When You Don't Need a Locksmith | How to Know Before You Call

I probably talk myself out of a job four or five times a week. Not because I'm flush for cash or can't be bothered. Because the call comes in and within thirty seconds I can hear it's not a locksmith job. It's a five-minute DIY fix, or it's nothing at all. And I'd rather tell you that now than take your fifty quid, spend eight minutes on your doorstep, and have you feel like a mug.

This happens more than people realise. I'm not the only locksmith in IG1 to IG6, obviously, but I suspect I'm one of the few who'll talk you through it on the phone instead of just booking the job.

Here's what I actually tell people, and why.

The door that 'won't lock'

I get this one constantly. 'My door won't lock, the key won't turn.' Nine times out of ten it's not the lock. It's the door.

Doors move. In summer they swell with humidity. In winter the frame contracts. In older semis in Goodmayes or the terraced streets around Loxford, the hinges wear and the door drops a few millimetres over years. The bolt on the lock no longer lines up with the keep on the frame. You force the key, it feels stiff, you stop because you don't want to break it. Sensible. But a locksmith isn't necessarily what you need.

First thing I tell callers: lift the door handle firmly while you turn the key. I mean really lift it. That takes the weight of the door off the latch and lets the bolt find the keep. If it locks, you don't need me. You might need a hinge adjustment or a keep plate moved a few millimetres, which is a screwdriver job, but you don't need me today.

I had a call last month from a landlord with a property in Seven Kings. Tenant locked out, door 'broken', could I come urgently. Walked through the lift-the-handle tip on the phone. Tenant got in inside forty seconds. Job done. Landlord was grateful, called me back two weeks later for a proper security upgrade on three properties. That's how it works.

The stiff, grinding lock

Locks dry out. Especially Euro cylinders in uPVC doors that face the weather. The mechanism gets gritty, the key turns like you're stirring concrete, and people assume the lock is failing.

Most of the time it just needs lubrication. Not WD-40. I have to say that clearly because everyone reaches for WD-40 and it makes it worse. WD-40 is a water displacer, not a lubricant. It strips out the light grease inside the cylinder and leaves it drier than before within a few weeks.

What you want is a dry PTFE spray or a graphite spray. You can pick either up from any decent hardware shop or order online for a few pounds. Spray into the keyhole, work the key in and out a dozen times, repeat. Takes three minutes. Most stiff locks respond immediately.

If the lock is stiff because the cylinder is snapped or visibly damaged, that's different. Call me. But a grinding, sticky lock with no visible damage? Try the lubricant first.

The door that's 'dropped' or the hinge bolt that rattles

Flats and maisonettes in Barkingside, Clayhall, the Cranbrook estate, the newer builds out near Newbury Park. All different builds, same problem. Hinges work loose over time, doors drop, and suddenly the multipoint lock on the uPVC won't engage properly at the top or bottom hook.

If only the centre latch is catching, and the top and bottom hooks are missing the keeps, you can sometimes sort it yourself by packing the bottom hinge. Loosen the screws, fold a bit of cardboard or use a hinge shim (poundshop stuff), retighten, and see if the alignment improves. Not a permanent fix, but it'll tell you whether alignment is the problem before you spend money.

Hinge bolts that rattle, on timber doors, usually just need the strike plate screws retightened. Two minutes with a screwdriver. Check it before you call anyone.

When I do tell you to call, and why

To be clear: there are plenty of jobs where you absolutely should not DIY it, and definitely shouldn't ignore it.

• A Euro cylinder that's been snapped, even partly, needs replacing immediately. Snap attack is real and takes seconds. I've been to houses in Chadwell Heath and Wanstead where the cylinder had been partially snapped and the homeowner hadn't noticed until they looked closely.
• A lock that was working fine and then suddenly stopped, with no change in weather or use, sometimes means the mechanism has failed internally. Don't keep forcing it.
• A door that was kicked or shouldered during a break-in attempt. Even if it held, the frame may be cracked behind the architrave where you can't see. Get it checked.
• Any lock over fifteen years old on an external door with no TS007 3-star or Sold Secure Diamond rating. That's not broken, it's just inadequate. Worth a conversation.
• Mortice locks with a key that won't fully turn. Could be a worn lever, could be the wrong key cut. Don't force it. Forcing a mortice lock can break the key off inside the barrel, and then you've made a five-pound problem into a sixty-pound one.

Why I'm telling you this

Opinion: a locksmith who talks you out of a job you don't need is a locksmith who's not worried about repeat custom, because they know they'll get it anyway.

The trade has a reputation problem. Everybody's heard a story about someone being charged two hundred quid for a job that took four minutes. Some of those stories are true. Prices vary wildly, and not every caller is getting honest advice when they ring round.

I'm not saying I'm a charity. I charge fair rates and I make a living. But I also know that if I drive to a property in Gants Hill, spend five minutes lubricating a cylinder, and charge someone sixty quid when I could have told them to buy a three-pound spray, I've made sixty pounds and lost a customer for life. Bad maths.

The callers I talk through a DIY fix almost always ring back when something genuinely needs doing. They recommend me to neighbours. They don't feel like they were taken for a ride. That's the whole point.

So before you call any locksmith

Run through this quickly:

1. Lift the handle firmly while turning the key. If it locks, alignment is the issue, not the lock mechanism itself.
2. Check whether the lock is just stiff. If so, try a dry PTFE or graphite spray before anything else.
3. Look at the cylinder face. Any visible cracking, distortion, or the cylinder sitting proud of the door? That's when you do need someone.
4. Has the door dropped? Check whether the door rubs on the frame at the top. Hinge issue, possibly sortable with a screwdriver.
5. When was the lock last replaced? If you don't know, that's worth thinking about regardless.

If you've tried the obvious and it's still not right, or if there's any sign of tampering or damage, then yes, call a locksmith.

Rapid Response covers Ilford and all the IG postcodes, usually arriving in under thirty minutes when we're not stacked up. I'll tell you the price before I come out, not after. And if it sounds like a job you can sort yourself, I'll tell you that too.