So, I'm dog-sitting for my neighbor, and I just went over to let the dog out. The key isn't where I normally put it, so I'm thinking the landlord came by and stuck it in an undetectable location. Bottom line: I need to let the dog out and the damned door is locked. Can anyone help without me calling a locksmith?

Did you try the windows?

then try the credit card and Hairpin techniques. If those dont work you'll need the proper tools.

Tried 'em all. The windows were never unlocked from last winter because the guy living there didn't want to break the "good seal" for this winter. Hairpin didn't work. I'll try a credit card, but I'm pretty sure that won't work either.

how about calling the landlord?

Landlord does not have a spare. If she did, I wouldn't be posting on Seek. If you have a lock picking kit, let me know.

I think the previous poster meant you should call the landlord because he/she may have "put it in some undetectable location" and might know where it is. Depending on what kind of lock you're talking about (deadbolt, just a regular door lock, ect) you might have to use different tactics. If there's a deadbolt, you won't be able to use the credit card trick (or at least i highly doubt it)

i've got a lock pick kit, but i haven't practiced much with it. i can't do deadbolts. it would take me a good 10-15 minutes to do a simple door lock. in that time, someone would probably call the police, seeing a suspicious person working at the lock of a residence. not to mention the fact that i have no documentation that you are lawfully entering the residence, and since i don't, it would be illegal for me to use the lock pick.

unless you could provide a contract saying that the owner of the house permitted you to enter the house for taking care of the dog, then i'm certainly not going to do it.

Hey prophet, where's a good place to get a set of picks? I dont need anything too fancy, just some stuff to practice with. I played around with my brother's set a while ago and it was fun to fiddle around with.

You can find quality sets on the Internet on a few sites for a decent price.

i have no idea. i traded my roommate a couple of CDs like 3 years ago.

umm, have the landlord call the locksmith. It's probably like $25-$40 to take care of a lockout.

You don't necessarily need a lock pick set....if I remember correctly, you just need philips head screwdriver and some dentist picks.

...since everyone has those laying around

probably cheaper than buying a "professional" lock pick set.

Typically you just need two tools:
<ul> a "wrench" to turn the tumbler (like a key turns it)
a "pick" to actually try to move the individual pins</ul>

There are plenty of on-line guides that can describe the tools, how
to make your own set from common items, and how to use them.
To truely pick a lock requires some skill and practice - but with some
cheap (or worn) locks you can just rake the pins/wafers around until it pops open.

Some basic intro stuff:
<ul> http://home.howstuffworks.com/lock-picking.htm
http://www.lysator.liu.se/mit-guide/mit-guide.html (The MIT Guide)
http://www.lockpicking101.com/
</ul>
And of course many more are available via your local search engine...