- Home
- About
A locksmith, not a call centre
A1 Locksmith Services has worked across Gaithersburg, Montgomery Village and the towns around them since 2015. The person who answers the phone is the person who turns up.
What happens when you call
You describe the door and where you are. We tell you what opening it is likely to involve, and roughly how long it takes to get there. Nobody is sent out before you know that.
On arrival the first job is proving the property is yours. It is a short check and it protects you as much as us.
Opening the door
Most residential locks open with picks, which leaves the cylinder intact and working. It is slower than drilling but it means you are not paying for a new lock on top of the callout.
Some locks cannot be picked, either because of the type or because of the state they are in. If drilling is the only way, we say so before starting, and we carry replacements so the door is locked again the same visit.
Nothing gets drilled without telling you first, and no work starts before you know what it involves.
Before we leave
- The lock is tested from both sides, with the door open and closed
- The bolt is checked against the strike plate so the door locks properly
- You get the keys back, or new keys if the cylinder was replaced
- If the lock is worn enough to strand you again, we say so
Common causes we see
- The door closed on a latch with the keys inside
- A key snapped in the cylinder, usually one that had been sticking for weeks
- The only key was lost while out
- A worn cylinder finally stopped turning
Related services
If the keys are gone rather than locked inside, rekeying is usually the right follow-up. If the lock itself caused the problem, lock repair or a new lock is worth doing while we are there.
Questions we get asked
The things people ask on the phone, answered before you have to.
Call (240) 293-0468Do you answer the phone at night?
Emergency work runs 24/7 on the same number. Lockouts do not happen at convenient times, so the line is answered outside working hours. Scheduled work is booked within our normal hours, 6am to 11pm, seven days a week.
Where are you based?
We are a mobile service, so there is no shop to visit. The van comes to you anywhere in the ten towns we cover, from Gaithersburg and Montgomery Village out to Laytonsville and North Potomac.
Can you make a car key with no key at all?
For most makes and models, yes. We cut and program a new key at the roadside. Tell us the make, model and year when you call and we will confirm before coming out.
Do I need a new lock, or can it be rekeyed?
If the lock is sound, rekeying is usually enough — the old keys stop working and you get new ones, and the hardware stays. A lock that is worn, damaged or too weak for the door is worth replacing instead.
Need a locksmith today?
Emergency work runs 24/7. Everything else is booked inside working hours, 6am to 11pm, seven days a week.