Hear from Our Customers
You turn the knob and the door opens. Every time. No wiggling, no jiggling, no wondering if today’s the day it finally breaks.
That’s what happens when door knob installation is done right. The latch aligns perfectly with the strike plate. The screws sit flush and tight. The mechanism engages smoothly whether you’re rushing out the door or coming home with your hands full.
Most installation problems show up within the first week. Loose handles that spin without catching. Doors that won’t latch unless you lift and push at the same time. Locks that stick or refuse to turn. These aren’t manufacturing defects—they’re measurement and alignment issues that proper installation prevents entirely.
You also avoid the hidden costs of doing it twice. No extra trips to the hardware store for different screws. No patching and repainting around oversized holes. No calling someone to fix what should have worked from the start.
We’ve been handling door hardware in Prospect Park since before your grandparents were born. We’re talking 140+ years of the same family doing the same work in the same community.
Tom McCausland runs the operation now, fourth generation, with his daughter Chrissy learning the trade the same way he did—by actually doing the work, not just reading about it. We’re the largest locksmith operation in the Delaware Valley because we show up when we say we will and we fix things correctly the first time.
We’re not a call center that farms out jobs to whoever’s available. We’re a real storefront in Prospect Park with real inventory and technicians who know the difference between a mortise lock and a cylindrical knob set. That matters when you’re dealing with older homes or trying to match existing hardware.
First, we measure everything. Door thickness, backset distance, existing hole sizes. Most DIY installations go wrong right here—people assume standard measurements and then wonder why nothing lines up.
If you’re replacing existing hardware, we check whether the new knob will work with your current holes or if we need to fill and re-drill. Sometimes we can reuse the existing prep work. Sometimes we can’t. We tell you which situation you’re in before we start cutting into anything.
Then we handle the actual installation. The boring gets centered and drilled to the right depth. The latch gets mortised flush with the door edge. The strike plate gets positioned so the latch actually catches when the door closes. We test the action multiple times, adjusting tension and alignment until everything operates smoothly.
You end up with door hardware that functions the way it’s supposed to. The knob turns without resistance. The latch engages cleanly. The door closes securely without needing extra force or precise angles. It just works.
Ready to get started?
We install door knobs, levers, deadbolts, and complete locksets for residential properties throughout Prospect Park. That includes standard passage knobs for hallways and closets, privacy locks for bathrooms and bedrooms, and keyed entry sets for exterior doors.
The service covers proper boring and mortising, strike plate installation, and alignment verification. We work with all major manufacturers—Kwikset, Schlage, Medeco—and we stock OEM parts that actually fit correctly. If your door needs prep work for new hardware, we handle that too.
For Prospect Park homeowners, this matters more than you might think. With a median home value around $239,700 and 57% of residents owning their homes, you’re not just fixing a door—you’re maintaining a significant investment. Proper installation prevents the kind of damage that shows up during inspections or appraisals.
We can also set up master key systems if you’re tired of carrying six different keys for your house. One key opens multiple doors, but each door can still have its own unique key if needed. It’s standard locksmith work, but it makes daily life noticeably easier.
Most door knob installations take 30 to 45 minutes per door if the existing holes are the right size and properly positioned. That’s measuring, removing old hardware, installing the new knob or lever, and testing everything to make sure it works smoothly.
If we’re drilling new holes or working with a door that’s never had hardware installed, plan on closer to an hour. Doors that need additional prep work—like filling old holes that don’t match the new hardware, or mortising for a different latch style—can take longer.
The time adds up when you’re doing multiple doors, but it’s still faster than most DIY attempts. And you’re not left with a half-finished job when you realize the holes don’t line up or the latch won’t catch properly.
Yes, as long as the style is still manufactured or we can find compatible hardware from current product lines. We work with Kwikset, Schlage, Medeco, and other major manufacturers, so we have access to a wide range of finishes and designs.
Bring us a photo or the actual hardware if you’ve removed it, and we can identify what you have and what will match. Sometimes we can find the exact same model. Other times we’ll find something visually similar that works with your existing door prep.
If you’re in an older Prospect Park home with vintage hardware, matching gets trickier. We might need to modify the door to accept modern hardware, or we can source reproduction pieces that maintain the original look. Either way, we’ll explain your options before doing any work.
A door knob requires you to grip and twist. A lever requires you to push down. Functionally, they do the same job—they retract the latch so the door opens.
Levers are easier to operate if you have your hands full, limited grip strength, or conditions like arthritis. They’re also required by ADA accessibility guidelines for commercial properties, though many homeowners choose them simply because they’re more convenient.
Installation is nearly identical. Both require a hole through the door face and a mortise for the latch on the door edge. The main difference is the mechanism inside—levers use a different internal assembly than knobs, but the door preparation is the same. You can usually swap a knob for a lever without any additional drilling or modification.
Not if it’s done correctly. Professional installation means we’re using the right tools, measuring accurately, and drilling clean holes that are properly sized for the hardware you’re installing.
Damage happens when people drill without measuring, use the wrong size hole saw, or try to force hardware into holes that don’t quite fit. You end up with splintered wood, oversized openings that don’t hold screws properly, or paint chipping around the hardware.
If your door already has holes from previous hardware, we assess whether we can reuse them or if we need to fill and re-drill. Sometimes the old holes work fine. Sometimes they’re in the wrong spot or the wrong size, and trying to use them anyway creates problems. We’ll tell you which situation you’re dealing with before we start the work.
No, not unless you want to. Door knobs and deadbolts are separate pieces of hardware that function independently. You can replace one without touching the other.
That said, there are good reasons to replace both at the same time. If you’re rekeying for security reasons—after moving into a new house, for example—it makes sense to rekey or replace all the locks at once. If you’re updating the finish or style, matching hardware looks more intentional than mismatched pieces.
We can also set up your new knob and deadbolt to work on the same key, which means fewer keys on your ring. This is standard locksmith work and doesn’t require replacing anything—we just rekey one lock to match the other. Most Prospect Park homeowners appreciate having one key that handles both locks on their front door.
Installation typically runs between $75 and $150 per door, depending on what’s involved. A straightforward replacement using existing holes costs less than drilling new prep or installing hardware on a door that’s never had a lockset.
That’s labor only. Hardware costs vary based on what you choose—basic passage knobs start around $15, while high-security or smart lock systems can run several hundred dollars. We can install hardware you’ve already purchased, or we can supply it from our inventory of Kwikset, Schlage, and Medeco products.
We give you the full price before we start any work. No surprises, no “we found another problem” upcharges. You’ll know exactly what it costs to get your door hardware installed correctly, and you can decide whether that’s worth it compared to spending your Saturday fighting with a drill and an instruction sheet that assumes you already know what you’re doing.
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