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 Fullerton
Rekeying a lock in Fullerton typically costs $75 – $160 for the service call and first cylinder, with each additional cylinder running $15 – $30. For most Fullerton homes, we’re onsite within 45 – 60 minutes of your call, and the job itself takes 20 – 40 minutes depending on how many doors you have. We serve the entire city, from the 1950s ranch homes near downtown to the newer developments off Bastanchury Road and everything around Cal State Fullerton.
If you’ve just moved into a house in Fullerton, changed property managers, fired a contractor, or had a roommate leave, you don’t actually know who holds every copy of your key. That’s the honest reality of how keys get copied in this city. Rekeying changes the internal pins inside your existing lock so all old keys stop working immediately, without replacing the hardware. You keep your door, your deadbolt, and your finishes. You just get new keys and a lock that no stranger can open.
Call us at (956) 275-7388 for a written price before anyone is dispatched. That’s the only way we work.
Why Ridley Locksmith & Security Is Fullerton’s Preferred Rekey Locks Company
Our Rekey Locks team works on the full range of hardware found in Fullerton homes, from the builder-grade Kwikset cylinders on 1960s tract houses near Woodcrest to the newer smart-lock deadbolts going into renovations around Sunny Hills. We know what’s behind the door before we touch it because we’ve worked on hundreds of them here. That’s the difference between a crew that guesses and a crew that arrives with the right pinning kit the first time.
Ridley Locksmith & Security is part of the Garrison Partners family, a locally operated shop held to The Garrison Standard since 2007. Every technician who arrives at your door in Fullerton is background-checked, uniformed, and accountable to a written code, not a dispatcher’s mood. You get a written price before any work starts and a written guarantee covering the rekey for one full year. If something fails inside that window, we return at no charge. That’s the 365-Day Done Right Promise, and it’s automatic on every job.
Dispatch for Fullerton is coordinated from our Los Angeles-area office, and our crews serve this city daily. A live person answers the phone 24 hours a day. Not a voicemail tree. Not a call-back later. You call, a person answers, and you get a real price.
Keyed Alike in Fullerton
Keyed Alike in Fullerton means setting all your door locks to a single key, so the front door, back door, garage access, and side gate all open with the same cut. We see this requested most often by landlords near the Fullerton Transportation Center who manage multiple units, and by homeowners in the hillside neighborhoods who have three or four exterior doors and have grown tired of a keyring that looks like a jailer’s.
On a standard single-family home with two or three entry doors, keying everything alike runs $90 – $180 total including the service call and all cylinder labor. The work involves removing each cylinder, re-pinning it to match a new key, and testing it in the door. If the hardware is aging and the cylinder pins are worn, we may recommend replacing the cylinder rather than re-pinning it. That decision gets quoted in writing before we touch anything.
One key, every door
The benefit is straightforward: one key on your ring instead of four or five. For landlords, it means one key works across multiple units without giving a tenant access to any door you haven’t specifically keyed. We can also set up a restricted keyway so the key can’t be copied at the neighborhood hardware store down on Harbor Boulevard.
What it takes
Keying alike doesn’t require new hardware. We pull each cylinder, swap the internal pins, and cut new keys on-site. On older Fullerton homes with mixed brands, say Kwikset on the front door and Schlage on the back, this gets more involved because the keyways are different. We carry both pinning kits as standard equipment, so the job still finishes in one visit.
Rekey Deadbolt in Fullerton
Rekey Deadbolt work in Fullerton is the most common single-lock job we do. A deadbolt rekey on a standard single-cylinder lock costs $75 – $120 including the service call, the cylinder work, and two new keys. Most homes in Fullerton have one or two deadbolts on entry doors, and on properties built in the 1960s and 1970s, those deadbolts are often original to the house.
The job itself is straightforward. We remove the deadbolt cylinder from the door using the existing key, disassemble it, replace the internal pins to match a new key, and reinstall it. No drilling. No mess. The old key stops working the moment the new pins are in. That’s the security point: anyone holding an old copy, whether it’s a former tenant, a contractor, or a neighbor who watered the plants once, loses access instantly.
Deadbolt with a twist
Some Fullerton properties, especially older duplexes and fourplexes near the downtown and State College corridors, still run mortise-style deadbolts rather than standard cylindrical deadbolts. These need different pinning tools and a different skill set. We stock mortise pinning kits, so this isn’t a reason for a return trip. But it is one of the reasons you want a crew that knows Fullerton’s housing stock rather than one that’s driving in from an hour away.
Smart lock and keypad deadbolts
Smart locks and keyless deadbolts rekey differently. On most models, the cylinder can still be re-pinned, though some budget smart locks have non-serviceable cylinders. If yours is one of them, we’ll tell you before any work begins and quote the replacement honestly. No mid-job surprises.
