Smart Lock Installation in Provo, UT

Do Provo doors suit a smart lock?

Most retrofit smart deadbolts are made for a standard bored door: a round hole through the face and a smaller bore into the edge for the bolt. Of the four big Wasatch Front counties, Utah County has the newest housing. Census Bureau estimates put its median home at 2001, with about half built since 2000, and doors of that period usually take a keypad deadbolt with little or no new drilling.

Older doors are the exception. In an older Franklin house, a door may hold a mortise lock or the patched holes of earlier hardware. Measure the door thickness and check the edge before choosing a model, since some smart locks need a specific backset or a door no thicker than a set limit.

Renters, shared doors and student housing

If you rent, get the owner's written approval before changing a lock, and plan to keep the original hardware so it can go back on at move-out. In a converted Franklin house with a shared outside door, everyone who uses that door is affected by a code change.

BYU contracted housing adds conditions. Its Off-Campus Housing Handbook calls for a key or other entry device for every student, an exterior lock that opens from inside without a key, and removed access for a card or fob that goes missing. A smart deadbolt with an inside thumbturn and per-user codes can fit that, but the manager decides.

Provo's calendar also suits codes. The population rises in August and drops near the end of April as students come and go, and a keypad lets a household delete a departing roommate's code without cutting new keys. A physical key that goes missing still calls for lock rekeying.

Batteries, keypads and a backup key

Batteries run down, and cold weakens alkaline cells, so a low-battery warning often shows up first on a winter morning. Replace batteries when the app says so, not after the lock stops. A keypad in full afternoon sun can also age sooner than one under a porch roof.

Keep a working mechanical key, and store it somewhere other than inside the house.

See smart lock installation, lock replacement for older doors, or the Provo page.