Locksmiths Top Tips For Locks and Security
1. Instead of leaving a key in your back door, take a back door key with you when you leave the house. Almost every time I attend an emergency where my customers have lost their keys, they show me the back door with the key in the other side. Carrying a key for the back door in a separate pocket to your front door key gives you a greater chance of being able to get in without waiting for a locksmith. It is also better for security because all the time a key is in your back door, a burglar can break in through a window and easily carry stuff out of your house through that back door!
Leaving keys in doors is good fire safety practice while people are in the property, but they should be removed from locks if the property is empty.
2. Oil your locks regularly – at least twice a year. The best way to remember is to do it every time you change your clocks, w
This is especially important if you live near the sea. Don’t just spray where the key goes in. Most locks have a latch that retracts when you pull the handle down, when the latch retracts, the wedge makes a gap for your oil or silicone spray. Spray for around 5 seconds to get plenty inside, then turn the key a few times to make sure the lubricant reaches all parts. If you have a locking mechanism with lift up handles, works the handles up and down a few times, but make sure you lubricate all moving parts (bolts, hooks, rollers, etc.)
3. Do not put your override keys to your safe inside the safe. Equally, do not leave the override keys anywhere in your property. A burglar can find those keys and get to your valuables. They will know the hiding places you think are sneaky.
Safe keys should be with a trusted friend or family member in an entirely separate property. Also, do not wait for the batteries to get low. Change them annually whether they need it or not. Always consult a security expert before buying a safe because they can advise you on the pitfalls many are trapped by. There is nothing worse than needing your passport from a safe you cannot access and finding out the safe expert cannot get to you for two days by which time, your plane has departed!
4. Please stop posting on social media all about your holiday whilst away. Your friends probably don’t care as much as you would like to think, but the burglar is very thankful you are advertising that your property is empty. Don’t ruin your holiday by coming back to find all your valuables have been taken. You can post your holiday highlights when you get back.
5. When you get extra keys cut, use the originals most. Badly cut keys ruin locks. Key cutters use generic key blanks made from cheaper metals. If you buy your locks from a locksmith, they can order branded keys made for the lock cut from superior metal. These will then be covered by guarantee. Once you use a poorly cut off brand key, and it damages the lock, you invalidate any guarantee given by your locksmith. So if you must get spares made, try to use the originals the most.
6. Be wary if you have a family member who suffers with dementia. This is a sensitive subject but I have experience of a good number of customers coming back to me because they have lost their keys. The excuses are often the same, with angry accusations at neighbours or carers who have ‘let themselves in and stolen my keys again.’ The last thing a locksmith wants is to take advantage of anyone with this awful condition, but we cannot change locks for free. We also cannot ask the customer for phone numbers of family members because it is not right to do so.
If your loved ones are getting forgetful and you notice new locks, firstly try and get a key for yourself. Then, see if you can find out which locksmith they used. I would be more than happy if you called me to say you are MR X’s son/daughter and that if Mr X should call me in a muddle, I should try and call you before setting off to change the lock again. Mr X will be far happier having you search for the key he has hidden and forgotten than me. I would expect any decent locksmith would feel the same.
7. Next to your mobile phone, your lock and keys are the things you use the most almost – every day for that majority of us. Treat them accordingly. When I take handles off of doors, I find a variety of spider carcasses, wasp larvae, rust and other muck. While unscrewing and re-screwing the fixings too many times is not good for the wood, occasional cleans behind the handles is not a bad idea. You might well discover broken springs and other nasties that need seeing to. Better to catch things early before they fail completely and you find yourself unable to get in.
Likewise, I have come across many a door where someone has simply painted over the lock while decorating. It doesn’t take many seconds to undo the screws and remove the lock while painting and even less to put a bit of masking tape over the area. Painting over the lock is not good. At best, the screws fill with paint and when you do need to take the lock out because it has failed, you cannot undo the clogged screws without extra effort. Locks might not be as exciting as a phone, but they are more important.
8. Do not leave keys on a flat surface or hanging up anywhere in the vicinity of a door with a letter plate, especially if you have windows through which the keys can be seen. If I can put a mirror through your letter plate and see your keys, I can retrieve them, which means a burglar can do the same. A letter cage on the back of your door is amazing security, especially if you have a thumb turn rather than key operation on the inside. Better still, seal your letter plate and invest in a separate post box to fit externally.
If you have any questions about the above content or any else security related, please feel free to contact me.
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Lock changes for landlords
If you own a holiday let property, you should be well aware of the new fire regulations that suddenly hit last summer. I know many of you have been spending all your profits to ensure your properties are up to scratch for the coming season.
