March 26, 2020
by Ezlo Admin

To keep your home safe, you want to make sure all your doors are locked when you’re away. Then, you know the Best Time to Change Your Door Locks. However, there are several cases where door locks compromise, which may lead to unlawful entry into your home. So, it is not enough to feel that your home is secured since your door locks are still working correctly, other loopholes may put your house in danger even when your doors are locked.

The best thing you can do, therefore, is to know when to change your door locks to ensure optimal security. You may want to opt for smart door locks for enhanced security. As you probably know, smart locks do not have keys—you don’t need a physical key to open them. Instead, the app is installed on your smartphone and lets you open your door via a unique access code, even remotely.

So, when is the best time to change your door locks? The best time to change your door locks revolves around certain factors. You should change your door locks in case of any of the following:

Moving

Moving to a new apartment usually comes with great excitement. Perhaps you just bought a new house or rented a new apartment, settling without changing the existing keys puts your home at risk. You may never know if someone else has a spare key—because you did not purchase the keys and may not know the number of keys.

If you’re moving to a rented apartment, ensure the locks are changed and be sure of the persons sharing the keys with you, maybe your landlord and members of your household.

The same applies to a house you bought, also change your locks to be sure that you only have the keys. With this, you are sure that your home is safe whenever you’re away.

Changing Relationship

It’s better to take precautions to avoid danger. Relationship breakups can result in a heated quarrel sometimes, and either party may want to cause mayhem by illegally breaking into the ex-partner’s home. You want to make sure that you cover all loopholes to avoid trouble.

If you’re going to end your relationship or already ended, whether it’s a dating relationship or divorce, it’s wise to change your door locks to prevent unpermitted access to your home. It’s possible that Your ex-partner may have a spare key that wasn’t returned after the breakup. So, it would help if you change your locks at this time to prevent unknown events.

This also applies to your friends and roommates. If you have fallen out with anyone who once had access to your home, change your locks for safety.

Lost or Stolen Keys

One of the best times to change your door locks. If you have lost your keys, or they have been stolen, you should change your door locks without hesitation. Hoping to recover them soon while continuing with others can only put your home at risk. You don’t want to allow strangers access to your home while you’re away, so go ahead and change your locks because odds are someone is monitoring you and may have stolen your keys to break in when you’re out.

It’s a good security measure to ensure your locks are changed whenever you lose your keys.

Old Locks

No matter how good your locks are, they have a lifespan. At this time, your locks may be difficult to lock and open, which could be caused by wear and tear. This is one of the best times you need to change your locks. By changing them, you would save yourself the stress of struggling to open or lock your door.

Also, old locks can be easy to tamper with because they are worn out. So you need a tough lock at all times to ensure when you’re at the workplace or on vacation. This also gives you peace of mind, knowing that your door locks are secure.

Renovations

During renovations, contractors need access to your home, which you need to grant to enable them to get your work done. Sometimes, they may be working in your absence, which means you have handed them the keys to your home. It is best to change your locks after completion of the work to avoid unpermitted entry into your home.

Tips to Change Your Door Locks

If you have decided to change your door locks and you want to do it yourself, here is how to change them seamlessly:

Step 1: Before you get a new lock to replace the existing one, measure the dimensions of the existing hole. You want to make sure that your new locks fit the current hole you have. This will prevent the drilling of new holes, which may not look good.

Step 2: Not every door lock on the market can fit your door; they are available in different sizes. Make sure you know the size of your existing locks and buy one that is of the same size. If possible, still go for the same brand that will likely have the same size as your current one. The goal is to buy one that fits your door correctly.

Step 3: After purchasing your door lock, the first thing to do is to insert the new bolt and tighten it with the screws provided. To insert the bolt, slide it in from the outside edge of your door before you fasten it with screws.

Step 4: Now, you need to connect the interior and exterior plates. There are usually two long screws attached to locks, use them to join the exterior plate to the interior base plate and tighten it. But before you tighten it, ensure the lock cylinder is connected to the deadbolt correctly. Tighten the lock into place with a flathead screwdriver.

Step 5: This is the final stage. With step 4, you’re almost done fixing your door locks, but if your lock features a decorative base plate, you can attach it after the lock is correctly put in place.

Wrap Up

The best time to change your door locks is not when they are old and worn-out, as some people may think. As you have read, many other factors can propel door locks to change. If you experience any of them, do not hesitate to change your door locks to keep your home safe. More so, you can opt for smart door locks—you won’t have to keep changing your keys as smart locks are keyless with more enhanced security. You can lock and open your door with a unique code via the app installed on your smartphone.