Lost Your Keys?

Our daily life have become significantly depended on keys we manage which are giving us access to our home, vehicle, and office. It is very common for people at one point or another to lose a key. Although there are many ways to prevent that from happening but not much to anticipate it, there are several ways that people can do when situation such as that arise.

Before going through what you can do when you lose a key, let's review some ways that may help to prevent such situation. It is very common for people to keep a spare key of your vehicle or home in your work place or home (if a vehicle's key). The second option is giving a spare key to a neighbor or a member in the family which could be a spouse, and adult child or a close relative.

When all else fails and you happen to lose the keys to your vehicle and you have no spare, here is some things you can do in that situation. Once you realize you misplaced your keys, you can start by trying to go over what you did prior to you realizing you lost the keys. Who knows, you might have dropped them somewhere nearby. If you parked in a paid parking lot, it might be worth it to check with the valet in case someone may have found the keys. Last but not least, if a spare is not available the only two options of getting a new key is at the dealership or a professional locksmith. A professional locksmith might be a better solution since they will normally come to you and significantly cheaper than the dealer in addition to the fact you won't have to get your car towed anywhere.

If you happen to find out that you just forgot the key inside the vehicle but its lock, it may be your best option to call a locksmith at this point. Most locksmith technicians and companies provide mobile services where they will be bale to come and unlock the vehicle for you. They usually use special tools in order to unlock even the most secure vehicles without harming the lock or the finish of it.

For more information about automotive keys and services, visit Premier NorthWest Locksmith Boise.

Residential Lock Re-key

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When To Do a Lock Change

We know how stressful it can be moving in to a new place. Normally when you move, there is a long list of things that need to be done and many others to keep in mind. One of the things that people tend to forget is dealing with the currently installed locks in the property. It doesn't matter if you are the home owner or just a new tenant moving in, changing the current lock is an important move and essential for your security and peace of mind.

Many people do not realize, but when moving into a new place, there is no tell of how many copies of keys the previous residents of the property made. Even though as part of the sale agreement all keys are to be submitted, there is no way to tell how many keys are actually still in the possession of the current owner and hoe many of them he lend to other people allowing access to the property such as relatives, service providers and more. This can be a serious safety and security risk.

It has been researched and found that many residential property break-ins were done by people who were familiar or was in contact with the previous property owner. Because of that, it is important to deal with the property locks and take the time to change the locks before fully completing the move. In addition, if not already equipped, it is recommended to add a deadbolt lock to all doors surrounding the place for extra security.

The first doors to be concentrated on when changing the locks are the ones surrounding the property such as front and back door or any side doors such as basement entrance. These are really important to deal with first as they are considered to be the main points of entry into the place and the first ones an intruder will attempt to go through in case of a break-in attempt. Changing the locks will ensure your peace of mind of not having to worry about keys that are floating around and give you the security that you need for your new home.

For more information about lock change or other locksmith services, give us a call or visit us at Premier NorthWest Locksmith Boise.

Office Lockout Services

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Caravan Ignition Fix

As a locksmith technician, getting called for an ignition service, there is no way to tell what the problem truly is or what the solution would be over the phone. That is why many locksmith technicians won't offer automotive ignition services as a job that may seem simple over the phone can turn into a half a day service not to mention the liability a technician will have on the customer's vehicle. Not all automotive ignition jobs can turn into a project, but in many particular ignition situations experience is what mostly counts.

I had a customer recently who got stranded with his 2002 Dodge Caravan. According to him, he could not turn the key at all one it was inserted into the ignition switch. I've dealt with these types of Dodge and Chrysler vehicle models before and normally the problem was with the cylinder internals getting worn out. This in turn will affect the sidebar to stick out which will cause the switch to get stuck. Since I had experience providing a solution to this type of issue before, I decided to take the job.

Once I got to the customer's location, the first thing I needed to do was lubricating the cylinder thoroughly, so I could make an attempt to at least getting the key to the ON position. This was necessary in order to remove the cylinder from the ignition so I could file the sidebar. However, it seemed that the cylinder operation was already declining so much that even after lubrication, I couldn't get the switch to the ON position which prevented me from removing the cylinder.

