Derrick Riding sent me today’s Wordless Wednesday photo of a hold-open device on a fire door (note the painted label). Aside from the fact that it’s not acceptable for use on a fire door assembly, this hold-open method is terrible for the door, frame, and hinges. Is this an actual product made for this purpose, or was it designed for something else and just happens to “work” as a hold-open?
UPDATE: Bill Dorner of Allegion found this product (or something very similar) on Amazon. Two of the three doors shown in the Amazon listing are fire doors. :\
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Looks like some child’s legi toy,,
Fit them together to build something???
This looks like a device that I acquired from a maintenance man. The housekeeping staff uses them to hold room doors open. The one I have is made from a very dense foam-like material so that if someone attempts to close the door while it is stuck between the door & jamb, it compresses enough to keep from damaging the door and/or frame. It’s better than a mop handle!
Looks like a Scorpion Door Stop. Found it on Amazon here: https://www.amazon.com/Scorpion-Commercial-Bending-Injuries-Tradional/dp/B00JRGAFRQ
Looks like we have a winner!!
“No More Bending Over Causing Back Injuries, Just Open Door and Fit It Over Middle Hinge Pin. No More Demage Cause By Tradional Door Stops.”
LMAO!
That’s Marketing Magic right there. 😀
– Lori
Wedge-It is another similar one, see link: http://www.wedgeit.com/
Not all labels on doors mean that opening is a fire opening. GC’s are always recycling doors, I recently had an opening with a label on a Steelcraft Door and a Ceco Frame or the other way around
Hi Steve –
That is true, but I wouldn’t be surprised if the doors in the photos are required to be fire-rated. There should at least be a statement on the Amazon listing about not using the product on fire doors (IMO).
– Lori
Firefighters use similar to chock open doors with searching a building and/or so the door does not pinch off the hose line
https://www.amazon.com/dp/B00KC5M5G0/ref=asc_df_B00KC5M5G05157356/?tag=hyprod-20&creative=395009&creativeASIN=B00KC5M5G0&linkCode=df0&hvadid=167148637601&hvpos=1o2&hvnetw=g&hvrand=4370172269524629349&hvpone=&hvptwo=&hvqmt=&hvdev=c&hvdvcmdl=&hvlocint=&hvlocphy=9001798&hvtargid=pla-307616126638
Hi Curtis –
I’ve seen those, and in a fire it’s a totally different story since the firefighters know how to use the doors to help control the fire. I don’t think they should be sold for ongoing use by the maintenance department.
– Lori
looks like a plastic fusible link, kidding.
I do like the idea that they won’t rack the hinges if someone tries to close the door, but still no excuse to violate the fire code, and possibly security policies for the building.
Last week in our school district was the week that teachers return to the schools to do prep before the
kids return this week. I found wood wedges jammed in the hinge edge of the door on more than one school where
the staff couldn’t be bothered to call our security secretary to get the access program changed from the summer
limited access setting to the school in session setting. That would have taken, maybe 2 minutes. Very frustrating,
and why I always carry a selection of hinges in my truck. That said, I may just order some ‘Wedge-It’s’ for when I am working on doors.
Curt beat me to it…he’s a firefighter and a building official; I’m a firefighter and a fire code official, but I’m sure that Curt has removed more door stops from fire doors than I have. I like the innovation, especially with respect to keeping doors open and off the hose; however, that is not what they are made for or used for most of the time. The real problem is education. The folks using them do not understand the potential consequences of their actions because fires are low probability events. Without proper closure of fire barriers, the potential consequences of a fire increases exponentially…which means the risk increases exponentially. The AHJ cannot be everywhere, all the time. Educating the user is the only way to attack this problem.
Thanks for sharing your insight, Dwight! Here’s a question for you. I agree that the AHJ can’t be everywhere, all the time, and it’s difficult for me to reach all of the millions of users out there. But every month people spend more than 1,000 hours reading the articles on iDigHardware, so there are thousands of people who are educated about the requirements for egress, fire doors, and accessibility. Sometimes a reader contacts me because they are worried about something they’ve seen, and if they want me to, I contact the local fire marshal to alert them to the problem. When a fire marshal receives “complaints” from the (educated) public, are they welcomed, or seen as one more thing on the to-do list? Is there a better way to handle this?
– Lori
The only review, from “keeebs”, on the linked Amazon listing, addresses the fire door issue and gave the part a 1 star review.
Hi Bryan –
That review appeared today so I suspect it was left by a reader of iDH.
– Lori
That one review posted yesterday, though! 😉
Well it only has a 1 star rating on Amazon…I’m not getting one!