"Smart locks are convenient—until they're not."
Exactly why I went with a hybrid setup when I renovated last year. Smart keypad for daily use, but the good old manual keyhole is still there as a backup. Tech glitches happen more often than most people realize, and I'd rather not be the guy halfway through my own bathroom window at 2am...
Same here, hybrid's definitely the way to go. One thing I've noticed though—manual keys aren't foolproof either. Had mine snap off in the lock once, talk about irony... Now I keep a spare hidden just in case.
Had a similar experience myself—installed a smart lock thinking it'd solve all my problems, then the battery died while I was away for the weekend. Ended up climbing through a window... Hybrid setups are good, but nothing beats regular maintenance and backups. Lesson learned the hard way.
Been there myself—smart locks seemed great at first, but learned quickly they're not foolproof. My place is an older historic home, so after one frustrating lockout (thankfully didn't have to climb through a window, but close...), I decided to keep things simple. Now I regularly swap batteries and always keep a hidden backup key handy. Hybrid setups are decent, agreed, but honestly nothing beats old-school keys and routine checks. Glad you managed without too much trouble—sometimes these tech upgrades teach us the value of basics the hard way.
"sometimes these tech upgrades teach us the value of basics the hard way."
Haha, couldn't agree more. Reminds me of a client who called me in a panic after their smart lock decided to update firmware mid-day and locked them out for hours. They ended up having an impromptu picnic on their porch—neighbors thought it was intentional! Ever since then, I always recommend keeping at least one trusty old-school key around. Tech is great...until it's not.
