Rekeying locks in Washington County

Taking back control of who has a key

In Washington County, VA, keys have a way of spreading. A camp in the mountains may have been opened by three generations of a hunting party. A farm sold to a new family comes with a coffee can of mystery keys. A rental in Abingdon or near Emory has seen tenants come and go. Rekeying changes the pins in the locks you already have, so all the old keys become useless, and it costs far less than replacing sound hardware.

Hunting camps and shared cabins

A camp shared by a group of friends or a family usually ends up with more keys than anyone can count. When membership changes, or when you simply don't know who has one anymore, rekey the camp and give out new keys to current members only. A locksmith can often key the cabin door and storage shed alike so each person carries one key; a gate padlock may need replacing with one that takes the same keyway.

Buying a farm or country home

Rural properties change hands with a lot of history attached — neighbors who fed the cattle, relatives who stopped by, hired help, the man who read the meter. Rekey every exterior door and every outbuilding you care about soon after closing. While the locksmith is there, ask them to walk the property with you and point out doors with weak hardware or no lock at all; farm buildings are often the least protected part of a place.

Rentals near town and campus

Landlords in Abingdon, Glade Spring and around Emory can rekey between tenants instead of buying new hardware, which lets them tell each new renter that no former tenant can walk in. Campus housing at Emory & Henry University is handled by the university, but off-campus houses and apartments are the owner's responsibility.

Keys gone at the lake or on the trail

A house key lost at a South Holston ramp or somewhere on the Creeper Trail probably isn't coming back. If it was on a ring with anything showing your address — a car fob, a tag, a wallet in the same bag — rekey promptly rather than hoping it sank.

Need something else in Washington County?

See everything on the Washington County locksmith page, or browse Virginia locksmiths.

Want the background first? Read our guide: Lock Rekeying.