Maintaining the Locks and Hardware on Your Doors
Most people use locks everyday without thinking about how they are maintained. there is a quick method you should use to clean handle sets and deadbolts so that they will last you for a very long time. This should only take you a few minutes and it has to be done just a few times a year if even that. usually all you need to do give it a bit of lubrication to keep all of the parts moving smoothly.
A common misconception is that you should use a graphite dry lube. Back in the day this was the best option as it didn’t collect as much dust or smell as potent as something like WD40. The graphite tends to gunk up when you get moisture and dust in the lock. It swells and expands making a mess on the inside of your locks. now this is still a passable option if you don’t have access to a better lube, it is just not ideal. two very good products that are approved by the big boys like Medico and Assa locks are Super Lube Dri-Film and Lubrican Poxylube CP200. these are aerosol bottles so you can spray it in but the spray quickly dries leaving the lubricant intact. Time Lock inc. does not sell lubes so you will have to find a local store that does.
To start you should clean your door hardware. A cheap and easy way to clean grime off of your hardware is to mix some water, natural lemon juice, and some salt together. The lemon juice is a natural degreaser and the salt is a light abrasive. use an old toothbrush to scrub everything lightly then quickly rinse and dry everything you got wet. you can speed the drying process up with a compressed can of air. once things are dry you can move on to some light maintenance.
Before you get lubricating the locks make sure you shake the can up really well so that if anything settled in the bottle it will mix back together and if you suspect your lock, handle set or hinges have been over lubricated or you think that there may be excessive dirt or other debris then take the piece apart and clean it with an alcohol based electrical contact cleaner. let it dry or speed it up by drying with compressed air from a can. Starting with the deadbolt, place the plastic spray tube in the keyhole and press down on the white nozzle using two or three, one second bursts of spray. Wipe the face of the cylinder and allow the lubricant to penetrate the cylinder for 10 seconds or so and insert the key. Turn the key a couple times to make sure the lube worked. if it is still a bit sticky then repeat the process only spraying once or twice. after a second time if it is still having problems you may have more of a problem requiring you to take the lock apart and clean or replace it. now that the key way is lubricated you can extend the bolt and spray a short burst on it. Open and retract the bolt a couple times. The deadbolt should now be working great.
If it is getting stuck when the door is closed then you may need to adjust the strike plate on the door jam. The strike plate looks like the photo to the right. Unscrew the strike plate screws and remove the plate. Trim the hole in the jamb with a small chisel as needed so the bolt enters without obstruction. Do this carefully and patiently so that you don’t ruin your door jam. Make sure that the strike plate fits in the hole and adjust it if you need to. Hold the strike plate in place and close the door making sure that the bolt is still unobstructed with the plate in place. Open the door and mark the plate and drill small pilot holes then tighten it to the jam with the screws. if you had to raise or drop the plate then you might have an unsightly gap where it used to be. use some wood filler that can be painted and fill the gap scraping any excess off so that it is smooth. once it has dried you can paint it. at this point you should now have a fully functioning deadbolt
While you are here with the lube you should also make sure that the door hinges are lubricated. This won’t do much for longevity but it will make sure that they don’t squeak on you when the door swings open or closed. The hinge is the pin that sits between the two plates. there should be three pins on the door. Pull the pins about half way out of the hinges and spray a small burst of the lube into the hole then push the pins back in firmly. Spray a vey small burst on the outside of the pin making sure that you don’t make a mess of the door. give it a few seconds to penetrate and then wipe everything up so that it’s nice and clean.
To lubricate the handleset you need to do basically the same thing as the deadbolt. if there is a key hole on the handle then spray some lube into it and let it penetrate for a few seconds insert the key and turn it a few times. Clean up any excess lubricant. now take the bottle and spray short bursts into cracks on the handle where there is motion. This will be on the thumb lever that you push down on the outside of a front door or around the handle where it connects into the door. you can see a picture to the right. Spray a small amount on the plunger that goes into the door as well. Turn the handle a couple of times to make sure that it is working properly and then clean up any excess lube that is on the door or the handle. if there is a problem with the strike then follow the directions above to adjust it and fill any gaps as needed.
Go over all of the screws in the hinges and handles and make sure that they are hand tight. if you need to replace any of your locks you can find new ones on our website at shopkeylesslocks.com. if you have any questions that you need an answer for then you can reach us at and we will try to answer anything that you need. I hope this guide helps you keep things clean and working for a long time.
