Accessibility
I haven’t posted for a few days because I’ve been working on my new FDAI presentation and various other things, but I’m kind of excited about this post because it answers a question that has been floating around for years. Ok…maybe “excited” is the wrong word, but I really enjoy crossing things off the “grey [...]
A while back, I had a couple of posts about a door that opened less than 90 degrees. I received a photo of the application that inspired the original question, and I think based on the feedback I received from code officials and the fact that the clear opening width is 32 1/4″, this application [...]
My last post was about the method of measuring the clear opening width of a door that doesn’t open to 90 degrees. After reading the codes and the commentaries and having several discussions with someone from the ICC, I posted a graphic of a 32″ cylinder passing through the opening, as described by the ICC. [...]
Here’s a great list of accessibility code requirements and contacts by state. It lists the accessibility code or standard for each state, as well as the contact information for the state agency that oversees the accessibility requirements. The list was compiled by the United States Access Board, an independent Federal agency devoted to accessibility for people [...]
AccessibilityOnline is conducting monthly webinars on accessibility as a collaborative training program between the ADA National Network and the US Access Board. The 2010 ADA Standards for Accessible Design were recently approved, and the revised standards will be the topic of the next webinar. The webinar is scheduled for September 2nd, 2010, from 1:30-4:00 ET. [...]
AccessibilityOnline’s next webinar is on June 2nd from 2:30 – 4:00 Eastern Time, and the topic is Accessible Doors & Maneuvering Clearance. If you can’t attend the webinar, there should be an archive recording available sometime after the 2nd. UPDATE: Here’s a link to the archived recording. From the AccessibilityOnline website: June 2nd, 2011 » [...]
At least once a month someone asks me whether it’s ok to use a deadbolt with a thumbturn on a door that is required to be accessible. It took some digging to get a definitive answer, because the accessibility standards don’t specify a certain dimension that would be acceptable for the thumbturn. The ADA guidelines [...]
After that last post I think we all need a break. Here’s a “fix” from thereIfixedit.com:
The ADAAG Manual was created by the Access Board of the Architectural and Transportation Barriers Compliance Board as companion information to the Americans with Disabilities Act Accessibility Guidelines (ADAAG). It explains and clarifies many of the requirements of the ADAAG, and gives insight on the intent of the requirements. I recently found a downloadable version available [...]
This post was printed in the August 2011 issue of Doors & Hardware I was recently asked about battery back-up for an automatic operator, after an architect noted that it was required by the 2010 ADA guidelines. The doors in question were existing bathroom doors that did not have the maneuvering clearance required for manual [...]
The 2007 edition of ANSI/BHMA A156.19 – American National Standard for Power Assist and Low Energy Power Operated Doors requires that low energy operators are initiated by a “knowing act” rather than a motion sensor. According to A156.19, a knowing act is defined as “consciously initiating the powered opening of a low-energy door using acceptable [...]
I hope everyone had a safe and relaxing holiday weekend…I have to admit it was really nice to take some time off. I’ve been in Grassy Cove, Tennessee since Friday and there aren’t a whole lot of doors here, but luckily I’ve got some saved up from last week. We’re headed toward home tomorrow so [...]
Years ago, glass doors were commonly locked with a deadlock in the bottom rail. Many of these doors are still in use, but in order to comply with current codes, I don’t recommend the use of a bottom rail deadlock on most new projects. Assuming that the glass door is a required egress door and/or [...]
Back in the 80′s, there was a lot of confusion about how to measure the clear opening width of doors. The codes and standards weren’t clear, so on doors with panic devices the fire marshals were looking for 32″ between the panic device and the stop on the strike jamb. As each code and standard [...]
If you don’t have a current copy of our handy code booklet, drop me an email and let me know how many you need. It lists a summary of door-related code requirements for the IBC, NFPA 80, NFPA 101, NFPA 5000, ICC/ANSI A117.1, the ADAAG, BOCA, SBCCI, UBC, and the National Building Code of Canada. [...]
