Search results for: Elevator lobby

Elevator Lobby Egress

Elevator Lobby Egress

Fair warning...this is going to be one of those posts that makes your eyes glaze over, especially if you haven't had your coffee yet. But since I've seen several people come to my site looking for this information and leaving without it, I need to post about it before the next person comes looking. I'll try to make it as concise as possible, and remember, the red italicized paragraphs are the code excerpts so you probably don't need to read those unless you're really digging into this issue.

By Lori Greene|2013-03-14T18:06:07-04:00October 5th, 2009|Electrified Hardware, Means of Egress|1 Comment

Code Update: Elevator Lobby Exit Access Doors

Code Update: Elevator Lobby Exit Access Doors

Have you ever struggled with securing an elevator lobby door to prevent access to a tenant space, while complying with the need for a means of egress from the elevator lobby? An approved change to the 2024 IBC should help!

By Lori Greene|2022-10-18T13:46:35-04:00December 14th, 2021|arch, Electrified Hardware|1 Comment

Decoded: Elevator Lobby Egress

Decoded: Elevator Lobby Egress

This post was printed in the October 2013 issue of Doors & Hardware

By Lori Greene|2021-08-03T18:07:56-04:00August 13th, 2013|Articles, Electrified Hardware, Means of Egress|18 Comments

Decoded: Smoke Door Requirements of the International Building Code

Decoded: Smoke Door Requirements of the International Building Code

By request, I have updated this article on smoke doors to include the requirements of the 2021 IBC. When you have a question about a smoke door, just decide which of the 5 types it is and refer to the section for that type.

By Lori Greene|2021-11-30T23:07:42-05:00July 29th, 2021|arch, Articles, Fire Doors, Full Width, hc, Smoke|15 Comments

Decoded: Changes to the Life Safety Code for Health Care Occupancies (July 2016)

Decoded: Changes to the Life Safety Code for Health Care Occupancies (July 2016)

In case you haven't noticed, there is an interesting conversation happening on my post from earlier in the week about classroom barricade devices. If you have something informative to add in response to the manufacturers of these products...

By Lori Greene|2021-03-18T10:49:04-04:00May 19th, 2016|Articles, Electrified Hardware, Fire Doors, hc, Health Care, Means of Egress|6 Comments

Locksmith Ledger: Electromagnetic Locks – 7 Applications and the Codes That Apply

Locksmith Ledger: Electromagnetic Locks – 7 Applications and the Codes That Apply

How do you choose which code section to use?

By Lori Greene|2019-03-04T10:13:09-05:00March 4th, 2019|Electrified Hardware, Means of Egress|15 Comments

What’s Next? Approved changes to the 2024 IBC affecting electrified hardware

What’s Next? Approved changes to the 2024 IBC affecting electrified hardware

John Woestman of BHMA and I worked on this article together, addressing some important changes that will be included in the 2024 IBC. It's never too early to be aware of what's coming!

By Lori Greene|2022-10-29T11:34:53-04:00January 6th, 2022|arch, Articles, Code Development, Electrified Hardware, hc, Panic Hardware|1 Comment

QQ: Elevator Lobby Egress

QQ: Elevator Lobby Egress

Can elevator lobby doors be locked, and only allow egress through the tenant space when there is a fire alarm?

By Lori Greene|2018-06-26T02:43:46-04:00June 26th, 2018|Electrified Hardware, Means of Egress, Quick Question|5 Comments

Decoded: Electrified Hardware Refresher (April 2015)

Decoded: Electrified Hardware Refresher (April 2015)

There are 7 basic code categories for electrified hardware used to control access or egress, and this edition of Decoded provides a brief refresher on each as well as some recent code changes. Many of these code applications, but not all, fall into the category commonly called “special locking arrangements.”

By Lori Greene|2015-06-17T06:42:55-04:00February 5th, 2015|Articles, Electrified Hardware, Fire Doors, Means of Egress|5 Comments

Elevator Hoistway Doors

Elevator Hoistway Doors

I just saw these doors in a hotel, so it seems like a good time to write about the requirements for doors at an elevator hoistway.

