You know it, you go to the door in full haste, you turn the key, but it doesn’t feel like it should feel. When you look at your hand, it turns out that you still have part of the key in your hand. So that’s what you were waiting for.
A broken key is one of the worst things that can happen. And with a bit of bad luck, it doesn’t just have to take place at your front door because there is also a good chance that the car key will break off in the lock. A broken key always comes at the most inopportune moments and is challenging to fix.
Of course, there are solutions to this problem that you might even be able to perform on your own. This, of course, depends on your technical insight, the tools you have available, and whether you have handy hands.
How do you get a broken key out of the lock?
We are, of course, happy to help you with this problem, so we share several tips so that you can quickly get the key out of the lock again. You can find different kinds of information on the internet, but most do not have the desired result. As previously stated, technical knowledge is required to complete the task.
Before we share the tips with you, let us warn you that some of the solutions may cause damage to the lock. If you want to avoid damage at all costs, you should call in a handy friend to remove broken keys or call a specialist.
Are there any differences between broken keys?
We come into contact with all kinds of different locks daily in our lives. So, in addition to the key to your front door, you can also break off the key to your car.
There are a few differences between broken keys. A broken key is always annoying, and it doesn’t matter which lock the key is in. There are differences in solving the broken key problem.
You can easily remove the lock with a bicycle lock and place a new lock. Replacing your front door lock is easier than removing a car key from the lock.
If you have no experience with removing a broken key, we recommend that you call in a specialist.
Fix a broken key by removing the cylinder
Before you start fiddling with the lock too much, it is helpful to remove the cylinder immediately. This saves a lot of material and labor hours. Furthermore, you can easily remove the cylinder by removing the screws holding the cylinder. This is, therefore, the most economical solution and is very instructive.
The disadvantage is that it takes a lot of time, you also need a lot of stuff to remove the cylinder, and the risk of damage is very high.
Drilling out a broken key
An obvious solution is, of course, to drill out your key. However, this is often not the most desirable solution. Drilling out a lock causes a lot of damage, and you don’t always have a drill to hand.
You can drill out the key by using a small drill, with which you drill a hole in the key. This allows you to grab the key with a thin screw. However, as you can see from this, it requires some precision and the chance of failure is high!
Push the key through the lock
When your house key has broken off in the lock, it is possible to push the key through the lock. For example, you could enter the house through the back door to push the key out of the lock.
First, look in the house for a thin wire that you can insert into the lock’s cylinder. Using this, you can try to push the broken part of the key through the cylinder from the other side of the lock.
As you may understand, this method cannot be applied to every lock.
The solution for a broken car door lock
Is your key broken in the ignition lock of your vehicle? Then you probably have your hands in the hair, because how do you get home again?
If you want to remove a broken key from the car lock, various solutions can be devised. For example, removing the key from your car lock with glue is possible. You can put a small drop of glue on the broken part of the lock and then hold it against the other part to dry.
Do not use too much glue; otherwise, the catches and spring will also be full of glue. Of course, you can’t use every kind of glue for this. You have to use super glue (preferably gel). To be on the safe side, get advice from a hardware store.
Remove a broken key from the car lock with a pair of pliers
Are you lucky that your car key is still a little bit out of the lock? Then you can still achieve a lot with pincers.
Before you get started with a pair of pliers, it is vital that you first spray a lot of lubricating oil into the lock. After that, it’s a lot easier to pull the key out of the lock using a pair of pliers.
You do not have to use special pincers, an ordinary home garden and kitchen pincers will also suffice.
Key broken in the car lock? Use a key remover!
In addition to the standard solutions, there is also a unique key remover. As the name suggests, you can easily remove a key from the lock.
This particular tool makes it very easy to remove a broken car key from the lock. A key remover is also called lock picking.
Lock picking is often associated with a crime when it doesn’t have to be. The bad thing is that this solution is limitedly available, and you need to know locks.
The means to remove a broken key
You have already been presented with several options for removing a broken key. You need different attributes for this.
