Repair
Most locks give warning before they fail. A little more force each week, a key that needs jiggling, a handle that has started to droop. Repaired at that point, it is a small job.
What this covers
Everything listed here is work we actually carry out. If your situation is not on the list, describe it when you call and we will tell you honestly whether it is ours.
The key turns but only with effort, or the door needs lifting before the bolt will throw.
Movement in the furniture, screws that will not stay tight, a spindle that has worn.
The door has dropped or the frame has moved and the bolt no longer meets the keeper cleanly.
A key that has to be wiggled to find the right spot, or that catches on the way out.
Extraction of the broken section and assessment of whether the cylinder survived it.
The door bounces back open, or closes but will not stay shut.
The honest answer depends on what has worn. Alignment problems, tired latches, worn spindles and dirty cylinders are usually repairable, and repairing them is cheaper than replacing good hardware.
Where a lock has internal damage, where parts are no longer available, or where the hardware is simply at the end of its life, we say so and quote the replacement instead. Repairing something that will fail again in a month is not a favour.
Older St Kilda houses and flats move. Timber swells through a wet winter, foundations settle, hinges wear, and a door that closed sweetly for years starts needing a shove. The lock is often blameless — it is being asked to throw a bolt into a hole that has shifted.
That is usually corrected by adjusting hinges, easing the door, or repositioning the strike plate rather than buying new hardware.
A lock that needs force is a lock that will eventually refuse. That tends to happen at the least convenient moment, and turns a modest repair into an after-hours callout or a lockout.
If you have started making allowances for a door — a particular lift, a certain angle, a specific key that works better than the other one — it is worth having looked at.
Related
One problem tends to sit next to another. These are the services that most often come up in the same conversation.
Questions
Many can be repaired. Sticking, binding, loose handles, poor alignment and worn latches are common and usually fixable. Where internal components have failed or parts are unavailable, replacement is the practical option and we will explain why.
Often it is not. That symptom usually points to the door or frame having moved so the bolt no longer lines up with the strike. Correcting the alignment normally solves it without new hardware.
Frequently, yes. Original hardware on older St Kilda homes is often worth keeping, and servicing or repairing it preserves the look of the door. Where the original cannot be made to work reliably, we discuss options that suit the age of the property.
Location
We work from Acland Street, which means the properties on this page are the ones around us — not a suburb we drive through occasionally.
Get in touch
Tell us what you need help with and we’ll help you find the right locksmith service.
