Deadbolts

  We install quality hardware that we know will last and stand up to use and withstand attack by a potential burglar.  Not only do we want the hardware to do what it is suppose to do:  stop a potential break-in.  We want it to last being used on a daily basis by our customers.  We install our locks with the knowledge that houses/ buildings settle no matter how old or new a home or building might be.  When a structure settles into the ground at all, you will see sheetrock settling as well and that is when you get cracks in seams and corners where the sheet rock meet.  This settling not only effects the looks of your home/building, it also effects the use of locks on doors.  The door may now be hanging lower, or higher depending on the settling, effecting where the bolt or latch of a lock meets the door jamb/strike plate.  It may no longer be aligned with the door jamb therefore causing the door to not latch or bolt properly/securely or latch at all.

   When we install our locks our locksmiths are instructed to align the locks and their respective strike plates as dead-center as we possibly can so that any settling that occurs should not effect the functionality of the lock for years to come.  We often see other locksmiths not take this care and see that these doors/locks are not securing properly or at all.  We get many calls yearly for doors that "suddenly open" in the middle of the night, or when ever, and the cause 9 times out of 10 is mis-alignment.

   Another cause for doors not latching and bolting properly is the use of weather-stripping in door jambs.  We live here in New England, and we have our wonderful 4 seasons that we experience, however it is these 4 seasons that causes people to add to their doors and door jambs weather-stripping to keep the cold or heat out, or in, during the year.  This installation of weather-stripping can, and most of the time will, effect how the door and door jamb engage, and how the lock and respective strike plate interact.  When we install our locks and strike plates, we align the door and frame as perfectly as we possibly can, and as you can imagine when the weather-stripping effects this alignment it also effects the alignment of the lock and strike plate and can cause it to not line up at all let alone not align properly.  We have gotten several calls over the years for warranty coverage for such occurences.  We do not cover this under warranty.  The best test to conduct before calling for warranty work is to test the lock with the door open:  if the lock operates properly since it will have not obstruction being extended into "dead air", then it is not the lock that is causing the problem.  It most likely is the alignment of the door.

    One of the worst things for a business is to get a "callback" call to cover something under warranty, since for one: we may not be getting paid to go back and 2nd in the customers eye we "did something wrong" and that doesn't put our company in a good light.  This is why we put on good-quality to the best-quality locks on every job that we do, and we stand behind our work.  When it comes to a problem with the hardware, it is the manufacturer that stands behind it, and that is why we choose the manufacturers that we do:  we know they'll stand behind it.  However, in most cases they want the hardware back to inspect it to make sure someone didn't tamper with it and to also see why it failed so that if it was a manufacturing defect they can correct the problem.  In these cases the manufacturer will not refund money paid for the hardware until they have inspected it, and if they find that it was tampered with they will not cover it and all shipping is to be paid by the end-user.  Also, any labor charges are due whether the manufacturer covers the hardware cost or not, the manufacturer does not reimburse the locksmith company for their time what so ever.

    We will be posting different tidbits of information on locks, new products we will be carrying, reommendations for our customers on taking care of their locks, the do's and don'ts of "lock maintenance" and a score of other topics, so keep an eye out and check back with our website here regularly.  We appreciate your business and look forward to hearing from you and seeing you in the near future, and wish you all a Happy New Year, and a safe 2012!