There is nothing more irritating than a broken key. You try to access your home or important information, only to find that your key has broken inside the lock. Now, you have to extract the key yourself or hire a locksmith to retrieve it and make a duplicate. If only there were a way to avoid this predicament in the first place. Luckily, there is. Just keep reading about some of the best preventative measures against key breaking so you don’t have to worry about this situation happening to you.
What Causes Key Breaking?
Before getting into preventative measures against key breaking, it’s important to know what causes keys to break inside locks at all. According to experts, keys made of soft metal materials are more likely to break than keys with lots of visible wear and tear. Additionally, a lock that has been warped by humidity or that hasn’t been lubricated can also make a key more likely to break.
4 Preventative Measures Against Key Breaking
Now that you know what can lead to key breaking, you are ready to learn what preventative measures against key breaking you need to implement. Here are four of the best tactics to utilize:
1. Lock Lubrication
One of the main causes of a key breaking inside a lock is a lock that hasn’t been lubricated. Lubricating your locks reduces friction and jams and prevents wear and tear on the key. By making time to lubricate your locks at least twice a year, you lower the chances of your key breaking inside your lock and allow both your key and lock to last longer.
2. Use Your Keys Gently
Shoving your keys inside a lock and aggressively turning it to open something will only increase wear and tear, especially if your keys are made of a soft material. Instead, ensure you use your keys gently every time to reduce wear, tear, and breaking. You also want to make sure you use your keys for their intended purpose to reduce the risk of them breaking.
3. Check For Obstructions
If something appears to be blocking your keys, trying to continuously push and shove your key into the lock will not make it more likely to open. If anything, you’ll be more likely to break your key. For this reason, if you feel something blocking the key the first time, check the inside of the lock for obstructions. You can clean your locks if there’s any debris trapped inside. Once you have removed any visible obstructions, try opening the lock with your key once again.
4. Replace Keys When Necessary
One of the more straightforward preventive measures against key breaking is to replace your keys as soon as they have accumulated a significant amount of wear and tear. You don’t want to constantly replace your keys just when they have visible damage or wear and tear since older keys are the most likely to break inside locks. You can go a step further and completely upgrade to keyless locks if you want to eliminate the possibility of key breaking altogether.
Call ASAP Locksmith Of Colorado To Retrieve And Replace Your Broken Keys!
We hope you find these four preventative measures against key breaking helpful. Gentle use of keys and regular care and maintenance are the simplest ways to keep your keys from breaking while unlocking a lock. Of course, keys can sometimes break regardless, so we know it’s important to have a reliable locksmith service to call to extract and replace your broken keys. For the best key extraction and replacement services in Colorado, contact us today at ASAP Locksmith.