Author Topic: Electronic locks?  (Read 830 times)

Archipelago

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Electronic locks?
« on: February 27, 2021, 12:19:05 PM »
I'm thinking of swapping over all my doors to Kwikset electronic locks. $40-50/piece at wholesale rates. It would be 20 lock sets so $800-$1000. Double that if I pay someone to install. I want to try DIY but I'm not too experienced with installing new deadbolts. That's the tricky part.

1 code that just the tenant knows
1 code that you know
1 code to let in maintenance people which can be changed periodically

Is it worthwhile?

PMJL34

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Re: Electronic locks?
« Reply #1 on: February 27, 2021, 12:58:57 PM »
OP,

That's a lot of locks and deadbolts! They are great to have, but I don't see how it would benefit you enough as the owner considering the cost. 

Archipelago

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Re: Electronic locks?
« Reply #2 on: February 27, 2021, 02:42:02 PM »
OP,

That's a lot of locks and deadbolts! They are great to have, but I don't see how it would benefit you enough as the owner considering the cost.

Not having to deal with lost keys anymore, tenants locked out, or coordinating keys for maintenance. Added security with deadbolts and lack of replicable keys. No need to change locks ever again.

Fresh Bread

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Re: Electronic locks?
« Reply #3 on: February 27, 2021, 04:13:56 PM »
We have an electronic lock on our front door. It's quite temperamental, like if the door moves a bit, if it's v hot or wet, then it might not open. Also it takes batteries and when they run low it stops opening. We have an unlocked side gate and rarely lock our other doors anyway (Australia) but if we relied on it (or had gone through with our plan to put our place on Airbnb) we'd have changed it by now. On the storage room and garage (where anything of value is kept) we have the mechanical locks where you punch in numbers. I much prefer these, they always work, but they do look a bit uglier.

So for a rental, I'd stick with regular keys.

waltworks

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Re: Electronic locks?
« Reply #4 on: February 27, 2021, 08:21:53 PM »
In my very limited experience (N=1) with electronic locks, they are not any less hassle than boring physical keys. And they cost a lot more.

I mean, if you're running a remote/hands-off airBnB or something, great. Give each guest a unique code, change the codes whenever you want, etc. Good stuff, except when the battery dies.

But for a long term rental? Just do physical keys.

-W

Papa bear

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Re: Electronic locks?
« Reply #5 on: February 27, 2021, 08:48:17 PM »
I’ve started to switch my rentals over to front door with electronic locks only (no key option) and back door kwikset with the kwikkey rekey.

I really did not like dealing with lost keys, kids getting locked out at 2am drunk coming from bars, having to drive down to let in a contractor because hungover college kid won’t answer the door or phone, etc.

I decided to keep a regular lock so that if the battery ever dies, I can still use, and tenants can still use, a regular key.   These are not hard to install.  Easy to DIY.


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AlexK

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Re: Electronic locks?
« Reply #6 on: February 27, 2021, 09:14:09 PM »
I recommend the keycode lock but not the deadbolt.

I had a Kwikset electronic lock on my rental property laundry room and it worked great for 10 years until I sold the property. It was not the deadbolt, just the type with a door handle and a keypad. It would not let the door handle engage the striker unless the code was entered. I changed the batteries once after 5 years just because they were old but it was still working fine.

I tried a Kwikset deadbolt on my house and it was terrible. It used a motor to move the striker into and out of the door frame. If the door wasn't shut all the way it would foul it up and make bad noises. It wore out quickly. I replaced it with another one and the same thing happened again. I have a mechanical lock again now.

iluvzbeach

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Re: Electronic locks?
« Reply #7 on: February 27, 2021, 09:43:40 PM »
We have used the Kwikset Smart Code 913 for years on our front and back doors, as well as on our parent’s doors. They have been terrific. Love being able to use the codes like what you indicated and we also can easily change the actual key anytime we want. Never a problem at all. We update the batteries at a regular interval. Every 18-24 months, I think. 

SndcxxJ

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Re: Electronic locks?
« Reply #8 on: February 28, 2021, 08:48:02 AM »
I have one electronic deadbolt on a common storage room and it has never given me problems, but it is only lightly used.  Deadbolts are a very easy DYI project with just a screwdriver, but having a hammer and chisel to make slight adjustments to the location of the strike plate is sometimes necessary.
I'll throw out one more option that is my go to choice for locks.  Buy a rekeying set!  I use a master key system where I have a master key to all locks on all units, and the tenants each get their unique key.  I rekey between tenants, or at least swap around locks from other locations.  Rekeying kwikset locks costs pennies and takes just a few minutes once you know how to do it.  As most things, there are plenty of videos on how to do it and rekeying sets on amazon are readily available.
It won't help the lock out calls though...

PMJL34

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Re: Electronic locks?
« Reply #9 on: February 28, 2021, 04:48:30 PM »
Archipelago,

How about your try it out with a few units first and see if you like it. This is a smaller initial investment.

Best of luck!

Archipelago

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Re: Electronic locks?
« Reply #10 on: March 02, 2021, 03:11:31 PM »
Thanks for the feedback on these. I'll stick with mechanical keys for now. No need to fix what isn't broken.