Back in the early 90′s when the ADA was the newest focus of the door and hardware industry, delayed action closers were specified and installed on many doors due to the assumption that they were required by the accessibility standards. Delayed action is a feature available on many door closers, which delays the closing cycle [...]
This post was printed in the April 2012 issue of Doors & Hardware The 2010 ADA Standards for Accessible Design (available for download at www.ada.gov) officially went into effect on March 15, 2012. The requirement for a 10-inch-high flush bottom rail on manual doors is now included in the ADA standards. Previously, it was not [...]
My friend, Dick Barnhard, sent me a link so I could download all of the Steel Door Institute (SDI) standards at once – 308 pages! What a nice Mothers Day gift to go along with my painted macaroni necklace and pipe-cleaner bracelet! It actually turned out to be perfect timing because I was working [...]
Door opening force is the measurement of how many pounds of force are required to open a door. The requirements for door opening force are found in the Americans with Disabilities Act Accessibility Guidelines (ADAAG), ICC/ANSI A117.1 Standard on Accessible and Usable Buildings and Facilities, and the Massachusetts Architectural Access Board requirements (521 CMR). In [...]
Almost every week someone asks me about the clearance behind door pulls. Many manufacturers’ catalogs show certain pulls with a symbol indicating that they are accessible, and other pulls without the symbol. About 10 years ago I called the Department of Justice (ADA), the International Code Council (CABO back then), and the Massachusetts Architectural Access [...]
For exterior pairs I prefer to use rim panic devices with a removable mullion, but in some cases surface-mounted vertical rod devices are specified and supplied. When vertical rod devices are used on cross-corridor doors, I often specify them “Less Bottom Rod” (LBR), but on exterior doors I specify them with both top and bottom [...]
I know it’s supposed to be (Almost) Wordless Wednesday, but I have two pieces of news… 1) I FINALLY created the list of FAQs and made a tab at the top to access it. If there are other FAQs you would like to see added to that list, let me know. 2) The updated code [...]
First the good news. When the annual DHI conference was held in Boston, I conducted a 3-hour code class for architects (I later conducted the class for our DHI chapter.). Public speaking isn’t my favorite thing to do, so when one of the attendees approached me before class started and said, “You’re not REALLY going [...]
We’re on the last leg of our road trip and will be home today, so here’s a quick post to tide you over. I have lots more photos to share and the fact that they won’t be chronologically presented offends my orderly side, but so be it. Yesterday we were in Hershey, Pennsylvania, and we [...]
I realize that not everybody is as excited about new code developments as I am, but some of you might want to take a look or a listen…the code development hearings for the IBC/IFC are going on right now, and discussion on the Means of Egress proposals will be starting soon. The webcast is very [...]
I know I just mentioned bathroom door hardware yesterday so maybe this will be the start of another series. Almost every week someone asks me about the use of deadbolts on bathroom doors, often because they want to use an indicator deadbolt, like the Falcon D271 (right). I saw an application recently at Harvard, so [...]
I originally published the post below in May 0f 2009, but I’m trying to gather some information so I’ve pulled it up to the front again. Please take a moment to answer the quick survey about lever return in your area. Thanks! Click here to take a quick survey. Over the years I’ve heard many [...]
When I started working in the hardware industry, we regularly supplied doors with a 10″ x 10″ vision lite (type V in the Steelcraft graphic below), which was typically installed approximately 63″ from the center of the lite to the floor. This configuration would no longer be acceptable according to some current accessibility standards. The [...]
Remember him? I guess I’m dating myself if I admit that I do since he made his debut in the mid- to late-80′s, right around the time that Bill Lawliss, John Gant, and I all graduated with degrees in Architecture from Vermont Technical College. Just think where we could be now if we took those [...]
Yesterday we jammed as much rainforest into one day as we possibly could. In the morning we went to the Monteverde Cloud Forest Reserve and had a 3-hour hike with our awesome guide / biologist, Eduardo. He knew everything about the plants, birds, and animals of the reserve, and we learned A LOT. In the [...]
