Choose a reliable Rotherham locksmith wisely

Now, before I start ripping other “locksmiths” to shreds, I do want to make it clear that the majority are honest, skilled, and a credit to their profession, even if they don’t quite have the film star good looks shared by some of us.

Horror films. I was musing on some of the classics of the genre and how they relate to my profession. Although a slight warning… in the same way that Fargo begins with a misleading caption saying the film is based on a true story, I will also be saying the following is based on true facts. Well, sort of.

But why am I rambling on about inflation and an impending recession? It’s not simply to depress my valued customers. Instead, it’s to raise the uncomfortable truth about the link between turbulent economic times and rates of crime, namely burglaries.

Which of us hasn’t had that sinking feeling when looking at lost roof tiles or the like of knowing we have to call someone out to deal with it? Who do we choose? How do we know we can trust them? Will we end up having to pay several grand for a job that should only cost a hundred?

I don’t have the first-hand experience of being a burglar, but my interest was piqued this week when I read about an ex-burglar who now offers tips on how people can protect their homes from criminals.

To try and redress the balance of this security oversight, today I thought I’d deliver a blog concerning slightly more modern home security.

The garden is what I’m concentrating on today. Not in a Percy Thrower or Alan Titchmarsh way, and not even in a Charlie Dimmock fashion, but rather about how the layout of your garden can impact on your home security.

Well then, Happy New Year to you. These New Years seem to come round quicker and quicker, don’t they. Although I’ve done the sums and apparently they don’t – it’s still 12 months between each one.

I’ve been hearing disturbing news lately about a predicted spate of break-ins this month. They’re a bit different from usual as it seems the culprit isn’t actually stealing anything, but merely getting a vicarious thrill at being in the houses of strangers, rifling through their hosiery.

It goes without saying why burglars like the Autumn and Winter months so much, although I’m still going to say it because I’m helpful like that. Cover of darkness is one of the greatest friends to your household burglar.

I doubt there are many teenagers out there desperately looking up information about how to help keep their family’s home safe and looking for tips to prevent burglaries. As such, I’ve put together five quick tips that you may wish to discuss as a family when eyes are diverted from phone screens.

For my local Rotherham customers they get someone they trust, with knowledge of the local trends when it comes to burglaries and crime spikes, after the police, I’m generally the best informed of what kind of break-ins are taking place and what can be done to protect against these.

I thought it might be interesting just to talk a little about one aspect of my working week that takes up a large proportion of my time. This is the repair of uPVC doors and windows.

I’m treating (yes, treating) you to my very own version of Last Christmas, with apologies to the late George Michael. Feel free to sing along…

Nowadays when people are looking for a locksmith and need one quickly they will turn to a search engine such as Google for help, expecting to see listings from locksmiths that are local to them.

Today I’ll be discussing the instances when your key snaps in half, leaving one half stubbornly stuck in the lock. It is far from an ideal situation, but do not despair as all is certainly not lost.

Given we’re living in strange times, today I’ll have a brief look at how these may affect home security and any issues that may crop up due to this new, if hopefully temporarily, way of living.

I trust you’re all keeping as well as possible out there and doing all you can to stay safe. It’s a strange time, and no mistake, isn’t it? One minute we’re all talking about Brexit, Liverpool and Love Island (well, some of us) and the next it’s all immediately pushed aside as everything focuses on the threat from COVID-19.

Whilst watching movies, my mind sometimes wanders to my day job. Cinema would have a lot fewer plots to choose from were it not for the existence of locks and keys. This dates right back to the very early days of cinema.

Who wrote a famous oratorio called Messiah? That’s right, it was Handel.  In 1741, if you want to be precise. And if we transpose the last 2 letters of Handel’s name, we get Handle. Which brings us to the subject of today’s blog – door handles!

I believe it was that great philosopher Gary Numan who once said “In cars, in cars, in cars. In my car, in my car, in my car, in my car, in cars, in cars, in my car, in my car, in my car, in my car.” Really makes you think doesn’t it.  That may give you a clue as to what I’ll be talking about this month. Nope, not 80s electronic synth pop (although I’d be happy to wax lyrical on that at a later date) but cars.

Your door and its locks are the only things preventing unwanted visitors from entering your property. It therefore makes perfect sense to have the best, most secure locks possible… right?

A great deal of my working week consists of repairing uPVC doors, whether they be the main entrance to a property, or, more commonly, as patio or French doors. And it’s not only doors – fixing the mechanisms on uPVC windows is also a significant portion of my workload and an area in which I can provide assistance.

Tilt and slide doors in Rotherham were a popular choice many years ago. These doors have often never received a service during their use! This means that there is a chance that now they are not so easy to operate or have developed a problem.

uPVC doors are locked by the means of a multipoint lock which is usually operated by you lifting the handle and then locking this mechanism solid via turning the key. After years of constant use these can fail either with door still closed, which though inconvenient still safe or in an open position and un-secure!