But what about long term lets?
Well, if you read the fire risk assessment that has to be carried out by holiday let owners, it states “any property you pay to stay in.” If that doesn’t already mean long term lets, then it certainly will if the government of the day decides that the measures taking place with holiday lets are a success. After all, the more they make you spend, the more they get in tax.
If you own properties that you let out to tenants, then it might be an idea to get ahead of the curve. Locks are being changed all the time through abuse, lost keys, evicted tenants, etc. What better time than now to make sure that the new locks going in are keyless escape versions. In the event of a fire, your tenants can get out quickly without having to find keys in a panic situation?
AC Locksmiths Norfolk can change your locks for you, We will ensure that all replacements are kite marked products, so all insurances will be valid.
But while thumb turn (escape) locks are great for getting out easily, they can be a reduction in your security. There are tools that can go in through letterboxes and rotate the inner thumb turns, it is important to consider options to cancel this short fall. Letter catching cages are a great remedy to this, or mounting a post box outside your house, while disabling any door positioned letter plates is even better.
Changes are coming. I have spoken to several holiday let owners who have changed locks recently, only to have to change them again in light of the new legislation. It’s worth thinking about being ready for the inevitable.
Any questions regarding the above, please do not hesitate to contact me through any of my contact methods. https://www.ac-locksmiths-norfolk.co.uk/contact-us-here/
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A day in the life of your friendly neighbourhood locksmith
Just recently I had a call from a gentleman looking to start up as a locksmith in another county. He wasn’t going to be my competition, so I thought I’d take five minutes to answer his questions and give him some advice. Half an hour later, we were still talking and I had only scratched the surface. Being a locksmith in the UK is hard compared to other places.
From what I read of American locksmiths, their locks are pretty easy to pick but they are pretty standard, so locksmiths tend to re-key locks rather than replace the whole thing. That means they are used to dealing with the same locks day in, day out. Re-keying is where you take out the old pins, put new ones in, using a different configuration and cut keys to match. Across as much of Europe as I have been, the locks are usually euro cylinders, the type we see most commonly in UPVC doors. These are everywhere, and again, pretty easy to get through if you know what you are doing and have the correct tools.
But here is the UK, you never know what sort of lock you are going to find. Nightlatches (Yale locks), mortice (Chubb) locks in 2, 3, 5 or even 7 lever varieties, Rim locks mounted on to one side of the door with a long key, wooden doors, metal doors, composite doors, hollow doors, upvc doors and on and on and on. UPVC doors have in excess of 37 mechanism manufacturers, all whom produce multiple designs with multiple sizes of those designs. To be prepared for any situation, I would need to go to every job in an articulated lorry! If you ever think of going into this business, you must be prepared to learn a lot on the job. Even now, I am coming across things I have never seen before in over 13 years on the job.
So what is my day like? Unlike city locksmiths, being one of the few Norfolk locksmiths, my area is huge. Norfolk has quite a sparse population well spread out and with a notion that we are a ‘safe’ county. That means I can drive for up to an hour to reach my jobs. Admittedly, I do try to keep local, but right now, there is a massive shift in holiday let fire regs and I am racing across the North Norfolk coast fitting thumb turn locks for all those that need keyless escapes. That means from my base, I travel all the way to Hunstanton in one direction and as far as Happisburgh in the other. I will go further, but this is my main focus.
So, Monday means getting to the first job for 9. Mondays are always busy so this will be booked from last week. By the time I finish the first job, I’ve been interrupted by two more bookings and two or more advice calls. With something unexpected happening at the first job (customer not there because they decided to walk the dog and leave me waiting for half an hour, I am already late for the second job. But one of those calls I just received is from someone locked out with desperate need to get back in and pick up the CV they need for their job interview. They are also on a large divert from a direct route to my original second (now third job). With no time to put anything away tidily in my van (my wife never believes that), I hurry to the lock out. Five minutes away, I get the call that the lockout has found a neighbour with a key and they don’t need me. So now I am really late for the second job and have nothing to show for it. Luckily, when I get to the second job, it is really easy for me and I am away in fifteen minutes, catching up time, but not enough to keep my van tidy (honestly, wife!)
