Moving into a new house, or watching a long-term rental turn into an owned home, means an unknown number of keys are out there already: a previous owner, a real estate agent, a contractor, a dog walker, nobody can say for certain how many were cut over the years. Sorting that out is worth doing in the first week, and it does not always mean buying new hardware.
What rekeying actually changes
Rekeying keeps the existing lock hardware in place entirely and changes the internal pin configuration inside the cylinder so old keys no longer operate it, while a new key is cut to match the new pin arrangement. It is a locksmith or handyman job done in a few minutes per lock without removing anything visible from the door, and it is significantly less expensive than full replacement while achieving exactly the same security goal, since every key that existed before the rekey now opens nothing at all.
What actually happens during a rekey
The process itself is quick and does not touch anything visible on the door.
- The cylinder is removed from the lock body, usually by taking out a retaining screw or clip.
- The old pins are tipped out of the cylinder and replaced with a new set matched to a fresh key.
- A new key is cut to match the new pin combination, and tested in the lock before the cylinder goes back in.
- The cylinder is reinstalled into the existing lock body and hardware, which never leaves the door.
- Every door being rekeyed to the same key gets matched to that one new combination, so a single key ends up operating all of them.
When replacement makes more sense
If the existing hardware is worn, does not match between the front, side and garage entry doors, or you simply want to upgrade to a smart lock or a higher security grade deadbolt, full replacement is the better move rather than rekeying tired hardware. This is also the point at which it is worth getting every exterior door, front, side and garage entry, rekeyed or replaced to the same key together, so one key does everything rather than carrying a separate key for each door the way a lot of houses end up after years of piecemeal replacements.
Grading a deadbolt
Deadbolts are rated Grade 1, 2 or 3 by the American National Standards Institute, with Grade 1 being the most resistant to forced entry and Grade 3 the entry-level rating most new-build houses ship with. Most builder-grade homes in the Tri-Cities have Grade 2 or 3 hardware installed from new construction, chosen for cost rather than security. Upgrading the front and side doors to Grade 1 deadbolts during a rekey or replacement is a meaningful security improvement for a relatively small cost difference over standard hardware, and it is one of the easier upgrades to justify on the doors that actually face the street.
Smart locks and what changes with them
A smart lock adds keypad or app-based entry on top of, or instead of, a physical key, which is useful for issuing and revoking access to a cleaner, a contractor or family without cutting new keys every time someone new needs one. They still need to be installed into a door that is properly prepped and square, since a smart lock mounted on a misaligned strike plate will jam or fail to latch just as often as a standard deadbolt would in the same door, and the extra electronics do nothing to fix a door that was never hung quite right to begin with.
For a full rekey across every exterior door, or fitting a new deadbolt or smart lock properly, our door lock installation and rekeying service in Kitchener, Waterloo and Cambridge gets every door on one key in a single visit.