The symptoms we find in buildings here
Many faults have nothing to do with the lock and everything to do with alignment. A leaf that has moved, hinges that have dropped, a keep a millimetre out: the door has to be lifted to turn the key, and the linkage takes that strain every time. In the pre-war blocks of Moneghetti it is the most common fault of all, and it worsens slowly. On a slope like this the building barely moves, but the leaves take the swings in humidity between the lower street and the top floor.
A key that turns without effect is another matter: a broken cam, a connection come loose inside the case. A key that no longer goes in points instead to dirt, a seized pin, or a poorly cut copy whose profile has worn the barrel. The salt air that rises from the shore up to the boulevard speeds that corrosion along.
When one point of a multipoint lock stops engaging, the cause is usually a linkage out of adjustment or a top keep to be repositioned. Keep forcing it and the espagnolette bends, turning what was an adjustment into a full replacement. A misaligned roller or a badly packed bottom keep produce exactly the same symptom.
Working on two square metres of landing
Stairwells are narrow and landings tiny across much of the commune. You cannot set out the equipment here that you would spread across a ground-floor hall: the method takes account of the space genuinely available and of what will fit in the lift, when the residence has one.
Repair still makes sense when the fault is localised and the part available: a spring, a cam, a follower, a roller, a keep to be reset. Replacement takes over when the case is distorted, when parts fail one after another, or when the model fitted in the 1970s residences of Le Tenao is no longer made.
One local precaution: no general-purpose penetrating spray in the barrel. The oily film traps dust and turns light fouling into a complete seizure. A dry lubricant once a year is enough, along with a check on the faceplate screws and the play of the leaf in its frame. It is the most worthwhile maintenance there is on this kind of door.
How does this service work?
Techniques, typical situations, standards and things to watch out for: it is all on our locksmith repairs page. This page focuses on what the service involves in Beausoleil.