The third job is a long distance one, so there and back is nearly three hours. Unfortunately, I need to order parts, so apart from getting them secure, there is not much to do. That’s three (nearly four) visits and only two have resulted in me getting paid today (I don’t usually charge if I can’t do anything). I then come home. I have a backlog of paperwork to do, parts to order and a van tidy to ignore (tomorrow when the weather is better!) During this time, more calls come in and more appointments/queries need to be addressed via email. But Monday is my favourite day. I play football on a Monday night so it is the one time I can switch off. I have been known to go to jobs after playing 5 aside football, but now I ache too much. Any other night I am ready to go when the phone rings. This last week it was Friday and Sunday nights, but luckily on both, I was home by 11pm, so in bed ready for the next day. Tuesday is likely to be more easy jobs like measuring up for thumb turn locks, because I am a wuss with the football (maybe next day for the van tidy!). But the emergencies come in anyway and I can only hope for the long drives in between!
99% of people understand that locksmiths are different to most other traders. We don’t often get big jobs like builders. Most of our time is in between jobs. So when we turn up and get you inside your home in five minutes, the money you pay is for the time to get to you, to return home, the fuel, wear and tear on the van, the time advertising, doing paperwork and eventually tidying the van!
Christmas 2023 AC Locksmiths Norfolk
I am available for emergency work over the Christmas period, working days are as normal between Christmas & New Year.
From myself and my family, I hope you enjoy a happy Christmas and here’s to a happy & healthy 2024.
All the best,
Alan AC Locksmiths
Holiday let owners – are you aware of holiday let and keyless exit point regulations?
In light of the new self assessment fire regulations for owners of holiday lets, here are some things I have noticed people getting wrong:
Firstly, your front door and back door may not be the only fire escapes. If you are in a room with French doors and the fire is the other side of the interior doors, then the French doors are your exit point. Every final exit door is a fire exit and therefore every final exit door must me converted to keyless escape.
Secondly, if you have a porch, the inner door must either be converted as well or left unlockable by the customers. This can be as simple as taking away that key. Alternatively, convert the inner door and remove the key for the outer porch. Either way, the entire route must be keyless escape to meet the keyless exit point regulations.
Finally, this conversion is a serious impact on security. There are tools available that can come in through the letterbox and rotate the thumb turn/push the lever. As these are your holiday lets, I doubt you get much worthwhile mail, so either invest in a letterbox guard, letter collecting basket or seal off the letter box and put a posting box on the wall outside.
So what does the conversion to keyless exit point regulations consist of?
Well, if you have a door with a lift handle mechanism then it simply means changing your double key cylinder for a key and turn cylinder
Double key cylinder
Key & turn cylinder
Prices start from £55, although I see no reason to go for high spec when you are making life easy for the burglar under these new regulations.
If you have a wooden door, you are turning this 
into this
On wooden doors, you also have the option to install a kite marked nightlatch /Yale type lock
If you need me to come and do a keyless escape conversion for you, please book a free assessment/measure up where I will give you a final no obligation quote and book you for fitting at the next convenient date. Most work can be carried out during changeover days.
Landlord lock law change:
I have just been reading through the Home Office Document: ‘A guide to making your small paying-guest-accommodation safe from fire.’ A guide to compliance with fire safety law for those responsible for safety in small paying-guest-accommodation’
You can find the document here
Note this says fire safety law and therefore is the legal requirement of all landlords, certainly for those with holiday lets. I would argue long term tenants are also paying guests as they have no right to remain when a landlord decides they want their property back for any reason.
Speaking to a letting agency recently, I have also discovered that it will be expected of all landlords to read the document and comply with all points mentioned. You won’t always get a risk assessor to check things for you. You, as the landlord are entirely responsible should a fire break out. It is quite heavy reading and most of it is obvious, but it is my job to point out relevant issues to my own line of work.
In section 6, there is this statement:
‘Exit doors, such as the front or back door, should always be easy to unlock and must not need a key to unlock them from the inside. A simple latch or thumb turn is usually good enough. However, you may need to consider whether all guests are able to open these doors. A simple single action turn handle or lever will often be more appropriate.’
This means you must have a lock with a thumb turn on the inside. Something like this:
On all upvc type doors, this is simply a matter of changing the cylinder. On doors with mortice (often called ‘Chubb’ type) locks, you will need to change the lock, handles and purchase a cylinder. And while thumb turns are great for fire escapes, they do pose a security risk as it is possible with certain tools to go in through the letterbox and rotate the thumb turn to gain access. Therefore any locks with thumb turns on a door with a letter plate, should also purchase a letter plate guard to alleviate this problem.
The point is repeated on the checklist included in the document: ‘Are frequent checks carried out to ensure exit routes are kept clear and fire exits remain easily openable?’
That is your prompt to make sure no one can lock a door, remove the key and then be unable to get out while panicking in a fire.
