“What’s a keyway?” a client of mine asked.
“Oh, about one ounce,” I said.
Jokes aside, a keyway is a fancy name for the “key hole” on your knob or deadbolt. Most residential locks are either the Kwikset keyway or the Schlage keyway.
If all the keyways in your home are the same, then your locks can be synced to one key.
How do you determine if you can synchronize your locks to one key?
The simplest way is to take a key that you know works on one of your locks, then try inserting that key into all the keyways in your home. (Don’t forget the door between the garage and the laundry room!)
If the key slides into all the keyways, there’s a good chance all of your locks can be synchronized to one key. If it does not, try spraying some lock spray or dry lube into the keyway and try again.
If the key still does not slide in, then not all of your locks can be synced to one key. You will either need to replace some locks with compatible hardware or live with juggling two keys going forward.
Some buyers inherit locks that can not be synchronized, but having one key is a deal breaker. To remedy this, we tally up the keyways in their home and replace the locks of the keyway that is fewer in number.
Knowing about keyways is handy for the REALTOR® seeking a rekey estimate.
After testing all the keyways they can call me and say,
“Hi, Michael. I have a home in Battlefield that has seven key holes. The keys we have only work on four of them, but they will slide into the other three.”
This tells me that all of the locks can be synchronized, and the buyer should have the convenience of one key without the need to purchase additional hardware.
Got more questions? Drop us a line & we’ll be more than happy to help you out.