Non-destructive entry first, always - and we re-key Schlage, Kwikset, and Baldwin locks on the spot while you watch
You get a price before we start. It does not change when we arrive. No surprises.
Fast, Reliable Rekey Locks Across Orinda
Rekeying a lock in Orinda means swapping the internal pins inside your existing cylinder so the old keys stop working, usually in under an hour per lock. The cost for a standard residential rekey here typically runs $20 – $35 per cylinder, and you don’t need new hardware. Learn more about our Residential Locksmith in Orinda services. We schedule Orinda jobs daily and give you a written price before anyone is dispatched. If you’ve moved into a house near Glorietta, lost a key near Sleepy Hollow, or want one key to work every door on Weathertop Drive, call (409) 405-4485 and we’ll walk you through the exact scope and cost.
Orinda’s rekey work is different from other Bay Area cities. The housing stock here leans older, and a lot of those original locks aren’t modern Schlage or Kwikset cylinders. More on that below, because it directly affects how long the job takes and what it costs. What matters most: we arrive with the right pin kits for both old and new hardware, the price is in writing before we start, and the work carries our 365-Day Done Right Promise. For more on how we handle every Rekey Locks job, see our full service overview.
Why Preston Locksmith & Security Is Orinda’s Preferred Rekey Locks Company
We’ve been running rekey jobs in Orinda long enough to know the difference between a Glorietta bungalow’s original mortise lock and a newly built home off Camino Pablo with three Schlage deadbolts. That local knowledge isn’t a sales line. It’s what keeps a 30-minute rekey from turning into a return trip because the van wasn’t stocked for a pre-1990s cylinder. Our Rekey Locks in Orinda customers get that specific experience on every call.
Every technician who knocks on an Orinda door is background-checked and in uniform. You get a live trackable arrival time through The Relay Visibility Guarantee, so you’re not sitting in a four-hour window wondering when anyone will show. Before-and-after photos of every job get sent to your phone, and the invoice is digital with a pay link. No anonymous contractor in an unmarked van. No price that changes on the doorstep. Kevin Yoon, who leads our team, insists on that standard for every Orinda job.
Locksmith Rekey in Orinda
Locksmith rekey in Orinda means removing the lock cylinder, replacing the internal pins and springs with a new combination, and cutting new keys to match. The old keys become useless the moment the new pins are seated. You keep the same hardware, the same finish, the same look. It’s the fastest way to control who has access to your home without replacing a single lock.
A standard single-cylinder deadbolt or knob rekey in Orinda runs $20 – $35 per cylinder. A mortise lock, which is common on older Orinda homes, runs higher because the cylinder has to be disassembled differently and the pins are often a different profile. Written price before any work starts, always.
Single-Cylinder and Deadbolt Rekeys
Most Orinda homes built after the mid-1980s use standard Schlage or Kwikset cylinders. We re-pin these on site in 15 – 20 minutes per lock. Common scenarios: a housekeeper who no longer works for you, a roommate who moved out, or a key that went missing somewhere between the BART station and home.
Mortise Locks on Older Orinda Homes
The valley floor neighborhoods, especially around Glorietta and Miner Road, have a lot of original solid-core doors with mortise locks. These use a different pin kit than modern cylinders. If we don’t stock both, the job stalls. We do. Bring us every door you want on one key and we’ll re-pin the mortise cylinders to match your deadbolts, usually within the same visit.
Rekey Door Lock in Orinda
A rekey door lock in Orinda is the fastest fix when you’ve just closed on a house and don’t know who still has old keys. It’s also the right move after a tenant moves out of a rental off Moraga Way, or when a contractor who had a key finishes a remodel. You don’t replace the lock. You change what key operates it.
We had a Rekey Door Lock job in the Glorietta neighborhood where the homeowner wanted three exterior doors on one new key. The front door was a Baldwin mortise lock, the back door a Schlage deadbolt, and the side entry a Kwikset knob. We pulled all three cylinders, re-pinned each to a fresh keyway, and left every old key dead on the counter. Total time on site was just under two hours because we had the right pin kits and cylinder removal tools on the van. That’s the difference between a stocked van and a guess.
Multi-Door Rekeys to One Key
Most Orinda homes have two or three exterior doors, and they rarely match. Rekeying all of them to a single key costs $20 – $35 per cylinder and usually takes under two hours if the hardware is all standard. If one door is a mortise lock, add a little time. The result: one key opens everything, and every old key is dead.
