Tips on Vancouver’s Most Popular European Locks

As a professional locksmith in Downtown Vancouver, I’ve encountered all sorts of different North American and European Locks. North American locks are fairly standard and most lock professionals know how to deal with them. However, European locks can be confusing and completely counter-intuitive. If it’s confusing for a professional locksmith, our clients usually have no hope. So this article will discuss some of the Most Popular European Lock Brands I see regularly and some tips on how to deal with them.

As always, if you have any questions or comments, please call/text me at 604-363-2760 or email me at alex@locksmithvancouver.com. Our Downtown Vancouver Key Store is located at 555 W Hastings St. It is on the bottom floor of the SFU/Habour Centre, next to the BC Liquor Store. Please note that our Port Coquitlam location is mobile only.

North American vs. European Locks

For the sake of brevity, we will not discuss Asian locks as that’s a quagmire of pain and misery.

In addition, while the brands like Assa Abloy and its sub-brands are technically European in origin, they have different products for different markets. So for our purposes, North American locks use standard round key cylinders where the “bible” (where the top pins and springs are located) point up in the standard position. On the other hand, European locks have the bible pointing down. These locks use Euro Profile Cylinders like the in the picture below.

 

Here is an example of a Euro Profile Cylinder used by brands like:

• Hoppe
• G-U
• Roto
• Signenia

If you have something like this on your door, you have a European lock. Also, if you have a door with a multi-point locking system (MPL), you most likely have a European lock. Multi-point locking systems are getting more popular with newer builds as they meet the newer BC Building Codes especially for energy efficiency. This is good and bad for reasons that will be discussed later.

Hoppe

The Hoppe Group is a family-run business from Germany. It was founded in 1952 in Dusseldorf by Frederich Hoppe. Hoppe does not really make anything other than Multi-point Locks, especially their HLS 9000 system. 

You can identify a Hoppe lock by the faint logo that is usually located just above the handle.

Unfortunately, it can be hard to see sometimes as the logo will be in gray vs red per the picture. So when the logo is gray and the most popular lock finish is silver, it can be very difficult to see.

 

If you have a Hoppe MPL, be prepared to spend quite a bit of money for any repairs or new parts. Hoppe products and parts are priced at the upper tier and usually never in stock. Unfortunately, there is currently no local Vancouver distributor for Hoppe. The closest one is in Kelowna so everything takes longer to get and costs more.

On the other hand, Hoppe MPL is renowned for their quality and lasts a very long time. However, MPL all need an annual lubrication of moving parts. So make sure to contact a professional Vancouver locksmith to perform an annual inspection. Otherwise, you may be looking at a very hefty bill down the road.

Hoppe with CES Euro Profile Cylinders

I’ve seen Hoppe MPLs using CES euro profile cylinders in the Vancouver area particularly in the Shaughnessy area. It’s easy to identify a CES cylinder because it will be stamped with the CES logo on the face of the cylinder, albeit it will be upside-down.

I honestly hate CES cylinders. They use a flimsy and brittle plastic cap to hold the pinning bible together. Trying to rekey one of these cylinders is a nightmare as the cap always breaks and replacements are impossible to find. If you have a Hoppe MPL with a CES cylinder, your door installer probably tried to save a little money with a cheaper cylinder. Do yourself a favour and get a proper Hoppe cylinder or the Roto alternative.

G-U

Gretsh-Unitas is another German manufacturer of Multi-point Lock Systems based in the small town of Ditzingen. It was founded in 1907 and began producing MPLs in 1979.

G-U products in Vancouver are a bit more diverse. On older Vancouver condos, I’ve encountered their Euro Profile Mortise Locks on Patio Doors. In newer single home builds, I’ve encountered their MPLs.

It may be just a coincidence, but I’ve seen several high-end homes with multiple glass doors that slide and connect together using a G-U Multi-point Lock.

You can identify a G-U product by the “G-U” logo near the latch on the door’s edge. 

Compared to Hoppe, I think G-U products are a bit cheaper in terms of price. I rarely ever see a new home build using Hoppe anymore. Door Suppliers tell me that it’s just too expensive. However, G-U is supposedly a more reasonable alternative but even they’re getting quite expensive as well.

Roto

In the several months, I’ve encountered this brand multiple times in new home builds. Judging by the prices for new parts, Roto is way cheaper than Hoppe but uses very similar parts. For example, I’m told by door and window companies that Roto cylinder dimensions are the same as Hoppe’s cylinders but are less than 50% of the price.

From what I can see and touch, the quality seems to be the same and differences negligible. So it’s not surprising that Roto MPLs are getting more and more popular. 

You can identify a Roto by the logo stamped on the face of the Euro Profile Cylinder and along the door’s edge. 

On the lock itself, it won’t be red, so it may be hard to tell right away. I suggest looking for the roof-like peak in the logo.

