Thumbnail edited with Polish App
Today I was turning the key in my brother's door after returning from the market and I thought about the time my key broke inside the lock last year. That was a bad day. I got so worried, we had to call a locksmith. Then I had to wait outside my house for a very long time. My front door breaking was a big problem that day.
I have been taking care of my keys since then. I make sure to put some graphite powder in the lock every month or some oil depending on what's available. My keys and the lock are working well. The lock turns really smooth. I don't have to keep forcing it to turn it like some do till it eventually breaks one day and they get into a frustrating problem.
I think the problem before was that the lock and my keys were rubbing against each other too much. This was causing a lot of friction. The friction is usually what damages the keys.
My keychain was really heavy because it had a lot of keys and that big family car fob on it. I got rid of most of the keys. Now my keychain only has the house key, the office key and the car key, on it. At least it feels a lot lighter when I put it in my pocket or purse. The house key and the office key and the car key are all that are left on my keychain. It is good to have a keychain.
Anyways I don't blame the people who force keys, it can be a habit. Sometimes I catch myself forcing the key when I am in a hurry. I stop what I am doing pull the key out take a deep breath so I don't keep getting pissed off and then try again with the key gently. This method is better not just for you but for the key.
I also check the key sometimes. If the edges look a bit worn, I go and cut a new key quickly before trouble with the key starts. The last key I used was getting thin. I replaced the key last month. I know Christmas is almost here, would be expecting a lot of family members to visit the house. The last thing I want is trouble entering rooms and opening doors.
The lock still works fine. I don't have to worry about the lock snapping anymore. I even keep a bottle of graphite in the drawer now.
Just in case after all the preventive measures you still have your key broken and stuck in the lock for some reason, the image thumbnail I shared with you are steps to try to get the broken key out safely. If you tried that and it didn't work, like it says in the image, please call a locksmith, it's better to let a professional do it than for you to experiment. Yeah you might end up fixing it yourself but what if you don't? Then you're really screwed and might have created a bigger problem that would cost you more to get it fix.
