Chicago Winter and frozen locks

Freezing temperatures and freezing rain are here again. These conditions are perfect for frozen locks.

You may be able to prevent freezing by lubricating all of your outside locks before they freeze with WD-40, Tri-Flo or another spray recommended for lock lubrication. Use the straw that comes with the can and spray deep and long into the lock. Then put your key in and out a few times working the spray into the moving parts of the lock.

If your lock is frozen, you may or may not be able to insert your key. The key will not turn. At this point the moisture inside the lock has frozen and must be either warmed or evaporated with a de-icer.

If you can reach the lock with an extension cord and a hair dryer warming the lock is easy. Lubricate after opening.

Lock De-Icer is available at most hardware and locksmith stores. You must spray it all the way back into the lock where the key goes in. It usually takes a few minutes to work and you may have to do it more than once. The alcohol will evaporate the ice, but it also removes any lubrication in the locks. Make sure to lubricate your locks after you use a de-icer or your locks may be damaged.

Using a torch on a lock is NOT a good idea. If there is any lubrication in the lock, you will cook it and make it sticky. The lock will not work and probably have to be replaced.

Or you can call a locksmith who will have a good de-icer and lubricant or warming method to open your lock and get you going. However, if it is a good freeze there may be a waiting line.

Fire Ratings on Home Safes

By examining the rating label(s) on a safe, you can determine the degree and length of protection it will provide for your valuables.

The temperature on the label is the maximum temperature allowed within the safe during the test.

   Class 350 protects paper

   Class 150 protects magnetic tape and photographic film

   Class 125 protects disks, cds and computer products

The time on the label tells how long the product met the required temperature during the test.

   Hourly ratings are 1/2 hr., 1hr., 2hr., and 4hr.

Types of fire resistance testing a safe may undergo are fire endurance test, explosion hazard test, and fire impact test.

   Fire Endurance Test - After heat sensors are placed inside the safe, it is locked and put into a furnace. Safes rated for less than an hour may specify the temperature tested at on the fire label.  A 1hr. rated safe is tested at 1700°F.  A 2hr. rated safe is tested at 1850°F.  (The average house fire burns at 1200°F.) The internal temperature is measured and must never exceed the temperature on the label. Usually 350°F, 150°F, or 125°F.  (Paper chars at 450°F.) Then the safe is opened and examined for any visible effect from the heat.

   Explosion Hazard Test - The safe is locked and placed into a furnace at 2000°F for 30 minutes (for a 2hr. rating, it's 45 minutes).  If this rapid heating does not cause the container to explode or rupture, it is then cooled and opened. The inside, lock mechanism, and bolts are examined for any stress or damage.

   Fire Impact Test - The safe is heated under the same conditions as the Explosion Hazard Test.  However, within 2 minutes of the safe's removal from the furnace, it's dropped from a specified height onto brick or concrete. The safe must remain locked without deformation or rupture. Once cooled the safe is reinserted into a 1550°F furnace for another 30 minutes (for a 2hr. rating, it's reheated to 1638°F for another 45 minutes).  Once cooled again, the safe is inspected inside and out for visible evidence of heat or drop damage.

UL Underwriter's Laboratories rate most safes in the US. They also re-test the products from time to time to make sure the product hasn't changed.

There are different testing facilities in other countries. Ratings and tests may be different on safes imported from other countries.

For more information on fire safe ratings:

• UL - Record Protection Standards
• UL - 10 Things You Didn't Know About UL's Safe Testing
• AMSEC - Fire Ratings Explained

Buy the right safe.

Do you have valuables or papers that need to be protected?  What kind of safe should you buy?  A safe intended to stop a burglar may not protect your documents in a fire.  Conversely, a safe that would protect your documents in a fire may serve as an easy to open box for a burglar to carry away.  Consider everything you plan to put in your safe and what you want to protect against.  Most safes are tested and labeled to help you choose the right product for your valuables.

Fire Boxes, plastic or metal, are cheap containers with poor quality locks.  Their only purpose is to keep papers from burning up in a fire.  Look for and read the fire rating sticker.  The higher the temperature and the longer the time on the rating the better.

Theft Prevention Boxes are metal boxes designed to discourage valuables from walking.  They do not provide fire protection.  Screwed to a shelf or drawer they are great for senior retirement apartments or student dorms.

Fire Safes are usually sheet metal with fire retardant material in the walls and door.  Some materials form a moisture barrier when heated.  If you have photos or stamp collections, you wouldn't want this.  Look for a dry fire clay filling instead.  Security in these safes improves with thicker sheet metal, better lock and bolt mechanism and temp/time rating.  Again, these are meant to protect from fire - not burglary.