Rekey After Buying or Renting
If you just bought a house near the Orinda Country Club or signed a lease off Camino Encinas, rekey the day you get the keys. You don’t know how many copies the previous owner handed out. Neighbors, dog walkers, the old landscaper. Rekeying makes every one of those copies useless.
Trusted Brands We Service in Orinda
We stock pin kits and cylinders for Schlage and Kwikset, which cover the majority of Orinda homes, plus Medeco, Yale, and Baldwin for high-security and mortise applications. If your door has a Baldwin mortise lock from the 1960s or a Medeco high-security deadbolt, we have the right pins on the van. No ordering parts and coming back next week. We service what’s already on your door and match it to a single keyway where possible. Our techs train on these brands regularly, and we keep the most common Orinda configurations stocked so the job finishes the same day you call.
Common Rekey Locks Problems We See in Orinda Homes
- Mixed-brand doors on one house. The front door is a Baldwin mortise, the back is Schlage, the side is Kwikset. A tech who only stocks one pin kit gets two doors in and has to stop. We stock all three, so the job finishes in one trip.
- Quoting a price before confirming cylinder type. Some Orinda homes have bump-resistant or high-security cylinders that need different pins. We confirm the hardware before we quote, not after we arrive. Your written price covers the actual work.
- Re-keying only one door on a multi-door home. Sometimes a homeowner doesn’t realize the old key still works on the other two doors until after the tech leaves. We always ask how many doors you want on the new key before we start, and we re-pin every door you list.
- Old mortise locks that haven’t been serviced in years. Dust, old lubricant, and worn pins make extraction slower. We carry the right cylinder removal tools so an Orinda mortise lock doesn’t turn a 30-minute rekey into a two-hour extraction job.
Pricing for Rekey Locks in Orinda, CA
Here’s the honest Orinda pricing picture. A standard Schlage or Kwikset cylinder runs $20 – $35 to rekey. A mortise cylinder runs $35 – $55. A Medeco or high-security cylinder can run $45 – $70 because the pins cost more and the work is finer. If you want three doors on one key, you’re looking at roughly $60 – $105 for standard hardware, more if one door is a mortise or high-security lock. We give you the full written price on the phone before anyone is dispatched, and that price is the price on the invoice. No call-out surcharge added on arrival. Call (409) 405-4485 for an exact quote, and it’s free.
We Also Serve Cities Near Orinda
Rekey jobs take us all over the Lamorinda area and beyond. We work in Lafayette, Moraga, Piedmont, and Walnut Creek on a regular schedule. If you have a rental property in Lafayette or a business off Mount Diablo Boulevard in Walnut Creek, our Rekey Locks crews serve those areas with the same written-price guarantee and same-day scheduling.
Serving Orinda, CA - Our Local Coverage Area
We’re based in the Orinda area and know this community well. Use the map below to see our service coverage - if you’re nearby, we can almost certainly help.
FAQs About Rekey Locks in Orinda
Yes, you’ll need to be present. We need access to the inside of each lock, and you’ll want to test the new key before we leave. Most Orinda rekeys run 30 – 90 minutes on site. Call (409) 405-4485 and we’ll schedule a window that works for you.
Yes. We routinely match a Baldwin mortise lock, a Schlage deadbolt, and a Kwikset knob to a single keyway during one visit. The pin kits are different for each, and we stock all of them on the van. You’ll test every door with your new key before we go.
Two to three standard doors rekey to one key usually takes 60 – 90 minutes. If there’s a mortise lock in the mix or a high-security cylinder, plan for closer to two hours. We’ll tell you the realistic time when we confirm the scope on the phone.
No. Rekeying changes the key that operates the lock, not the lock’s internal resistance to bumping. If you want bump-resistant or high-security pins, we can install them during the same visit, and we’ll quote that cost separately before any work begins.
Most smart locks with a physical key override can be rekeyed, which is worth doing if someone has the backup key. We’ll confirm the exact model when you call and tell you if it takes a standard pin kit or needs a different cylinder. Call (409) 405-4485 for a free estimate.
Ready to rekey your Orinda home? Call (409) 405-4485 now. You’ll speak to a live person, get a written price before anyone is dispatched, and know exactly when your technician will arrive through The Relay Visibility Guarantee.
Written by Kevin Yoon, Owner at Preston Locksmith & Security, serving Orinda since 2008.