaps.
- The deadbolt throws its full length, usually an inch, into the strike without a push or a lift.
- The strike plate is set flush into the frame, not screwed onto its face.
- The strike’s screws are long enough to reach the framing behind the jamb.
- The key slides in and out without catching.
- The door shows no fresh gouges or split wood around the lock.
A lock can look right and still bind. A strike an eighth of an inch off makes a bolt drag, and a lever fitted to the wrong backset rubs inside the door. Finding the cause before reaching for new parts sits at the heart of How We Work.
Home lockouts, sticking deadbolts, knob and lever sets, patio door locks and smart locks are all part of Residential Locks. Have a lock, a key or a door that needs work? Call and say what it’s doing, or put the visit on the schedule online.