Smart lock installation, done to the door and not just to the box
Navarre Smart Lock & Keypad installs, retrofits, diagnoses and replaces electronic door hardware. Keypad deadbolts, connected deadbolts, keypad levers, interior-retrofit units and rental-property code management are the whole job. We are licensed and insured.
The single most useful thing to understand before buying anything: the door is the variable, not the lock. A smart deadbolt draws a fixed amount of current to throw a bolt. If the bolt has to fight a misaligned strike, a swollen door edge or a sagging hinge, the motor works harder every single cycle. That is what actually kills batteries, strips plastic drive gears and causes the phantom "my lock says locked but the door pushes open" failure. Nine times out of ten a smart lock that misbehaves is a door problem wearing an electronics costume.
Keypad-only or connected? Pick before you shop
These are two different products that look identical on a shelf.
Keypad-only
A code goes in on the keypad, the bolt throws. There is no phone app, no account, no hub, nothing to update. Codes are added and deleted at the lock itself. Batteries last a long time because the radio is not the drain, the motor is. For a homeowner who only wanted to stop hiding a key under something, this is usually the right answer and the cheapest one to keep running.
Connected
The lock also talks to a phone, so you can check state, get an alert, and issue or revoke a code remotely. This is worth real money on a rental or on a house that sits empty part of the year. It is worth almost nothing on a house where somebody is always home. Connected locks add an account to manage, firmware that changes behaviour after updates, and one more thing to re-pair when the internet is replaced.
Radio types, in plain terms
- Bluetooth works only when your phone is close to the door. Cheap, simple, no hub, no remote access. Good for a keypad you occasionally want to open from the driveway.
- Wi-Fi talks straight to your router, so it works from anywhere, but it is the hungriest option for batteries and it dies when the power or the internet does.
- Mesh radios such as Z-Wave, Zigbee and Thread use a low-power network with a hub. Battery life is far better than Wi-Fi and range is extended by other mains-powered devices on the same mesh. The cost is that you now own a hub, and the hub becomes the thing that fails.
Ask yourself one question: do you actually need to do something to this lock while you are not standing in front of it? If no, buy a keypad and skip the entire category.
Batteries: resting voltage lies to you
This is the most misdiagnosed thing in the category. Alkaline cells hold a healthy-looking voltage at rest and collapse under load. A set of AAs can read fine on a meter, and then sag well below what the motor needs the instant the bolt starts moving. So the lock reports adequate battery, refuses to complete a cycle, beeps, and everybody blames the lock.
What that looks like in real life: the lock works fine in the morning and fails at night when it is cold, or it works when the door is standing open and fails when the door is closed, because a closed door with a tight strike is the load. When we get a "my smart lock is possessed" call, we test under load, not at rest.
Battery habits that actually help
- Replace the whole set at once. Mixing a fresh cell with three tired ones makes the fresh one do the work and drains it fast.
- Avoid rechargeable cells in motorised locks unless the manufacturer lists them. Their lower nominal voltage eats into the margin the motor needs.
- Lithium cells hold up better in cold snaps and in a garage-side door that swings between hot and cold.
- Do not judge remaining life by the app percentage. It is an estimate derived from voltage, and voltage is the thing that lies.
- If a fresh set dies within weeks, stop buying batteries and fix the door. Something is loading that motor.
The door work that makes a smart lock reliable
Before an electronic deadbolt goes on, this is the checklist that decides whether you love it or hate it.
- Backset and bore. The bolt hole is either 2 3/8 or 2 3/4 inches from the edge, and the face bore is normally 2 1/8 inches. Most smart deadbolts are adjustable, but the adjustment has to be set correctly or the bolt runs at an angle.
- Door thickness. Standard is 1 3/4 inches for an exterior door. Thicker doors and storm-door setups need the correct spindle and screw length, otherwise the two halves clamp unevenly and bind the motor.
- Strike alignment. The bolt should enter the strike without touching metal. If you can hear it scrape, it is loading the motor on every cycle.
- Bolt throw. A deadbolt should extend a full inch. A bolt that only makes it part way is being blocked, and the lock will report a jam or, worse, report locked when it is not.
- Hinge sag. A door that has dropped changes the strike geometry. Tightening or replacing one long hinge screw into the framing often fixes what looks like a lock defect.
- Weatherstripping compression. Too much seal pressure pushes the door away from the frame and puts the bolt under side load.
None of this is glamorous. All of it is why one house has a smart lock that has run for years and the neighbour has replaced two.
Retrofit or full replacement
A retrofit unit mounts on the inside of the door over your existing deadbolt and turns the existing thumbturn. The exterior stays exactly as it is, which means your current key still works and the outside of the door does not change. That is the right call when the existing deadbolt is good hardware, when a rental agreement or an association restricts exterior appearance, or when you want the mechanical key path untouched.