Honestly, I do NOT have a bathroom obsession. It’s just a coincidence that once again, a code question came up regarding a bathroom door. You know how sometimes you just know something, and then someone questions you and then you start to question yourself? That’s what happened yesterday. I was creating some hardware sets for [...]
News from the Access Board regarding the updated ADA Accessibility Guidelines which were originally published in 2004, revised in 2005, and published for public comment in 2007: The U.S. Department of Justice (DOJ) has delayed publication of updated final regulations under the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) due to the presidential transition. DOJ, which had [...]
I’ve compiled some of the code resources I currently use, in hopes that some of them might be helpful to you. If there are other websites that you visit for code information, please leave a comment and I’ll add them to the list. I will include all of these on the Code Links tab above, [...]
I got an email today about a fire rated door that would not reliably close with the closer adjusted to provide 5 pounds of opening force. I did a post on opening force for accessibility a while back, but it’s important to note that fire-rated doors are not required to open with 5 pounds of [...]
Today I went to a jobsite, and on the way there I stopped at a very busy urban rest area of sorts. I asked an employee at the food court where the restrooms were, and she handed me a token. When I was working on the Trinity Church undercroft project a few years ago, I [...]
Personally, I think architects like pocket doors way too much but that’s the cool thing about a blog…I get to tell everyone what I think. If you decide to use a pocket door on an opening that is required to be accessible, here’s what you need to know: According to the accessibility standards, the [...]
I have spent this entire week at our corporate office, so I haven’t had a lot of time for posting. In return for your patience, next week I will post the third and final article from Lewis C. Norton’s “How I Discovered Door Checks.” That seems fair, right? I’m here in Carmel with about a [...]
This post was printed in the February 2011 issue of: It’s hard to believe that this question still comes up as often as it does, so I’m hoping to definitively answer it once and for all. The question is “Do single bathrooms require locks which release with one operation?” The question is most often asked [...]
One of the top 5 questions which I receive almost weekly is regarding the replacement of a 5′-wide equal pair with a 3′+2′ unequal pair. Because automatic flush bolts and a coordinator can be problematic, and most panic hardware will not fit on a 2′ wide door, I’m constantly being asked if it’s ok to [...]
After my post about the Parkside West fire, a couple of people have asked me what I have against spring hinges. I’m not one to discriminate against hardware of any function, style, or finish, but I also like things to do what they’re supposed to do. If I could get my kids to act more [...]
Tactile warning is an abrasive or knurled strip on a lever handle to indicate that the door leads to a hazardous area such as a boiler room, mechanical room, or loading dock. This requirement is no longer included in the Americans with Disabilities Act Accessibility Guidelines (ADAAG) or in ICC/ANSI A117.1, but it is a [...]
You wouldn’t think that a fair would be a great place for door-hunting, but I saw the doors below at The Big E last weekend. There’s a lot going on here – sliding, folding, and swinging doors serving a giant assembly occupancy. This reminds of many scenarios dreamed up by architects that I’ve advised strongly [...]
I have to admit, I visit the local frozen yogurt joint so often that the owners ask me if I want “the usual.” Hey – it’s YOGURT…practically health food! I wasn’t sure how I’d be able to make it through their winter break – about 2 months. I survived, but the closer on their entrance [...]
It’s hard to believe that last week was the 20th anniversary of the Americans With Disabilities Act. I clearly remember being sent to a seminar at the Ramada Inn in the early 90′s to hear all about how this *new* law would affect architecture and construction. Of course, not much of the presentation was spent [...]
These photos were sent in by Nolan Thrope of Ingersoll Rand Security Technologies. He said they had the velcro version of wander-prevention on numerous doors. What say you? Thanks Nolan!
I’d love to know who did this, so I can give them a good talking-to (maybe they’ll read this and track me down like the semi-concealed closer installer). This photo was taken in a restaurant by one of my coworkers. The tables and chairs are blocking the door, and someone trying to exit would have [...]