One complaint I have about this brand’s MPL is about the Euro Profile Cylinder it comes with. The Roto original cylinder uses a European keyway that I have yet to identify. This becomes a problem when clients try to get more keys made or to rekey the cylinder.

Roto seems to have resolved the issue with their new cylinders. Newer key cylinders do not have the Roto logo stamped on the face, but use standard SC1 keys. This makes it much easier to duplicate keys. 

In addition, the newer key cylinders have threaded pin slots in the “bible”. This makes it much easier to rekey the cylinder and does not require special Euro Profile rekeying equipment and know-how.

Sigenia

There are at least a couple of newer condo towers in the Vancouver area with Sigenia products. Sigenia is another German brand but with even less support for English speaking customers and locksmiths. I’ve yet to find any installation instructions or parts catalogue in English. Even German documentation is sparse and online translators do not work well for highly technical content. 

Westbank has installed Sigenia sliding patio doors and swinging doors in at least two towers. If you have a Sigenia product and it’s not working properly, I wish you all the best. We have successfully completed repairs in Sigenia doors but getting new parts has been almost impossible at the retail level.

Troubleshooting European Multi-Point Locks

This section will discuss ways to troubleshoot european multi-point locks. The goal is to give you an idea of the severity of the problem, not to fix it. Fixing MPLs can be a nightmare even for a seasoned master Vancouver locksmith especially when considering replacement parts are almost never in stock and the parts are more costly compared to the North American standard lock parts.

Tip #1: Are you sure you are using the lock correctly?

I know this sounds asinine or dumb, but are you really sure you are using the lock correctly? Most Vancouverites are not used to European locks so 90% of my service calls about these European locks are teaching my clients how to use them properly. 

So if your new fancy or fairly newish fancy European sliding or swinging door is not working properly, don’t panic. There’s probably little to nothing wrong with the lock. On the other hand, you’re probably just not using it correctly.

Tip #2: When was the last time the lock was lubricated?

Most European MPLs have symbols in areas where moving parts need to be lubricated. I suggest using a high quality lock lubricant (i.e. not WD40) at least once a year. Depending on your climate, you may need to lubricate two or three times a year.

Don’t overdo it. Just a drop or two in each area will do. After applying the lubrication, cycle the lock a dozen times to spread the coating evenly throughout the whole mechanism. 

If you are taking possession of a newly built home, I still highly recommend lubricating the necessary parts. During construction, there is a lot of dust and other particulates in the air which can “gum” up the works.

Tip #3: Is the door properly aligned in the door frame?

Close the door and examine the gap between the door edge and the door frame on all 4 sides. With the exception of perhaps the bottom edge, they should be fairly uniform. 

If the door is extremely difficult to lock/unlock, you most likely are either 1) using the lock incorrectly or 2) the lock needs lubrication. If you are certain that it’s not those two issues, you may have a door and door frame misalignment.

This can be very annoying and difficult to fix. I highly recommend just calling a professional Downtown Vancouver locksmith like myself vs trying to fix it on your own. If your home is still under warranty, call your home warranty provider before it’s too late and have to pay significant costs to repair.

Tip #4: Does the door lock only partially?

If the MPL is locking only partially, one or more of your strike plates on the door frame may be misaligned. This is fairly rare but it can happen to older buildings where the whole structure is settling unevenly. 

With multiple strike plates on each door frame, MPLs require a near perfect alignment with every locking element. When the system works, it works great and provides a high level of security and energy efficiency. When it doesn’t, it can be difficult to repair.

Tip #5: Was the Multi-point Lock installed correctly?

If nothing seems to be working correctly and you are sure you are using the lock properly, your MPL may have been installed incorrectly from the very beginning. Given the complexity of these systems, it’s not unusual for apprentices or even experienced installers to make mistakes. This is particularly pervasive on new condos and homes where installers are on a tight budget and timeline.

Before taking possession of your new home or condo, make sure to test all windows and doors for proper smooth operation. If there is a problem, make sure it gets addressed promptly while the developer still may have extra parts in stock. 

I’ve worked in several buildings where these issues were not addressed before the excess stock was returned by the developer to the manufacturer. In such cases, getting replacement parts is near impossible or costs full retail prices.

Conclusion

This article discussed some of the differences between North American and European Locks, particularly when it comes to Multi-point Locks (MPL). The three most common Euro Lock Brands found in Vancouver were also discussed. Finally, we provided 5 tips on troubleshooting problems with your European MPL.

If you have any questions or comments, please call/text me at 604-363-2760 or email me at alex@locksmithvancouver.com. Our Key Store near Gastown is open Monday to Friday 10am to 5pm and mobile services are available from 8am to 11:30pm everyday. Once again, our Port Coquitlam is mobile only and not open to the public.