October the 1st is the current date for this to become law over advice.
If you have your work done through AC Locksmiths Norfolk, you can expect to pay £55 for a kite marked thumb turn euro cylinder. These can be brass/gold, chrome, polished chrome, dual finish, black or white. An average of £50 to replace your mortice lock with a mortice euro lock case. Handles start at £25 but average at £45. More ornate handles such as wrought iron up to £200. In all cases, a labour fee of £75 is payable. (All prices correct at time of writing, but please get binding quote at measuring stage). In almost all instances, a measuring visit will be required. This is free to all properties within a half hour drive of Holt, Norfolk.
Should you have any questions regarding the above information, please do not hesitate to contact me; 07846643176
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It’s that time of year again when the weather starts to do funny things to our doors. I am already being called out to do jobs that could be avoided with some basic maintenance for your locks.
Here on the Norfolk Coast, locks are not only at risk of rusting, but also damage from sea salt and wasps (more on those later).
So what can you do to avoid having to call me, or at least make the call a bit cheaper?
Firstly, keep your door (and window) locks clean. It’s very easy to forget about the front edge of a door when it is shut while you clean, but I see some shocking sights in my work. The more dirt and dust is allowed to build up, the more it finds its way into the working parts of your lock eventually causing damage.
The next step is oiling your locks. There is a lot of argument in the locksmithing world as to whether WD40 or graphite is better. For me, I say WD40 used twice a year (every time you change your locks is an easy way to remember and perfect for changes in weather) works just fine because it coats and flushes at the same time. Oiling does not mean just squirting a bit of oil where you put your key in the lock. If you have a wooden door with a mortice (“Chubb” type) lock, then the part inside stops the oil getting to where is needed and if you have a lock with a “Yale” type key, then oil in the key way is only getting a tiny percentage of what needs to be oiled. If you have any lock with a latch, either pull the handle down or rotate any lever knob to retract that latch. If you look where the latch retracts, you will see that the wedge shape of the latch will create a perfect gap for you to put in the straw provided with cans of WD40. Squirt for about 5 seconds (10 seconds if first time) and then work the handles, etc a few times to get the oil all over the insides.
On doors with multipoint locking systems (eg UPVC doors) you should also look at the front edge and lift the handles up and down a few times. Give another squirt of oil to anything you see moving. When you do this, you might even find the sticker that tells you to oil the door that you never knew was there and the installer never told you about! If you have a wooden door with a single deadlock, unscrew the faceplate at the front and take it off. This will now give you a larger gap around bolt. You might have to hold the WD40 straw in one corner, but squirt what you can, being aware you might get some splash back at you and oil does not clean up from clothes easily, so no maintenance in your wedding dress/designer suits. Don’t forget to put the face plate back on afterwards. In all cases, put some rags on the floor as oil will run down and drip off the bottom of the door and WD40 even stains paving stones.
Once you have done all the above, keep an eye on how difficult your door is to open. Hotter summers are warping even doors that never recognisably warped before. If your door is becoming difficult to operate in any way, there will be undue stress on various parts of your lock which will eventually lead to something breaking. The most common problem last year was French doors shrinking away from each other and the hooks of the multipont mechanisms not being able to get into their slots. Multipoint mechanism doors are usually adjustable, if your door is not as easy to operate when closed as it is open, best get the door adjusted before something breaks and you will have to add a locking product on to the cost of the adjustment.
Finally, those pesky wasps. If you have a wooden door with a multipoint locking system (lift the handles to lock) and it does not have top and bottom bolts, there will be a gap at the top behind the metal faceplate. This gap runs down behind the faceplate as far as the first moving part you can see. It is the perfect size for wasps to make cells in which to grow more baby wasps. Those cells harden a lot and can cause the mechanism to break. My advice is to at least put insect repellent all over the top of the door and then maybe stick a small cotton wool ball just in the top to bar access. I’ve dealt with a few of these cases now, and I really don’t like angry wasps trying to get me while I destroy their hard work!
If you have any questions regarding the above information, please don’t hesitate to get in touch by phone, text or email.
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New laws implemented for holiday lets
Very soon, all holiday let properties are going to be required by law to be keyless exit in case of emergencies. For properties with UPVC or similar doors where the handle needs to be pushed up before locking, the lock changes are straight forward and the existing cylinder just needs to be changed for one that has a thumb turn on the inside rather than a key.
But if you have a wooden door with a mortice (Chubb type) lock, then you will need a complete conversion kit consisting of replacement lock case, thumb turn cylinder and Euro cylinder handles. Most of this is straight forward, but sourcing handles to match your existing ones can be a drain.