I had to think of what to do next, so I called a Boise locksmith co worker of mine to see if he had any idea of where I should go from there. According to him, the only way to resolve it was unfortunately replacing the ignition cylinder. He then explained to me the process to make it easier and faster. All I needed to do was drilling the side pin of the ignition and it came out with no issues. As it turned out, the customer had someone come and replace the ignition cylinder a few months back and may have installed a used ignition which explained the declining operation of it.      

Automotive Lockout Service

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Ford Key Impression

Originating a key for a vehicle can be done in multiple ways depending on the type of make and model. Some methods are easier for the average locksmith technician than others depending on the knowledge and skills the locksmith technician has. On older vehicle models there are not a lot of options that can be used in order to make a key for a vehicle. Most of the time, a locksmith technician will retrieve a code than normally will be stamped on one of the vehicle's locks. However, not always there will be a code stamped on the cylinder or the code would not be visible at all which will require the technician to impression a key.

Few years ago I remember getting a call from a customer who needed a key made for his 87 Ford Mustang GT. The customer had the vehicle under cover for many years and at some point lost track of the keys to it. I was at the beginning of my way at that time for originating automotive keys, but I figured I should be able to handle it. I had to look up the best way to make a key for this type of Ford vehicle and it seemed that impressioning was the best way I could do it.

Once I got to the customer's home, I took the time to examine the condition of the locks on the vehicle which were not great. I had a feeling that originating a key for that vehicle would not be a "walk in the park", but I still had the interest of trying to make a key for it. As I was following the impressioning procedure carefully, I noticed I could not get a clear look at the cuts, so I could make the key. The only way that came to mind that would help clean the lock a little bit was using WD-40. However, the lock was so contaminated from the inside that it didn't help.

I decided to give a call to a Boise locksmith co worker of mine who has been in the business much longer than I have and probably ran into this type of issue before. Fortunately, he came across old model Fords with dirty locks in his time where he needed to come up with a decent way of cleaning for the sake of impressioning. Turns out that pipe cleaner was the best way to go in that particular situation. After a quick run to the hardware store to get some pipe cleaner, I was back and ready to make another attempt impressioning the lock, but not before soaking the lock with  the pipe cleaner for few minutes. After a short wait, the lock was as good as new to my surprise and I was finally able to make a key without any further issues. 

Residential Lockout Service

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Premier NorthWest Locksmith Boise (208) 410-4738

Master-Lock Deadbolt Fix

As a locksmith technician with many years of experience in the field, I provide many types of services around the Boise area such as lockouts, lock repair, re-key, locks installations and more. Most of the time doing lock installation will go fairly smooth as it should be. However, like any other product, sometimes there are manufacture defects which will be hard to detect and cause the average locksmith technician  to think he or she was at fault doing the installation wrong.

I remember few years back I got a call from a customer who just moved into a new place and wanted 4 new deadbolts installed for the extra security. He did however informed me he had already purchased some deadbolt from the local hardware store. I normally wouldn't do lock installation unless I would supply my own products, but in that case he agreed not to hold me responsible if the locks ever get a malfunction.

I got the customer's information and headed to his address. Once I got to his home, he showed me around to take a look at the doors that needed the installation. He then showed me the deadbolts he got which were Master-Lock. I then went to my van and grabbed all the tools necessary to start removing the old deadbolts off the doors. After the old deadbolt where off, I installed the new ones in. However, as I finished installing them and started testing them for operation with a key, it seemed that 3 out of the 4 of them where not functioning properly.

It seemed that there was some sort of a problem removing the key after unlocking the lock. The plug did not seem to be properly lined up which caused the key to be stuck. After playing with the key a little bit more, I realized it may be a serious issue with the lock. I decided to call a fellow Boise locksmith friend of mine hoping he might have an answer for the situation.

After getting my technician friend on the phone and told him the story, he mentioned that it is a common problem with these types of Master-Lock. According to him, it was a manufacturing defect with the tailpiece which caused the lock to malfunction. He then said the solution was fairly simple. All I needed to do was remove the tailpiece from the cylinder of each deadbolt that had the problem and just file the roughness at the end of each deadbolt which caused it to bind. Once I did that, the deadbolts were functioning properly as they should have been in the first place.

Locksmith Services in Boise

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