Key Cutting & Spare Keys in Waterford

Why spare keys are worth the small cost

Having a spare set of keys is the cheapest way to avoid ever needing an emergency locksmith. A lockout call-out at 11pm costs a multiple of what a couple of spares cost in daylight, and the only difference between the two situations is usually a key sitting in a drawer somewhere.

Our mobile locksmiths cut accurate duplicate keys for homes and businesses across Waterford City and the surrounding towns. We come to you, which matters if the only key you own is the one currently in your front door. We keep the service capability-neutral until we confirm your exact key type on the phone, so we bring the right blanks and the right equipment and finish the job in one visit.

Where a key is worn or damaged, we can often cut a fresh one to the lock’s own pattern rather than copying the fault forward.

Key types we cut

• Standard cylinder keys - the flat brass keys used on most euro cylinder and rim locks.
• Mortice keys - the older, chunkier keys for lever locks in timber doors.
• Dimple keys - cut with dimples rather than a serrated edge, common on higher-security cylinders.
• Padlock and outbuilding keys - including keyed-alike sets for sheds, gates and stores.
• Restricted keys - cut only with the keyholder’s written authorisation, by design.
• Vehicle keys - blade cutting for many vehicles, confirmed by make and model first.

Copying versus cutting to code

There’s a real difference between the two and it explains why some copies never work properly.

Copying traces your existing key and reproduces it, wear and all. If your original has been in daily use for a decade, or is itself a copy of a copy, the new key starts life inaccurate and gets worse.

Cutting to code produces a key to the lock’s original specification. It’s the better option whenever your key is worn, and it’s the only option when the original is lost or broken. Not every lock allows it, but where it does, the difference in how the key turns is immediately obvious.

Restricted keys and key control

For landlords, businesses and shared properties, the problem isn’t cutting keys - it’s not knowing how many exist. Restricted keyways solve that. The blanks are patent-protected and can only be cut by authorised suppliers with your written permission, so a tenant or staff member can’t quietly have a set made.

We supply a key register alongside restricted sets, so you have a written record of how many keys exist and who holds them. It’s the same principle we apply in our commercial locksmith work, scaled to a single property.

Where to keep your spares

Keep at least one spare set off-site with someone you trust, and one somewhere sensible on the property. What counts as sensible: a key safe with a changeable code, mounted out of obvious sight. What doesn’t: under the mat, in a plant pot, on the ledge above the door, or in a fake rock that looks like a fake rock. Those are the first four places anyone looks.

For holiday homes around Tramore, Dunmore East and the Copper Coast, a coded key safe is far better than a hidden key, and it means a neighbour or cleaner can be given access without another set going into circulation permanently.