If you do not get this work done and your tenants have an emergency, there will be no cover from your insurance should the worst happen due to them not being able to escape.
Here at AC Locksmiths Norfolk, we are happy to work around your changeover days and with your management company to get the locks changed seamlessly without hassle for you or your customers.
Should you require any more information, please contact me for an informal chat.
It is well known that business properties, especially where the public has access, should have secure fire exit doors, which means that all locked doors should be able to be opened from the inside without a key.
But many people renting out properties for holidays do not realise that these fire exits should have easy escape capabilities. The logic behind this is that if the lock is key operated on the inside, the customers may well lock the door, put the key somewhere safe, and then should the worst happen and a fire break out, in their panic and being away from home, they could well forget where they have put the key and be caught in a tragic accident.
So if your wooden door has a nightlatch (often called a ‘Yale’ lock), and that lock has a British Standard Kite mark, you are fine.
If your wooden door has a mortice (often called a ‘Chubb’ lock), with key operation on both sides, there is a conversion that can be done to use a Euro Cylinder that has a thumb turn on the inside. This means changing the lock and handles but can use the existing space with minimal visible change.
If your door is UPVC or has any mechanism where the handles must be lifted before locking, it is a simple matter of swapping the existing Euro Cylinder for one with a thumb turn on the inside.
This is a key both sides Euro Cylinder: 
And this is a standard thumb turn Euro Cylinder:
There is a slight worry with installing these fire escape systems, though and that is I have a tool that can go in through letter boxes and turn the thumb turn allowing me access to the property. We have two solutions. Firstly, certain thumb turns on the very best cylinders are designed to be difficult for tools to turn. They might require a push while turning or just plain difficult for the tool to purchase.
Alternatively, you can buy specially designed sloped guards for your letterbox (although even these can be bypassed with ever more clever locksmith tools).
Or better yet a letter catching cage on the back of your door will stop all tools that I know of at time of writing.
If you own or run holiday lets, you might find your public liability insurance does not pay out if you have not taken the correct measures to ensure the safety of your guests.
I am noticing a lot of village halls are also suddenly finding out from fire inspections that they are not up to scratch. Please check the regulations specific to you if you run any property that is not a private home.
Click here for Government guidance on fire doors/fire safety
Should you have any questions regarding the above information, please do not hesitate to contact me.
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Here at AC Locksmiths Norfolk, it has always been my aim to provide quality work with fair pricing. We are still the only company in the area to give prices on our website so you can know before you even call what prices are likely to be. Regular customers will know that I have never charged for a second visit if I do not have what you need on board at first contact, and if you call me to do a second job within 6 months, I have been doing these jobs labour free where possible. My other desire was always to keep AC Locksmiths prices the same whether you call me out at 2pm on a Monday, or 2am on Bank Holiday weekend. I have been able to keep this going for twelve years, but unfortunately, to stay in business and to stay competitive, changes have to be made.
My AC Locksmiths prices will always be displayed on the website, so that you the customer, will know I am honest about what I charge. While my profit margin remains low, extra cost of materials leading to increased prices will push me over the VAT threshold and prices displayed will not include the VAT price, so when that is applicable I will make that clear in my pricing list.
While I am no longer able to do second visits for free in all cases, they will still be free if the item I am missing is a basic everyday lock. In all other cases, repeat visits will be charged at a half labour rate, and separate jobs will incur the full labour rate regardless of time in between visits.
Between the hours of 7am and 7pm Mon – Fri, my rates for the new financial year will remain the same as before. But evenings, weekends and bank holidays will see an increase to £95. This is a flat fee for emergency work and will apply if the job takes five minutes or five hours. For non-emergency work, the cost will be £75 for a single lock change/short job, £150 for a half day, and £250 for a full days’ work. All large value jobs will require a 50% deposit.
Despite these changes, I will still continue to help advise my customers on lock and mechanism maintenance to help the locks last longer, I will still tell you if there is a way to do the job yourself when you call me. I will still not charge you if you call me out when you actually need a door fitter instead.
I will still offer a comprehensive range of services, including all below and more:
- Gain entry
- Lock fitting
- Lock upgrades
- Alarm fitting
- Internal CCTV
- Smart locks
- Vehicle entry
- Empty home management (look after your 2nd home/look after home after death of a relative, etc)
- House clearance
- Repeat maintenance
Find our full price list here: https://www.ac-locksmiths-norfolk.co.uk/prices-2024/
Thanks for reading, Alan