Burglar Safes are rated for penetration only.  These safes are not for papers or items that would be harmed by heat or fire.  The walls and door are made of different thicknesses of steel and bolts.  The security improves with thicker steel, better lock and bolt mechanism. Ratings indicate the amount of time it took for professional safe crackers with the proper tools to penetrate and open the safe.

Burglar/Fire Safes are good all round safes.  RSC Burglary is the UL residential rating.  These safes pass a 1-hour or 2-hour fire test plus a test using professional burglary penetration tools.  The amount of time it takes a professional, with knowledge of the drill points, to penetrate the safe determines the strength and rating of the safe.

How to Rekey or Change a Deadbolt lock

Click images for a larger version

Deadbolt lock security varies greatly due to age, manufacturer and quality of the lock. All deadbolt locks should have a 1" long bolt that, when fully extended, locks (dead bolts) in place. Prying on the bolt should have no effect if the bolt is well designed and installed properly.

What you can do - Remove the lock from the door and take it to a lock shop to have the cylinder(s) rekeyed. Caution: If you try to replace your lock with a new style lock, the holes in your door and frame may not be the same sizes.

If you can see 2 standard screws on the inside plate (as shown in the second image above), you have a simple design. Remove the screws and remove the lock slowly. Don't drop any parts. If you have one-way security screws (as shown in the third image above) you can usually loosen them by tapping the head of the screw around counter clockwise with an old chisel and hammer. Then use a pliers to finish taking out the screws.

If you do not see screws on the inside plate, your lock may have hidden screws. Some lock manufacturers who have hidden their screws are Medeco, Arrow, Schlage, and Lori.

Arrow double cylinder deadbolts (keyed on both sides) require you to insert the key in the inside key cylinder. Turn about 1/4 turn to open the access holes to the screws. Use a thin phillips screw driver to go in the holes and remove the screws.

Medeco locks have a cover plate over the screws. There is a thin wire in a groove in the inside plate. If a single cylinder, loosen the set screw in the under-side of the thumbturn with a very small allen wrench. Remove the thumbturn. Find the end of the wire and remove the wire from the groove with a tip of a knife (or something with a point). The brass plate should come off. Now you can see the screws to remove the lock.

Lori locks are similar to mortise locks. The outside cylinder and possibly the inside cylinder screw into a housing. You will find the set screws by removing the face plate of the bolt on the edge of the door. There is an opening on each side of the bolt. You should need a 5/64" long allen wrench to reach and loosen the set screws. Then unscrew each cylinder.

Schlage older double cylinder deadbolts may have brass caps driven into the heads of the screws. Take a small chisel and tap around the line of separation between the cap and the screw. It should loosen up and pop off. If not, you may have to drill the screws off. The B600 double cylinder requires you to pry off the inside face plate carefully in order to re-use it.  The first image is of the screw and cap apart.  The second image is of the cap in the screw head.

What a locksmith can do - An experienced locksmith will have the tools to remove the locks and re-pin (rekey) the cylinders in your house or in his truck and then reinstall them.

Since deadbolts are the serious security on your doors, he should advise you of any weakness to your door or frame. If your lock is older or of poor quality, he may recommend a better lock.

How to Rekey or Change a Rim or Surface Mount Lock

These locks are usually mounted above the door knob lock. They might be called night latches, rim bolts, slam locks, jimmyproof locks or surface mount locks.

They usually have a key cylinder on the outside of the door and a large body on the inside of the door that will lock or latch into a surface strike mounted on the door frame.

What you can do - Remove the lock and have the cylinder rekeyed or replaced.

You must remove the inside lock body. It will be held by screws that might be standard screws or one-way security screws. One-way screws can be hard to remove. If you have a dremel tool(trademark) you can cut a slot in the head of the screw. Or you can use an old chisel to tap on the edge of the screw to drive it counter clockwise until you back it out enough to grab it with a pliers and remove it.

If you don't see any screws, they may be hidden. There may be a plate that has to turn or come off. You may have to turn the key to remove the plate.

When you have removed the lock body, you will see the plate and screws that are holding the outside cylinder to the door.

Remove the cylinder and take it to a lock shop for an exact replacement or have it rekeyed. If your lock uses a key on the inside, take that part to be changed too. Bring a working key, if you have one.

Finally, if you buy a replacement cylinder, you will probably have to cut the tail-piece and cut the screws to the correct length. Then reinstall. Some locks have a shutter that may be blocking the tail-piece from going back in. Locate the spring and gently press on the spring while pushing the lever to open the shutter.

What a locksmith can do - Rekey your lock and possibly match your other house key so you have less keys to carry.

These locks are probably the easiest for a do-it-yourselfer to install. That is probably why they can be a bear to reinstall. The original installation, if not done correctly, can make it difficult to get things to line up and work easily when you reinstall.

An experienced locksmith may have to shim here and there or re-drill the holes before he can reinstall the lock he took off and rekeyed.