Can a Rotherham locksmith remove a snapped key?

When your door key snaps in half…

Well hello there again. Are we still all okay? We have now passed the twelfth week of lockdown, and it seems it’s beginning to lift, albeit very gradually. I sincerely hope you are all staying well and will continue to do so, as we all look forward to getting out a little bit more.

The lifting of the lockdown does have one major advantage – it means you don’t have to suffer the new pun I’ve been working on. Hot on the heels of the whole “key worker” debacle of the last 2 blogs, I’ve realised “lockdown” has its possibilities too, and that’s what I’ll be looking at today – that instances when your lock goes down – lockdown, see. Oh, sorry, I didn’t save you from that pun in the end – I went right ahead and did it anyway. But you would expect nothing less from me.

So what can cause your lock to go down. 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. The first thing is to not make the situation worse! Many is the time I’ve been called to a property in the wake of a well-meaning but cack-handed attempt at DIY repair, only to be faced with a more major job than if I’d been called in the first place. So do not try to dig out the snapped piece of the key yourself. This will usually result in it being pushed further into the lock, adding time and cost to the job of a professional removing it.

Skilled experience and locksmithing equipment

Fortunately, a professional locksmith should usually be able to extricate any key that has snapped in a lock. This is because we have special equipment (stop sniggering at the back) of the type that the average house owner or landlord wouldn’t have to hand. Skilled experience is also vital here – speaking for myself I’ve come across this situation on countless occasions over my career, and therefore know the quickest and safest way to remedy the issue, depending on the particular combination of lock and key.

Having dealt with a wide variety of lock types over the years I am able to remove snapped keys from Yale Locks, Euro Cylinders, window locks and padlocks. The most common culprit for snapped keys is a lock that uses a pin tumbler mechanism, so most problems occur with Yale and Euro Cylinder locks. Depending on the model, each requires a slightly different technique, but usually ends in success and a relieved customer.

Why keys snap in locks?

You may wonder why keys snap in locks and if there’s anything you can do to prevent it. I hope you’re wondering that anyway, because I’m about to tell you. Keys can snap if you try to turn them before they are fully inserted into the lock, if you try to force a jammed lock or if you keep hold of the key whilst opening the door, leading to the key bending. Using the wrong key would also obviously increase the risk of a key breaking in the lock, or even if you use the correct key but it is damaged – I see you, all those people who use their keys to open paint cans and the like – don’t do it, as it can bend the key out of shape, leading to it snapping in the lock.

After calling out a locksmith it really shouldn’t be too long a job for the snapped key to be extricated from the lock. It will obviously depend on whether the lock has been damaged, what caused the key to break, and how deeply the key is stuck in the lock. However, if the lock is still working, you’re probably talking no more than a half hour call-out to solve the problem. And that’ll include the cup of coffee too.

If you’ve broken your key and don’t have a spare, you’ll be worried about whether a new key can be made to replace the broken model. Usually this is still possible, as long as you have all the parts of the key. However, you may wish to take the opportunity to get a new stronger lock and key fitted – again this is not a lengthy job at all for a skilled locksmith.

Well that felt a little bit normal, doing a blog about locks being down, and not about the other lockdown situation. I am continuing to work, as I have done all the way through this period, and take all the necessary distancing precautions, so if you have a key snap off in the lock, or any other problem with your security, please do not hesitate to call me when looking for a Locksmith in Rotherham.