By Lori Greene|2018-07-17T00:33:33-04:00July 17th, 2018|Fire Doors, Road Trips, Smoke|10 Comments

Decoded: Fail Safe vs. Fail Secure – When and Where?

Decoded: Fail Safe vs. Fail Secure – When and Where?

Because of some changes made in the 2024 editions of the I-Codes, I have updated this Decoded article addressing when to use fail secure vs. fail safe electrified hardware.

By Lori Greene|2023-09-24T03:02:26-04:00October 2nd, 2023|Articles, Electrified Hardware, Fire Doors, Means of Egress|0 Comments

Decoded: Electrified Locking Systems – Which code sections apply where?

Decoded: Electrified Locking Systems – Which code sections apply where?

Confused about the various code sections that apply to electrified hardware? These questions will guide you in the right direction.

By Lori Greene|2021-11-30T23:11:10-05:00August 25th, 2020|Articles, Electrified Hardware, Full Width, Means of Egress|1 Comment

WWYD? Elevator Lobby – Water Intrusion

WWYD? Elevator Lobby – Water Intrusion

When trying to prevent water intrusion at the fire service elevator lobby doors, what type of door sweep or door bottom meets the intent of IBC Section 3007? WWYD?

By Lori Greene|2020-01-07T21:46:26-05:00December 23rd, 2019|Gasketing & Thresholds, WWYD?|14 Comments

Code Update: Terminated Stops on Fire Door Assemblies

Code Update: Terminated Stops on Fire Door Assemblies

I have had quite a few questions about terminated stops on fire door assemblies, so this change to the 2021 IBC should help to clarify what is allowed by code.

By Lori Greene|2021-02-25T16:46:22-05:00July 2nd, 2020|Doors & Frames, Fire Doors, hc|5 Comments

Model Code Update on Swinging Door Openings

Model Code Update on Swinging Door Openings

I recently taught an interactive code update class for an enthusiastic and competitive group of conference attendees, and I'm sharing some of the information from that session in this article, so everyone can benefit from what was covered in the presentation.

By Lori Greene|2023-11-25T17:29:39-05:00November 27th, 2023|Accessibility, Articles, Fire Doors, Means of Egress|1 Comment

Code Requirements for Doors with Access Control

Code Requirements for Doors with Access Control

This article was published in the March 2013 issue of Construction Specifier.

By Lori Greene|2015-12-01T23:38:58-05:00March 8th, 2013|Construction Specifier, Electrified Hardware, Means of Egress|27 Comments

Decoded: Doors with Access Control (October 2012)

Decoded: Doors with Access Control (October 2012)

This post was printed in the October 2012 issue of Doors & Hardware

By Lori Greene|2013-08-27T23:21:38-04:00July 26th, 2012|Articles, Electrified Hardware, Means of Egress|8 Comments

FF: Why ask why?

FF: Why ask why?

This is the door hardware equivalent of whodunnit...maybe I should start calling these "whydunnit."

By Lori Greene|2019-05-30T23:48:11-04:00May 30th, 2019|Fixed-it Friday, Flush Bolts and Coordinators|26 Comments

QQ: Fire Alarm Release of Electrified Locks

QQ: Fire Alarm Release of Electrified Locks

I have written about this topic from various angles, but this Quick Question keeps coming up: Is it code-compliant to have an electrified lock that is normally locked on the egress side, if it unlocks automatically upon fire alarm activation?

By Lori Greene|2023-03-12T19:06:38-04:00March 6th, 2023|Electrified Hardware, Means of Egress, Quick Question|9 Comments

QQ: Gasketing Requirements of NFPA 101

QQ: Gasketing Requirements of NFPA 101

Last week, I updated the Decoded article on smoke door requirements of the IBC, and I was asked to update this NFPA 101 post as well. There were not many changes in the 2021 edition of the Life Safety Code, but here is the revised post.