Trusted Brands We Service in Fullerton
We service and rekey the brands Fullerton homeowners actually have: Kwikset, Schlage, and Medeco are the most common. Kwikset and Schlage are the builder-grade and residential standards you’ll find on most front doors in this city. Medeco shows up on higher-security properties, especially Fullerton Commercial Locksmith storefronts near the downtown and along Chapman Avenue. Our techs carry pinning kits for all of these plus Abloy, Yale, Baldwin, Mul-T-Lock, and Sargent. We stock common cylinders and key blanks locally, so a rekey in Fullerton doesn’t turn into a two-day wait for parts.
Common Rekey Locks Problems We See in Fullerton Homes
- Mixed-brand cylinders on the same house. A 1960s ranch near Woodcrest might have a Kwikset deadbolt on the front door and a Schlage on the back patio. A tech with only one pinning kit can’t finish the job. We carry both.
- DIY rekey attempts that strip the pins. Homeowners who watch a video and try it on a smart lock deadbolt often damage the cylinder internals. The fix is a new cylinder, not a rekey. If you’ve already tried, call us and we’ll quote the replacement honestly.
- Mortise locks on older duplexes. Fullerton has a real stock of pre-1970 housing with mortise lock sets. These don’t rekey like a standard deadbolt, and a tech without mortise tools can’t finish. We can.
- Phone quotes that change at the door. The most common complaint we hear from Fullerton customers is the tech-from-a-call-center routine: a cheap quote on the phone, then a “diagnostic fee” or higher per-cylinder rate at the doorstep. We give you a written price before we dispatch, and that’s the price on the invoice.
Pricing for Rekey Locks in Fullerton, CA
A typical Fullerton rekey job runs $75 – $160 for the first cylinder and $15 – $30 for each additional cylinder. Keying all doors alike on a two-door house usually lands between $90 – $180 total. Mortise locks and smart-lock deadbolts with non-serviceable cylinders run higher, and we quote those jobs specifically because they require different parts. The full price is quoted on the phone before anyone is dispatched, and it is the price on the invoice. There’s no call-out surcharge added on arrival, no “diagnostic fee” invented at the door, and no per-cylinder add-on you didn’t approve. Call (956) 275-7388 and you’ll get the exact number before we send a truck.
We Also Serve Cities Near Fullerton
Our crews cover Fullerton and the surrounding north Orange County area daily. We regularly rekey locks in Rekey Locks in Fullerton as well as nearby Placentia, Brea, Yorba Linda, and La Habra. If your property sits just over a city line, the same written-price policy and the same one-year guarantee apply.
Serving Fullerton, CA - Our Local Coverage Area
We’re based in the Fullerton 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 Fullerton
Every Ridley technician arrives in a marked vehicle and a Ridley uniform with a company ID. You can call our 24-hour line at (956) 275-7388 while the tech is at your door and confirm the name of the person standing there. We don’t use subcontractors, and we don’t send unmarked vans. The person who shows up is a Ridley employee, background-checked, and answerable to our written standard.
Yes, in most cases. Many keypad and smart deadbolts have a standard cylinder behind the keypad that can be re-pinned same as any mechanical lock. Some budget smart locks have sealed, non-serviceable cylinders. If yours is one of those, we’ll tell you before any work begins and quote a cylinder replacement instead. Call (956) 275-7388 with your lock’s brand and model and we can usually tell you over the phone which category you’re in.
Rekeying changes the internal pins inside your existing lock so old keys stop working. The lock housing, deadbolt, and door hardware stay in place. Replacing means swapping the entire lock for new hardware. Rekeying is almost always cheaper, $75 – $160 versus $200 – $400 or more for replacement hardware and installation. The security result is the same: old keys no longer work. If your hardware is damaged or you want a different finish, replacement makes sense. Otherwise, rekeying is the faster and more economical option.
No. A standard rekey removes the cylinder from the lock using the existing key, re-pins it to new keys, and reinstalls it. No drilling, no damage, no mess. Drilling only happens in lockout situations where no key exists AND a non-destructive method fails. For a rekey, drilling is never part of the job. If someone tells you they need to drill to rekey your lock, that’s a red flag.
Yes. This is a standard keyed-alike job and we do it regularly across Fullerton. One key opens the front door, back door, garage access, and any other lock you want on the same key. A two-or-three-door keyed-alike job typically runs $90 – $180 total and finishes in under an hour. Call (956) 275-7388 for an exact quote, and you’ll have the written price before we dispatch.
Call Ridley Locksmith & Security for Rekey Locks in Fullerton
When you need a lock rekeyed in Fullerton, call (956) 275-7388. A live person answers, gives you the real price, and tells you exactly when a tech will arrive. The tech shows up on time, in uniform, with a written price that matches what you were told on the phone. The work is covered by a written one-year guarantee, and if it fails inside that year, we return and make it right at no charge. That’s the deal in Fullerton, and it’s the same deal on every job we do.
Written by Drew Kowalski, Owner at Ridley Locksmith & Security, part of the Garrison Partners family since 2007.