To quickly remove a broken key, you need the following materials:
- A lubricant, such as WD-40 or a penetrating oil
- A set of keys to remove
- A very thin tweezers or a lock pick tool
Lubrication is always vital to remove something easily from a tight space. Use penetrating oil or WD-40 for this. And don’t be too frugal with the use of the oil. It must, of course, run smoothly.
If you do not have penetrating oil or WD-40 to remove your broken key, you can also use olive oil.
When spraying the oil well into the lock, it is essential to grab a long, very thin object. It can be tweezers, a steel wire, or a lock pick.
If you have perfect tools at home, preferably a hook pick or a lock pick gun. It allows you to hook behind a piece of the key. It is even possible to remove the broken key with a magnet, but this is only possible when the key part is loose in the lock.
Is it helpful to have a key remover set at home?
You naturally wonder how to get a broken key out of the lock most quickly and conveniently. Having a key remover set at home is beneficial if you often stand in front of a closed door. This is a lock pick set that consists of several locks picks and some metal wires, which you can insert into the key entrance of the lock.
These tools do fall under the heading of specialist tools, so you must know locks. But if you often suffer from a broken key, it is not a luxury to purchase this set. With this tool, it is possible to loosen the resisting piece of the key.
By getting this tool at home, you avoid an expensive bill from the locksmith, and your lock will not be damaged.
The key has been removed from the lock. Now what?
You will probably jump for joy when you have the broken key entirely in your hands again. But, unfortunately, you still have to scratch your head because it was probably the only key you had available to open the door.
You can, of course, call an acquaintance who has a key to your home, or you can call a locksmith who can open your door without damaging your door.
Make sure that you have the spare key that you still have at home duplicated. After all, you don’t want to run out of keys the next time your key breaks. Therefore, a visit to the locksmith is no other luxury, you can have your lock checked and your keys duplicated.
The tips to prevent a broken house key
We have listed all kinds of valuable tips for solving a broken key. But it is also helpful to prevent a broken key in the door.
You can prevent this by adequately maintaining your lock. Make sure that your lock is seated correctly in the door. And that your lock is regularly lubricated so that the key goes in and out of the lock quickly. But the most important tip: don’t keep spinning if it takes too much force.
Turning the key takes too much effort, which is an awful sign. A lock must be able to rotate easily. The chance that your key will break off if you apply too much force is very high.
Locksmiths can abuse a broken key
Still with your hands in your hair? Then it’s time to call in an expert! If you have to rack your brain over solving a broken key, it’s a waste of your time. And you have to look for a better solution.
Of course, a locksmith is an investment, and you should pay close attention to which locksmith you use. Unfortunately, some can take advantage of the situation. At such a moment, you are very dependent on a locksmith, and they know that just as well as you do.
Therefore, do not immediately agree with the first and best price that the locksmith mentions, but also dare to call other locksmiths. Or dare to ask the man what it will cost. But, of course, you do not want to be faced with unpleasant surprises.
In the meantime, we have prepared a nice list with all kinds of points that you should pay attention to when removing a broken key from the lock.
There are many possibilities, from removing a key with a pair of pliers to removing a cylinder. Which option is most suitable for you depends entirely on how you broke off the key and in which lock the key broke off.
In any case, we wish you the best of luck with solving your broken key!
Have the broken key removed by a specialist
Can’t see the forest for the trees anymore? Would you rather not throw your freshly painted nails into battle to solve the problem? Or do you not have time to get started with your lock?
Then leave it to someone who is working on it every day. Because it comforts you, you are not the only one where a key breaks off in the lock. When looking for a specialist in repairing broken keys in the lock, you must pay close attention to the environment in which he works. All In One Locksmith are ALOA certified professionals and the most authentic Locksmith Clearwater.
After all, you don’t want to wait hours for the person to be there to fix your lock. In addition, it is always wise to read reviews from a locksmith. You must be able to trust them with your home or car.
