Window locks, latches and stays in Northland
The most neglected hardware on any Northland house - and the easiest way into it. Repaired, replaced and made to work again.
People spend real money on the front door and then leave a bathroom window that has not latched properly since 2014. Burglars are not sentimental about which opening they use.
We repair and replace window latches, locks and stays across Northland - on aluminium joinery, timber windows and older casement hardware.
Why it is worse up here
Salt air, humidity and sun are all hard on window hardware, and Northland has plenty of all three. Aluminium joinery near the coast corrodes at the fittings; older timber windows swell and drop; and the small stainless and zinc parts inside a latch seize long before anything looks wrong from across the room.
The usual sequence is: the window gets stiff, then it needs a shove, then somebody stops locking it because it is a nuisance, and then it is simply an unlocked window that nobody thinks about. That is the point at which it becomes a security problem rather than a maintenance one.
What we deal with
- Latches that will not engage - the handle turns and nothing happens, or it needs to be pulled hard to catch.
- Seized and corroded hardware, particularly on coastal properties.
- Broken stays - the arm that holds a window open at a set position, which snaps and then lets the window swing.
- Restrictor stays that limit how far a window opens, worth fitting where there are young children upstairs.
- Keyed window locks, so a window can be locked shut or locked in a slightly-open ventilation position.
- Sliding window and ranch slider locks, including the auxiliary bolts that stop a slider being lifted out of its track.
- Sash window fasteners and lifts on older timber homes.
The ranch slider is the one to check. Many older sliders can be lifted clear of their track from outside even when latched, and the standard catch is not much of an obstacle. A secondary bolt or an anti-lift block is inexpensive and turns the weakest door in most Northland homes into a reasonable one.
Holiday homes and baches
Properties that sit empty for weeks are exactly where window hardware is worst - nobody uses the windows, so nobody notices they have seized, and there is nobody there to spot an open one. If you own a bach on the Tutukaka Coast, at Taupo Bay or anywhere around Doubtless Bay, it is worth having the windows checked at the same time as anything else.
Ventilation without leaving it open
A common request, especially in a Northland summer: how do I get air through the house without leaving a window that anybody can climb through? Restrictor stays and lockable ventilation positions do exactly that - the window locks at a couple of inches and will not open further without the key.
Window hardware services
- Window latch repair and replacement
- Seized and corroded hardware freed or replaced
- Window stays and restrictor stays
- Keyed window locks
- Lockable ventilation positions
- Sliding window locks
- Ranch slider locks and anti-lift bolts
- Sash window fasteners
- Casement hardware on older timber joinery
- Aluminium joinery hardware
- Child safety restrictors
- Whole-house window security checks
Related
Talk to a locksmith
Tell us what you need and you will know what it costs before we start.
The forgotten opening
A good front door is undone by a bathroom window that has not latched properly in years.
Air without the risk
Restrictor stays and lockable vent positions let the house breathe without leaving a way in.
Get in touch
Tell us what has happened
We will tell you what the job needs and what it costs before anyone sets out.
Mobile across all of Northland, from Kaitaia, Kerikeri, Paihia and Russell down to Whangarei, Ruakaka, One Tree Point and Marsden Cove - see all 55 areas we cover.
Questions
Common questions
Can a seized latch be freed, or does it need replacing?
Sometimes freeing and lubricating is enough, particularly if it has been caught early. Once corrosion has eaten into the mechanism, replacement is the honest answer - and we will tell you which it is rather than charging you to find out slowly.
Can you match hardware on old joinery?
Usually. Older casement and sash hardware is often still available or has a close modern equivalent. Send us a photo and we will tell you what we can get.
How do I stop children opening upstairs windows?
Restrictor stays. They limit the opening to a safe gap and release with a key or a catch that a small child cannot operate. Inexpensive, and worth doing before you need to think about it.
Is my ranch slider actually secure?
Often less than you would hope. Many can be lifted out of the track from outside. An anti-lift block or a secondary bolt fixes it cheaply, and it is one of the highest-value small jobs on most Northland houses.
Do you do whole-house checks?
Yes. Going round every window and door in one visit is far more efficient than calling us out per fault, and it usually turns up two or three things the owner had stopped noticing.
Locked out, or want it sorted properly?
One call reaches a mobile locksmith in Northland who will tell you what it costs before any work starts.
0800 243 503