What we put right
- Deadbolts forced, snapped or twisted out
- Split jambs and torn-out strike plates
- Drilled, punched or picked cylinders
- Doors that no longer close or latch
- Forced storefront door locks
- Sliding patio door locks
- Rekeying every lock the old keys opened
- A door that locks again the same night
The lock is usually not what failed
Open almost any forced residential door and the lock is intact. What gave way is the strike plate, held by two half-inch screws into soft pine trim rather than into the stud behind it. One kick puts the whole thing through the jamb. Replacing the deadbolt without fixing that is spending money on the wrong end of the door. We fit a reinforced strike box with three-inch screws driven into the framing, so the next attempt has to break the house instead of the trim. If the jamb itself is split we can splice and reinforce it well enough to lock securely tonight, and we will tell you honestly when the door or frame is beyond that and needs a carpenter rather than a locksmith.
Where we come to you
Same night across Santa Clarita, Valencia, Saugus, Newhall, Canyon Country, Stevenson Ranch and Castaic, throughout the San Fernando Valley, and up to Lancaster and Palmdale. If the door cannot be made secure tonight, we say so on the phone rather than after you have paid for the visit. On the Westside we work by appointment and do not take lockout calls.
Break-in repair in 70 cities
Santa Clarita Valley: Canyon Country, Santa Clarita, Valencia, Stevenson Ranch, Newhall, Saugus, Castaic, Val Verde, Acton, Agua Dulce
San Fernando Valley: San Fernando Valley, Van Nuys, Sherman Oaks, Encino, Studio City, North Hollywood, Valley Village, Burbank, Glendale, Tarzana, Northridge, Reseda, Winnetka, Panorama City, Sun Valley, Lake Balboa, Valley Glen, Toluca Lake, Universal City
West Valley: Woodland Hills, Chatsworth, West Hills, Canoga Park
North Valley: Granada Hills, Sylmar, Pacoima, Mission Hills, San Fernando, Arleta, North Hills, Porter Ranch, Lake View Terrace, Shadow Hills
Crescenta Valley: La Crescenta, La Cañada Flintridge, Sunland, Tujunga, Montrose
Northeast LA: Eagle Rock, Atwater Village
Central LA: Hollywood, West Hollywood, Los Feliz
Las Virgenes: Calabasas, Agoura Hills, Hidden Hills
Santa Monica Mountains: Topanga
Conejo Valley: Westlake Village, Oak Park, Thousand Oaks
East Ventura County: Simi Valley, Moorpark
Heritage Valley: Fillmore, Piru, Santa Paula
Antelope Valley: Lancaster, Palmdale, Quartz Hill, Littlerock, Leona Valley
Break-in repair questions
Do I need a police report before you come?
No, and do not wait for one. File the report, but a door that will not lock is its own emergency and we can be working while the report is still being taken. We will give you a written, itemised invoice that describes what was damaged and what was replaced, which is what an insurer asks for.
Should I rekey as well as repair?
Almost always. If keys were taken from a bag, a drawer or a hook by the door, the repaired lock is only as good as the list of people holding a key to it. Rekeying every exterior lock to a new key is quick, costs far less than replacing hardware, and it is the part people skip and regret.
Can you make it secure if the frame is wrecked?
Usually yes for the night. A reinforced strike, a longer bolt and a spliced jamb will hold a door that looks unsalvageable, and that buys you daylight and a proper repair on your own schedule instead of at three in the morning. Where it genuinely cannot be made safe, we tell you before starting so you can call a carpenter first.
Door forced and will not lock?
Call now. We will tell you what it takes to secure it tonight before we set off.