Monthly Archives: April 2015

ALOA Keynotes – A Call to Arms for All Locksmiths

I can understand politicians would have a hard time voting against anything that’s supposed to help protect children in an active shooter situation. On the other hand, I’m not happy with the rationale that suggests that because school fires are on the decline but active shooters are on the rise, this type of locking system can be used...

By |2015-04-26T17:23:15-04:00April 28th, 2015|School Security|4 Comments

FF: Classroom Latch Preventer

These Fixed-it Friday photos depict one school's method for providing classroom security. The outside lever is kept locked at all times, so closing the door is all that's required to secure the classroom during an emergency. But having a classroom door locked all the time can be inconvenient - someone has to open the door each time a student or staff member wants to enter...

By |2015-04-24T08:28:54-04:00April 24th, 2015|Fire Doors, Fixed-it Friday, School Security|8 Comments

When is a door not a door?

A couple of months ago I wrote a post about murals in health care occupancies and a change to the 2015 edition of NFPA 101 - The Life Safety Code. I just read an article in Australian Ageing Agenda about the practice of disguising doors in memory care units, and how this affects the patients...

By |2016-05-10T13:08:09-04:00April 21st, 2015|Health Care, Means of Egress|2 Comments

FF: VA Hospital

I'm spending time at a VA hospital, where my father is currently in hospice care. Even under these circumstances I can't help looking at the hardware, and I know my father would tell me to go ahead and share it. I haven't taken many photos but there are a couple below. In case I don't get a chance to post tomorrow, consider this an early Fixed-it Friday post...

By |2015-04-16T01:18:35-04:00April 16th, 2015|Fixed-it Friday, Health Care|19 Comments

Door Closer Arm Options

Most door closers used today are surface-mounted closers with a double-lever arm. These closers fall into two categories – application-specific, and universal. A universal closer is best when the field conditions are unknown, or when flexibility is a top priority. Application-specific closers give the specifier and supplier more control over how the door closer is mounted...

By |2016-10-16T22:18:39-04:00April 14th, 2015|Door Closers|7 Comments

Options for Securing Classroom Doors

Here is my second draft script for an upcoming whiteboard animation video.  I really appreciate everyone who made suggestions for yesterday's script - I have made some changes.  Please comment if there is anything I need to add or change for this video about a very important topic.

By |2016-10-16T22:18:35-04:00April 8th, 2015|School Security|7 Comments

Door Handing (video)

I have explained door handing hundreds of times during my career. I know some people still use the "butt-to-the-butts" method, but that doesn't work for all door openings because it doesn't take into account whether the door is inswinging or outswinging. I explained handing on this site a while back, but just to make it more fun...

By |2017-06-01T10:10:43-04:00April 6th, 2015|Back-2-Basics, Videos|7 Comments

Fire Label Mismatch

I recently received a question from Al Rivas at Contract Hardware, which had me stumped. Al pointed out a mismatch in the opening protective requirements of the International Building Code (IBC). In the 2012 and 2015 editions, Table 716.5 establishes the required rating of the opening protectives for various types of walls...

By |2015-10-21T09:47:29-04:00April 2nd, 2015|Fire Doors|8 Comments

WW: PSA? Really??

I'm at the BHMA Codes and Government Affairs meeting in sunny Fort Lauderdale, and the "public service announcement" below was just shown during our discussion about codes that pertain to the use of barricade devices in schools.  It illustrates the marketing methods used by some of the manufacturers of these locking devices.  I will remain Wordless, but you don't have to!

By |2015-04-01T12:02:57-04:00April 1st, 2015|School Security, Wordless Wednesday|19 Comments
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