Swapping keys for fobs: access control for a small business
Seasonal staff, part-timers and a back door nobody can account for. Here is how fob and card access works for a small business, and what coastal weather asks of the hardware.
Lock and key help for Halifax
What happened? Start there.
Plain answers for homes, cars and businesses: what to do first, what's safe to try yourself, and when it's worth calling.
Something's wrong right now
- Someone broke into my home
- I think my garage door spring snapped
- I lost every key to my car
- I'm locked out and don't want damage
- My car door is frozen shut
- The power's out and my car is in the garage
- My garage door opener stopped working
- My garage door keeps going back up
- My garage door won't open in the cold
- My car fob quit on a cold, wet morning
- My keypad lock died and I'm on the step
- I lost my house keys somewhere
- My home safe won't open
- I'm locked out and need to show ID
Planning ahead
- I want staff fobs instead of keys
- I need a garage door that stands up to the coast
- I need the right locks for my business
- I want to know when my springs will go
- I want to know who can change my rental's locks
- I'm a landlord between tenants
- I can't decide whether to rekey or replace
- I want a stronger front door
- I want a smart lock that copes with our weather
- I want to stop garage break-ins
- I want my garage door ready for winter
All guides
25 guides
Right nowWhat to do after a break-in: the first 24 hours
Coming home to a forced door is a shock. This is the order that works: safety, police, a record of the damage, your insurer, a door that locks tonight, and every key and code that left with the thief.
Plan aheadThe best garage door for Halifax weather: salt air, wind and freeze-thaw
Salt air, coastal wind and a winter that freezes and thaws all season ask different things of a garage door. Here is what to look for, part by part.
Right nowBroken garage door spring? How to spot it and what to leave alone
A snapped spring turns a garage door into a dead weight. Here is how to recognise it in a minute, why coastal garages see it often, and how to keep everyone safe until it's fixed.
Right nowNo original car key? How a locksmith makes one from scratch
The only key is gone and the car is sitting in a lot. Here is how a working key gets made with nothing to copy, and what you need on hand.
Plan aheadCommercial door locks explained: which type is on your door?
Lever locks, mortise locks, storefront deadlocks and panic bars. How to tell which one your business has, where each belongs, and what the coast does to them.
Right nowDoes a locksmith break your lock to get you in?
A good locksmith gets you in and leaves the lock working. Here is how that's done, the few cases where drilling is the right call, and the questions that tell you who you're dealing with.
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Free printables, no email
Checklists to keep by the door
One page each. Print it, tick it off, keep it in the glovebox or on the fridge.
Right nowFrozen or seized car lock in Halifax: what to do after freezing rain
In Halifax the car lock rarely freezes from deep cold alone. It is rain, slush and salt that get in and set overnight. Here is what to try and what to avoid.
Right nowPower out in a storm? Using the garage door manual release safely
When a nor'easter takes the power, the red cord on the opener is how the car gets out. Pulled at the wrong moment it can drop a heavy door. Here is the safe way.
Right nowGarage door opener stopped working? A quick checklist before you call
Storm outages, a lock button pressed by accident, a damp keypad: most openers that stop working have a simple cause. Here is the order to check them in.
Right nowGarage door won't close? Fogged sensors, low sun and other causes
A door that won't close is a security gap as soon as it gets dark. Start with the two sensors by the floor, then work through the rest.
Right nowGarage door won't open on an icy morning? Freeze-thaw, freezing rain and salt
Halifax winters rarely stay frozen. They melt, refreeze and glaze everything in ice, and that is what sticks garage doors. Here is how to find the cause and what is safe to try.
Plan aheadHow long do garage door springs last near the coast?
Spring life is counted in cycles, and in a salty, damp garage those cycles get harder on the steel. Here is how to estimate yours and stretch them.
Right nowKey fob not working in the cold and damp? What to try first
A fob that behaves all summer can go quiet on the first raw, wet morning of the season. Here is what usually causes it in Halifax, and how to get in and get going anyway.
Right nowKeypad or smart lock battery dead? How to get back inside
A dead keypad deadbolt nearly always has a way back in: a key cylinder, two 9-volt contacts or a USB port. Here's how to find yours before you need it on a wet, windy doorstep.
Plan aheadCan a landlord or tenant change the locks in Nova Scotia?
In Nova Scotia, a lock on a rental's entry door only changes during a tenancy if landlord and tenant both agree. Here is what the Residential Tenancies Act says, what it means day to day, and who settles a disagreement.
Right nowLost your house keys? How to tell if the locks need changing
A lost key ring only matters if it can find its way back to your door. Here's how to judge that, and why a rekey usually beats new locks.
Plan aheadRekeying between tenants: a turnover routine for Halifax landlords
A rental turnover isn't finished until the locks are rekeyed and the new keys are counted. A simple routine for landlords, from move-out to move-in.
Plan aheadRekey or replace your locks? How to choose, door by door
Rekeying and replacing both make old keys useless. The condition of each lock, and what you want from it, decides which one you need.
Right nowSafe won't open? Batteries, a lost code or a failed lock
A safe that refuses the right code usually has a weak battery, not a broken lock. The order to check things in, how lost codes are recovered, and when to call a safe technician.
Plan aheadHow to secure your front door against break-ins
A forced front door almost always gives way at the jamb, not the lock. Here is what to check, starting with the fix that matters most.
Plan aheadSmart locks in Halifax weather: salt air, freeze-thaw and storm outages
On the coast, the threat to a smart lock is less deep cold and more salt, damp, ice in the gaps and a storm that takes out the power and the wifi. Here is what to plan for.
Plan aheadHow to stop garage break-ins in Halifax
Garage thieves rarely do anything clever. They try the side door, the opener in the car on the driveway, or the release cord. Here is how to shut each one down.
Right nowProof of ownership: what a locksmith should ask you for
Before a door is opened, a good locksmith checks you belong there. What to show for a home, a car or a business, and what to do when your ID is on the wrong side of the door.
Plan aheadHow to winterize a garage door for a Halifax winter
Salt air, freeze-thaw ice and storm outages are what stop garage doors here. A one-afternoon routine for the fall, and the signs that mean call a technician.
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