Locksmith in Toronto, OntarioSmart locks,fitted right.
A keypad or phone-controlled lock is only as good as the door it sits on. We check the alignment, the strike and the bore before anything is mounted, then set up codes and a mechanical backup so the technology works for you.
Plenty of people call us slightly embarrassed, as if losing a key or snapping one in the cold were a personal failing. It is not; brass wears, pockets have holes, and locks age. We would much rather you tell us exactly what happened, including the bit where you tried a screwdriver, because the true story tells us which tools to bring and how to put it right.
— Scarborough Village Lock & Key Specialists
Straight talk about your optionsWe describe what each choice does and what it asks of you in effort, disruption and future flexibility, so the decision is yours.
Work explained as it happensIf you want to watch, we tell you what each step is for. If you would rather make a coffee, we give you the summary at the end.
Tidiness as standardA lock change should not leave a mess. We bring what we need to keep the door area clean and we leave it that way.
Hours
HoursOpen 24/7
Nights and weekendsSame fees
In business12 years
VisitsOn-site assessment
Locksmith services
Where to start
Think of this page as a menu rather than a manual. You do not need to know the name of the part or the type of cylinder in your door. Pick the section that sounds closest, read what the visit looks like, and we will fill in the details together.
Business lockouts have their own wrinkle: the person at the door is often an employee, not the owner. We ask who can authorise entry, confirm it, and then deal with the door.
Your home should be easy for you to get into and hard for anyone else. That balance is the point of every residential service we offer, from a simple rekey to a full hardware upgrade, and we will tell you which one you actually need.
Businesses use this section for stockrooms, cash offices, server closets and pharmacies: doors that must hold whatever happens to the power, with keys numbered and issued against a signature. Homeowners use it for the doors they lock every night.
Commercial work begins with a walk through the building and a list of doors. For each we note the hardware, the traffic, who needs access and what happens if the key goes missing.
After a week of humid weather the back door has swollen in its frame. The key turns, you can feel the bolt trying to move, but it is jammed hard against the strike plate and the door refuses to open.
Your basement tenant has given notice, and a new one arrives on the first. The lock on the separate entrance works perfectly well. You simply want a fresh key for the incoming tenant and for the old one to be retired.
You signed the lease on the unit last week and the landlord handed over possession, but the previous tenant's locks are still on both doors and no keys came with them. Your fixtures arrive tomorrow and the doors will not open.
WhyEach person gets their own code or fob, so the log shows entries by name.
A customer's rifle safe at the range has a dial that simply will not respond to the combination written on the sales receipt from years ago.The usual fix
WhyUpgrading to high security rarely means new doors or a big disruption.
Open 24/7
How a visit goes
The choice between rekeying and replacing comes down to the condition of the lock and what you want from it. A cylinder that turns smoothly, sits firmly in a solid deadbolt and matches the look of the door is worth keeping, and rekeying gives it a new key for a fraction of the effort of replacement.
1 of 3
Mapping who needs what
We sit down with whoever manages the building and list the doors, the people and the hours. A stockroom key and a front door key are rarely the same conversation.
2 of 3
Changing the locks in order
We rekey door by door in an order that keeps the business open, starting with the entrance a departed key holder used most, and label everything as we go.
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Handing over a key record
You get the new keys, a simple written list of which key opens what, and a suggestion for where to store the record so the next change is easier.
About 58% of homes in Toronto were built in 1980 or earlier, according to the 2021 Census.
Period hardware on older homes deserves matching parts, not a mismatched modern set. A locksmith who works among such houses keeps finishes and styles that suit them, so a repaired or replaced lock still looks like it belongs to the door.
23%
Single-detached houses make up about 23% of homes in Toronto (2021 Census).
Townhouses share walls but usually have their own front door and often a back door or garage. Keying both alike, and checking the strike on the less-used door, is the everyday work in a neighbourhood of attached homes.
My keys were lost with something showing my address. Is rekeying enough?
Rekeying is exactly the right response, because it makes the lost key useless at every door that was pinned. The locksmith will walk the property with you to be sure nothing is missed, including the garage side door, a shed and any padlock the same key opened, and will suggest changing any garage keypad code that was written on the same ring. After that, whoever finds the keys is holding brass that opens nothing on your property.
How often should locks be rekeyed?
There is no calendar for it. What matters is who holds a key, not how many years have passed. Think about it when occupancy changes hands, when someone who had a key no longer needs one, or when a ring goes missing along with something that shows where you live. Between those moments a well-kept cylinder may need no scheduled care, and when it does, use whatever that cylinder's maker specifies. With the doors already on one recorded system, any repeat is a short piece of work.
Can I keep one door on a different key from the rest?
Yes, and it is common. A basement suite or in-law apartment often gets its own key so the tenant's key opens their door and nothing else, while your key opens the main house. A home office, a storage room or a shed can be kept separate for the same reason. The locksmith sets up the groups you want, pins each accordingly and tags the keys so the separate one is not mixed into the household set.
How do I order extra keys later?
An authorised person contacts the locksmith who holds your system, quotes the system reference, and the key is cut from code and numbered into the register. Some systems use a physical authorisation card, others an online validation, and business systems often require a signature that matches one on file. The key is collected or delivered, and the record shows the new total. It is deliberately not something a stranger with your key can do.
On-site assessment preferred
Request a visit
Talk to a locksmith about it. Describe the problem; we'll take it from there.
