Non-destructive entry first, always - and we re-key Schlage, Kwikset, and Baldwin locks on the spot while you watch
You get a price before we start. It does not change when we arrive. No surprises.
Before
AfterFast, Reliable Rekey Locks Across San Carlos
A rekey in San Carlos typically costs $75 – $145 for the first lock and $30 – $55 per additional cylinder when all locks are keyed alike in one visit, and most single-family homes are done in under an hour. We re-pin the existing lock cylinders so old keys stop working, without replacing your hardware. If you just closed on a house near Laurel Street or you’re changing who has access to a rental off Crestview Drive, the work is the same: we change the pins inside the cylinder, cut new keys, and hand you a written price before anything is opened. Call us at (956) 275-7388 and you’ll get a live person, not a voicemail, 24 hours a day.
Why Ridley Locksmith & Security Is San Carlos’s Preferred Rekey Locks Company
Ridley Locksmith & Security is part of the Garrison Partners family, and every job we run in San Carlos is held to The Garrison Standard. That’s a written code covering how we quote, how we dispatch, and how we leave the site. Our technicians are background-checked and arrive in uniform with a marked van, not an unmarked car and a vague promise. You know who’s coming through the door before they get there, and that matters when you’re handing over access to your home.
We’ve rekeyed houses throughout San Carlos, from the flat mid-century tracts east of El Camino Real up to the hillside streets off Crestview and Edgewood. The housing stock here splits in two directions, and we carry parts for both. A Kwikset deadbolt off a 1950s ranch near Laurel needs a different cylinder kit than an original mortise lock on a hillside home, and our techs ask the right questions before dispatch so we show up with the right pins. No second trip because someone didn’t ask what brand the lock is.
Every rekey in San Carlos comes with a written price before work starts and a written guarantee covering the repair for one full year. If the work fails inside that window, we return at no charge. That’s the 365-Day Done Right Promise, and it’s not a verbal assurance. It’s a document.
Keyed Alike in San Carlos
Keyed Alike in San Carlos means re-pinning two or more locks so a single key operates all of them. For example, one key can turn the front deadbolt, the back door knob, and the side gate. That’s the job homeowners most often need after moving into a place, when a handful of mixed keys becomes one key that works everywhere. It typically runs $95 – $185 depending on how many cylinders we re-pin in one visit.
Front, Back, and Gate in One Pass
We regularly key alike the front door, back door, and a gate on a single San Carlos property in under an hour. The front and back may be different brands entirely, and that’s fine. We re-pin each cylinder to match the same key, whether it’s a Kwikset deadbolt at the front and an old mortise lock at the back, or a Schlage knob and a Baldwin deadbolt.
What You’ll Need to Show Us
Bring the existing key you want to keep using, and we’ll match the others to it. If the locks are different brands with incompatible keyways, we’ll tell you before we quote anything. Sometimes the honest fix is replacing one cylinder, not re-pinning it, and we’ll show you why on site rather than pad the invoice.
Rekey Deadbolt in San Carlos
Rekey Deadbolt in San Carlos is the most common single-lock job we run: re-pinning one deadbolt so a new key operates it and the old ones stop. It’s the fastest way to close off access after a tenant moves out, a roommate leaves, or you lose a key somewhere around town. Rekeying a standard pin-and-tumbler deadbolt runs $75 – $120 for the first cylinder.
No Drilling, No Hardware Replacement
Unless the deadbolt is seized or damaged, we don’t drill anything. We remove the cylinder from the lock body, swap the pins, reassemble, and cut you new keys. The lock stays in the door. You keep the hardware you already own, and the whole thing takes about 20 to 30 minutes.
When a Deadbolt Can’t Be Rekeyed
Some worn cylinders from the 1950s and 1960s have pins so smoothed down that a clean rekey won’t hold tolerance. If that’s your deadbolt, we’ll tell you before we begin and give you a written price for a new cylinder instead. We don’t start a job that’s going to fail and call it done.
Trusted Brands We Service in San Carlos
We’re trained on the full range of lock hardware, from standard residential lines including Schlage, Kwikset, and Yale to high-security systems like Medeco and Mul-T-Lock. For a rekey in San Carlos, the brand matters more than people expect. Schlage and Kwikset use different keyways and pin depths, and a tech who doesn’t stock both will either swap your cylinder or tell you to buy new hardware. We carry pin kits and cylinder parts for both, plus mortise cylinders for the original 1950s locks still common in hillside homes off Edgewood. That means we can rekey what’s already on the door, same day, without sending you to a hardware store.
