High Security Locks: before you call

Your shop has had four employees leave in two years and each one had a key. Rekeying every time is getting old, and the hardware store will cut a copy for anyone who walks in with the original.

Worth answering before the call

Is this a house, condo, rental unit or business premises, and do you own or manage it? How many keys exist today, and are you confident of that number? Has the door ever been forced, or has a key been lost or not returned?

What proof do I need to show before locks are changed?

The locksmith confirms that the person ordering the work is entitled to change the locks: the owner, a tenant with the landlord's agreement, or a property or facilities manager for a business. Photo identification and something linking you to the address usually settle it, and for a company a letter or a call to the named contact does the same. It protects you as much as anyone, since the same check stops someone else from changing your locks.

Do high security locks need special maintenance?

Only light care. Use the dry lubricant the locksmith recommends once or twice a year, never oil, which gathers grit around the finger pins and sidebar. Keep the keyway free of debris and insert the key fully before turning. In winter, warm a resisting key in your hand or use a de-icer rather than forcing it. Check hinge and strike screws each season so the door stays aligned. Treated this way the cylinder lasts for decades.