Storefront lock repair in Vancouver
Repair and replacement for the aluminum door that will not latch at closing time.
Narrow aluminum and glass doors run on their own hardware: a deadlatch, a hook bolt and pivots that cycle all day. We find the part that failed. You hear the price before any work begins.
Behind the paddle handle. Storefront hardware on aluminum and glass doors.
Adams Rite hook bolt deadlocks
The deadlock in the narrow stile of many retail, cafe and office doors. Your key turns a mortise cylinder outside, and the bolt swings into the strike like a hook instead of sliding straight.
Storefront deadlatches with paddle handles
A spring latch catches the strike each time your door shuts, and the paddle pulls it back. A guard beside it resists card slipping. A tired one leaves the door drifting open after you close.
Mortise cylinders and thumbturns for aluminum storefront doors
The cylinder screws into the lock body, held by a set screw. Its length and cam must suit that body. Inside sits a thumbturn or a second cylinder. Exit rules decide which one you need.
Patch locks and floor locks for frameless glass doors
Tempered glass cannot be drilled once it is made, so these locks clamp on. A patch lock grips the bottom corner. A floor lock drops its bolt into a socket in the floor.
Pivots, hinges and bottom rails that keep the storefront lock in line
Pivots or hinges carry the full weight of the door, and the rail corners hold it square. When either gives, the lock is usually the first place you notice it.
The storefront lock failures we see most, and what is usually behind them.
Hook bolt not throwing into the strike
Your key turns partway and stops. Usually the door has dropped or the strike has moved, so the hook meets metal instead of the opening. Do not force the key. That is how keys snap.
Aluminum storefront door sagging out of alignment
Worn pivots let your door drop. It drags on the threshold and the latch misses the strike. A closer set too hard speeds that wear. Re-hanging the door square often fixes the lock.
Worn mortise cylinder spinning in the door stile
Your key goes round and nothing happens. Once the set screw backs out, the cylinder turns in its thread instead of working the lock. A loose cylinder can also be unscrewed from outside.
Glass door lock sticking in cold or wet weather
Aluminum moves with the temperature, so the gap at your strike changes through the year. Rain and grit fill floor sockets too, and a floor bolt that cannot drop fully locks nothing.
Key snapped off inside the storefront lock
Leave the piece alone: no glue, no pin. If your door is open, the cylinder can often come out of the stile. If it is locked, we try to extract the fragment in place first.
We pick the storefront lock first. Drilling the stile is a last resort you would approve beforehand.
If your storefront door has a narrow aluminum stile, there is little metal to spare. Drilling can take the cylinder thread with it, and a bent stile may never latch cleanly again.
A storefront lockout or a jammed bolt? Non-destructive entry comes first, wherever the lock allows: we pick the cylinder, or use a bypass where your hardware permits.
If drilling is the only way in, you hear why, what replaces the part, and the total before any drilling starts. Nothing is drilled without your say-so.
We cycle every repaired or replaced lock with key and paddle, door open and closed, to check it latches cleanly.
Repair or replace the storefront lock. Here is what moves the number.
The $75 mobile service call is never the whole bill; the work is quoted on top. If you are sorting out several doors at once, the commercial walk-through costs nothing.
Starting figures are on the price guide.
See starting pricesRepairing the Adams Rite body versus replacing it
A weak spring or sticky hook can often be serviced in the door. A cracked case or chewed bolt means a new mortise lock body, matched to your door's backset and function.
Cylinder-only swap or a full aluminum storefront door lock
If the trouble is your keys, a new or rekeyed cylinder may be the whole job. When deadlatch, body and paddle are all worn, a full set costs more but saves you repeat visits.
Door realignment needed before the storefront lock will latch
Put a new lock on a sagging door and you soon have the old fault back. Worn pivots or hinges come first. Pivot parts can mean an order, and we tell you the lead time.
Keying the storefront lock into an existing key system
Matching your building's keyway or master key takes more work than a stand-alone cylinder. A restricted keyway needs the system holder's authorization, and its cylinders are usually ordered in.
Storefront lock questions from Vancouver shop owners.
Can you rekey an Adams Rite storefront lock instead of replacing it?
Usually. The keys live in the mortise or rim cylinder, not the lock body. A rekey retires your old keys and keeps sound hardware in the door. See commercial rekeying.
Why does my aluminum storefront door lock not latch unless I lift the handle?
Usually because your door has dropped. Lifting the handle raises it back to where the latch meets the strike. The fix is often at the pivots or hinges and the strike, not a new lock.
Can a glass door lock be replaced without removing the glass?
Usually, yes. A patch lock clamps to the glass, so it comes off while your panel stays put. The new lock must suit the glass as cut, because tempered glass cannot be drilled afterwards.
Is a hook bolt better than a straight deadbolt on a storefront door?
On a narrow stile, usually, and on a sliding door a straight bolt has nowhere to go. A hook grips the strike, so your door is harder to pry away from the frame.
Can a storefront lock be opened after hours without damaging the frame?
Usually. Non-destructive entry comes first, wherever the lock allows. If drilling is needed, it is the cylinder, not the frame, and only once you approve it. Evenings, weekends and holidays are by appointment.
Pairing a storefront lock with a panic bar or keypad.
If your shop door is also a required exit, the deadlock and the exit device have to work together. See panic bars and door closers.
A keypad or fob reader can handle your daily opening, with the key cylinder kept as the back-up. See access control.
Key the storefront cylinder into your master key system and your staff carry one key, not five. A restricted keyway controls who can get copies cut.
We come to you anywhere in the Lower Mainland. Evenings, weekends and holidays are by appointment. Our shop at 929 Drake Street opens soon; every job is mobile until then.
Tell us what is going on, and we will price it first.
Call or book online. You will have the method and the number before any work begins.