How to Rekey a Door Lock
If you have just bought a new home or have misplaced your keys, it is essential that you rekey your door lock. The good thing is that you don’t have to contact an expert locksmith to perform the work for you.
Guidelines on How to Rekey a Door Lock
You should begin by taking a look at the brand name of your locks. Possibilities are that the locks are from different maker or manufacturers. You should buy a re-key kit for each brand if the locks are from different manufacturers.
The cool thing is that the kits are easily available in the local stores. The kits cost between $8 and $10 and they come with two keys and tools that will help you to re-key six door locks.
Once you have the kit you should open the door and remove the door knob. This calls for you to insert the wire tool into the knob hole and depress the knob clip. You should then pull the knob off the door.
When the knob is out of the lock you should push the lock cylinder out of the knob. You should then remove the retainer ring from the cylinder using a retainer ring tool that comes in the re-keying kit.
Using your old key you should turn the lock 90 degrees left or right. You should then take out the key and push the cylinder plug from the cylinder. The best equipment to utilize in pushing is the plug follower.
To prevent the pins and springs from popping out you should maintain constant pressure between the plug and follower. If the springs and pins fall out accidentally, you don't have to worry. All you need to do is to pick them up and use a manual to reinsert them.
If you successfully remove the cylinder ring without the pins falling out you should dump out the old pins and insert the new key in the lock. You should match the new colored pins to the color code on guidebook using tweezers. Once you are sure that the new pins are in the right order you should reassemble the doorknob.
Conclusion
This is how you should re-key your locks. You should note that lock brands are different; therefore, you shouldn't try to use the same rekeying kit on all the brands. If there is any information that you don't understand you shouldn't hesitate to contact the manufacturer. If you find it challenging to rekey the locks, you should ask a professional locksmith houston to help you out.