Common Rekey Locks Problems We See in San Carlos Homes
- Original mortise locks with worn pins. Hillside homes off Crestview and Edgewood often still have their original 1950s mortise cylinders, and a generic rekey kit won’t fit them. We ask the lock brand and age before dispatch so we arrive with the right cylinder parts.
- New homeowners quoted for replacement instead of a rekey. People who just bought near Laurel Street often assume “rekey” means new hardware. The honest fix is re-pinning the existing cylinder for a fraction of the cost, and a teaser price that hides that distinction is how trust breaks on the doorstep.
- Smart locks and keypads still open after a mechanical rekey. San Carlos has a real mix of keypad entry, app-based smart locks, and old mechanical deadbolts on the same door. If a tech doesn’t ask about keypads and transponder keys upfront, the old code keeps working after the mechanical cylinder is re-pinned, and the customer thinks the old keys are dead when they aren’t.
- Mixed brands keyed differently across one house. A front door Schlage and a back door Kwikset can’t share a key without replacing one cylinder or the other. We tell you that before we quote, not after we’re on site and you’re committed.
Pricing for Rekey Locks in San Carlos, CA
Here’s what to expect, in actual dollars, for the San Carlos market. Rekeying a single deadbolt runs $75 – $120. Rekeying a standard knob or lever runs $50 – $80. Keying alike two or three existing locks in one visit runs $95 – $185 depending on brand and cylinder type. A vintage mortise cylinder off a hillside home may add $15 – $25 per cylinder if it needs a specific pin kit. Those are the ranges we quote on the phone. The price we quote is the price on the invoice, because a written price before dispatch is part of The Garrison Standard. Call (956) 275-7388 and we’ll give you a firm number before anyone leaves the office.
We Also Serve Cities Near San Carlos
We run the same rekey routes into Belmont, Redwood City, Atherton, and Menlo Park. If your property is in San Carlos but the lock issue is at a rental or family home a town over, we can often combine the stops in one visit. See our Rekey Locks page for service details, or learn more about how we cover Rekey Locks in San Carlos on our city page.
Serving San Carlos, CA - Our Local Coverage Area
We’re based in the San Carlos area and know this community well. Use the map below to see our service coverage - if you’re nearby, we can almost certainly help.
FAQs About Rekey Locks in San Carlos
A rekey in San Carlos runs $75 – $145 for the first lock and $30 – $55 per additional cylinder when done in one visit. We don’t quote a single flat price before dispatch because the price depends on how many cylinders, what brands, and whether the lock is a modern pin-and-tumbler or an old mortise cylinder. What we do is give you a written price before any work starts once we know what’s on the door. Call (956) 275-7388 and we’ll talk through it in two minutes, and the number we give you is the number on the invoice.
In nearly every San Carlos home, we rekey the existing deadbolt by re-pinning the cylinder inside it. The door hardware stays in place. We replace hardware only if the cylinder is worn past tolerance or the lock is damaged. We’ll tell you which one applies before we begin, with a written price either way.
A standard deadbolt rekey in San Carlos takes 20 to 30 minutes on site. Keying alike three locks takes under an hour. We don’t drill unless the lock is seized or broken, and if that’s the case, we’ll show you why before we touch it. No noise, no drywall dust, no mess.
Yes. We can key alike the front door, back door, side gate, and any lock that uses a compatible keyway. If the brands don’t share a keyway, we may need to replace one cylinder to make it work, and we’ll quote that before we start. Most San Carlos homes with three or four locks are keyed alike in one visit.
Rekey. Unless the hardware is damaged or you want a different style, re-pinning the existing cylinders is faster, cheaper, and just as secure as replacing everything. You get new keys, old ones stop working, and the hardware you already paid for stays on the door. For a 1950s ranch near Laurel or a hillside home off Edgewood, we’ll tell you on the phone whether the existing cylinders are worth re-pinning or whether one needs replacement.
If you need a rekey in San Carlos today, call (956) 275-7388. A live person answers 24 hours a day, 7 days a week. We’ll give you a written price before dispatch, and you’ll get a written guarantee covering the work for one full year. That’s how we run every job, from a single deadbolt off El Camino Real to a full keyed-alike setup in the hills.
Written by Drew Kowalski, Owner at Ridley Locksmith & Security, serving San Carlos as part of the Garrison Partners family since 2007.