A full replacement swaps the entire deadbolt, inside and out. That is the right call when the current deadbolt is worn, when you want a keypad on the outside, or when you are consolidating to one keyway. Full replacement is also the honest answer when the existing hardware is builder-grade and already the weak point, because bolting electronics to a tired lock just makes an expensive tired lock.
Mechanical override: never buy a lock without one
Every electronic lock we install keeps a physical way in. Batteries die at the worst time, boards fail, and a firmware update occasionally changes how a lock behaves overnight. A keyway on the exterior, or an emergency contact point that accepts an external power source, is the difference between an inconvenience and a locked-out family.
Because the keyway is used rarely, it is the part that quietly corrodes on this coast. We exercise it at install and recommend testing it a couple of times a year. A backup that has not been tested is not a backup. On a keypad-only lock with no keyway at all, the override is external power contacts, and that requires knowing where the contacts are and keeping a compatible battery in the car, not in the house you are locked out of.
Salt air and sun: what fails here specifically
Coastal weather is unusually hard on electronic hardware, and it fails in a recognisable order.
- Finish first. Salt-laden air pits plated finishes on exterior escutcheons. It is cosmetic at first and then it is not, because pitting holds moisture against the seam.
- Keypad membrane second. Direct afternoon sun degrades the printed layer on rubber and film keypads. Faded digits are also a security problem: worn buttons advertise which digits are in the code.
- Contacts third. Humidity plus salt creates a film on the battery terminals and on the ribbon connector between halves. Intermittent, weather-dependent faults are almost always this.
- Motor last. By the time the motor is the problem the lock has usually been fighting a swollen door all summer.
Practical countermeasures: choose a lock rated for exterior use rather than an indoor-rated model, add or keep a storm door or overhang on the most exposed opening, use a dry film lubricant in the mechanical keyway instead of oil, because oil holds sand and salt, and rinse nothing with a hose. Pointing water at an electronic lock is how a working lock becomes a dead one.
Codes, rentals and who can open your door
A keypad only helps if the codes are managed. What we see on rentals in Navarre and Navarre Beach: one code shared with every cleaner, contractor and guest for two years running. That is not access control, that is a key under the mat with extra steps.
- Give each recurring person their own code so one can be removed without disrupting everybody.
- Delete guest codes at checkout rather than at the next turnover.
- Change the master or programming code away from the factory default the day it is installed. Default programming codes are printed in manuals that anyone can read.
- Avoid codes that follow the door number, the house number or a birth year.
- If the lock supports it, turn on the setting that requires random digits before or after the code, so a watcher cannot read the sequence off worn buttons.
- Auto-lock is useful on a rental and dangerous on a door people prop open. Set the delay to fit the door, not the default.
When we tell people not to buy one
We will say it plainly, because it saves everybody a callback. A smart lock is a poor idea on a door that already does not close properly, on a hollow or badly fitting slab where the frame is the weak point, and on a door where the deadbolt strike is screwed into thin trim rather than into framing. Electronics do not add security to a weak opening; they add a battery to it. Fix the opening first, then automate it if you still want to.
Diagnostics we run on a lock that misbehaves
- Cycle the bolt with the door open and then closed, and compare. A difference is a door problem.
- Measure the battery under load, not at rest.
- Check the ribbon or wire connector between the exterior and interior halves for corrosion and for a pinch under the mounting plate.
- Confirm the interior mounting plate is seated square. A skewed plate makes the drive tailpiece bind.
- Check for a firmware or app change that altered auto-lock, handing or sensitivity settings.
- Verify the strike and hinges before condemning any electronics.
Service area and related pages
We install and service electronic locks in Navarre and Navarre Beach, and also cover Gulf Breeze, Holley, Holley By The Sea and Pace. Beach-side doors get the salt-air conversation whether the owner asks for it or not, because that is what determines which hardware lasts there.
Questions we get every week
Why does my smart lock eat batteries?
Almost always because the bolt is fighting the strike or a swollen door. The motor draws far more current when it is loaded. Fix the alignment and battery life usually multiplies.
Will a smart lock still work if the power is out?
The lock itself runs on its own batteries, so the keypad keeps working. What stops working is remote access, because that depends on your router or hub. This is the main argument for keeping a mechanical override.
Can I keep my existing key?
Yes, if you use an interior retrofit unit that turns your current thumbturn. A full replacement gives you a new keyway, though we can often key it to match other doors.
Is Wi-Fi or a hub better?
A hub-based mesh lock gets much better battery life; a Wi-Fi lock is simpler to set up and drains faster. If the door is far from the router, mesh is usually the more stable answer.
Do keypads work in the rain?
Exterior-rated ones do. Indoor-rated models sold for interior doors fail quickly on this coast, and sun exposure fades the digits, which also tells a stranger which buttons you use.
Can you install a lock I already bought?
Yes. We check that it suits the door before fitting it, and we will tell you if the door needs work first rather than installing it and letting you discover the problem later.
Ask about a smart lock for your Navarre door
Tell us the door and the lock you are considering, and we will call you back.