We know that a change in weather affects many aspects of our lives. When the fall sets in, all the leaves on the trees change color and begin to fall off. Another change that you can see when the weather changes is in the spring time, people will have an increase in their allergies. The summer time you will start to notice more bugs and insects are on the move, but have you ever wondered how the change in the weather affects your locks?
California Lock and Key outline what your locks can expect during the two most extreme weather seasons.
Effects the winter has on your car and door locks: During the winter no matter where you live the weather is going to cool way down. The cold weather effects many things in your house and around you. The cold weather, especially when it is freezing or below, causes the locks on your home and car to start to shrink. The problem with the lock and the framing around the door shrinking is that the lock will be much harder to engage. Many people will have to pull on the door handle from the outside to get the lock to engage. This is especially hard when you are using a deadbolt lock. If you start to notice that your locks are harder to engage in the winter months, you need to look into having a locksmith inspect the locks and see if there is a way to make them work right even in the cold weather. They can make some adjustments to the lock or the door frame to ensure they are working properly. When it comes to your car locks, the problem can be much worse. The car is left out in the elements and the lock can physically froze shut. The best way to get this problem solved it to heat up the actual key to melt the water that has frozen to the lock.
Effects that the summer has on your door locks: The summer months have the exact opposite effect on the locks and door frames. The summer months mean heat, heat and more heat and that means that the door frame and lock will expand. This makes it so that the lock will stick and you may need to wiggle the door back and forth to get it to come unstuck. When the door frame expands, it makes the area for the lock to engage in smaller, and that will cause the lock to stick or make it so that the lock will not engage. Hiring a professional locksmith will stop the problem because they can add some supports to stop the area from shrinking or open the space to allow for the space to shrink and still fit.