By Lori Greene|2021-08-05T14:27:48-04:00August 3rd, 2021|arch, FDAI, Fire Doors, Gasketing & Thresholds, hc, Quick Question|0 Comments

QQ: Gasketing Requirements of NFPA 101

QQ: Gasketing Requirements of NFPA 101

Which door openings are required to have gasketing, according to NFPA 101 - The Life Safety Code?

By Lori Greene|2021-07-28T12:29:35-04:00May 23rd, 2017|FDAI, Fire Doors, Gasketing & Thresholds, hc, Quick Question|3 Comments

Decoded: Code Requirements for UL 294 – Standard for Access Control System Units

Decoded: Code Requirements for UL 294 – Standard for Access Control System Units

The two common code questions that arise regarding UL 294 are - A) which electrified applications are subject to the listing requirements? and B) which components of a system are required to be listed?

By Lori Greene|2021-03-16T02:09:35-04:00November 5th, 2015|Articles, Electrified Hardware|18 Comments

SDI: Smoke Gasketing Requirements for Opening Protectives

SDI: Smoke Gasketing Requirements for Opening Protectives

Questions on smoke gasketing continue to come up, so the Steel Door Institute asked me to write about it for their quarterly newsletter. You can subscribe to their newsletter here...

By Lori Greene|2015-12-21T02:40:27-05:00December 21st, 2015|Doors & Frames, Gasketing & Thresholds, Smoke|4 Comments

Decoded: Thresholds and Gasketing for Fire Doors and Smoke Doors

Decoded: Thresholds and Gasketing for Fire Doors and Smoke Doors

Thresholds and gasketing are simple in comparison to other types of hardware, but the code requirements can make them difficult to properly specify and supply.

By Lori Greene|2021-07-05T19:42:24-04:00April 23rd, 2019|Articles, Fire Doors, Gasketing & Thresholds|24 Comments

Construction Specifier: Smoke Doors vs. Fire Doors – What’s the Difference?

Construction Specifier: Smoke Doors vs. Fire Doors – What’s the Difference?

I receive so many questions about fire doors vs. smoke doors; my article from the June issue of Construction Specifier answers many of them.

By Lori Greene|2021-02-26T12:56:32-05:00June 4th, 2019|Construction Specifier, FDAI, Fire Doors, hc, Smoke|10 Comments

UL 294 Follow-Up

UL 294 Follow-Up

The access control hardware on your project is up and running (phew!), and then you are asked to provide evidence that every piece of electrified hardware on the job is listed to UL 294...

By Lori Greene|2017-03-30T12:07:37-04:00March 30th, 2017|Electrified Hardware|9 Comments

Decoded: Smoke Door Requirements of the 2009 International Building Code (February 2012)

UPDATE: A new version of this article, based on the 2015 IBC, is located here.

By Lori Greene|2015-12-02T22:37:18-05:00December 9th, 2011|Articles, Smoke|28 Comments

UL 294 Follow-Up – 2021 Update

UL 294 Follow-Up – 2021 Update

The access control hardware on your project is up and running (phew!), and then you are asked to provide evidence that every piece of electrified hardware on the job is listed to UL 294... (updated with 2021 code references)

By Lori Greene|2021-05-04T10:07:13-04:00May 4th, 2021|Electrified Hardware|8 Comments

Decoded: Special Locking Arrangements vs. Normal Locking Arrangements

Decoded: Special Locking Arrangements vs. Normal Locking Arrangements

Misinterpretations of the model code requirements for electrified hardware continue to hit my inbox on a regular basis, BUT - I expect some help from the ICC soon. In the meantime, I hope this Decoded article will reach the people who need it - feel free to share it!

By Lori Greene|2021-11-30T23:07:23-05:00August 19th, 2021|Articles, Electrified Hardware, Full Width, Means of Egress|0 Comments

QQ: Dead-End Corridors

QQ: Dead-End Corridors

Sometimes a floor plan will show a corridor that ends with a wall or a locked door, creating a dead end. Today's Quick Question: What is the maximum length of a dead end corridor that is allowed by the model codes?

By Lori Greene|2021-08-05T14:04:45-04:00July 13th, 2021|arch, Means of Egress, Quick Question|6 Comments