There are some AHJs who allow security measures that are not compliant for egress if they're only used "after hours." I always say that this is a slippery slope, because once the device is installed, there's no guarantee that anyone will remember that the door is supposed to be unlocked during business hours...
I've been talking about this for years with regard to fire doors as well as doors in a home, but it's nice to have someone from UL back me up...
Last week I received a really interesting question. The city of Sioux Falls, South Dakota, made a local code modification that requires certain stairwell doors to be automatic-closing. But what about security? This is the application I would use...
Some Fixed-it Friday photos result in mixed emotions - sadness that people resort to these methods, excitement that I have something to share with you that will make you shake your head, concern that the creative application could cause harm. Like these photos from Leo Lebovits of M&D Door & Hardware, taken at a public swimming pool...
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?
These Wordless Wednesday photos are from Erich Friend of Teqniqal Systems. According to Erich, the first photo is the initial egress door out of the auditorium. If you make it past the lab table, you encounter the trash can and piano stored in front of the exit discharge. No words...
A few months ago I posted some images of a new educational piece on fire door inspections. When I was in Carmel last month I saw one in person, and I think they're great! They're hard laminated cards - about 4 inches wide and 12 inches long. We have some in stock...
Today's Fixed-it Friday photo was found on Imgur, so I don't know where it originated. It shows the creative use of an access control keypad to control egress. If this application was used in a memory care facility, it would be code-compliant if a delayed egress system or controlled egress system was used...
On Thursday, November 12, my coworker (and old college friend!), Bill Lawliss, will be conducting webinars at 11 a.m. and 2 p.m. Eastern. Bill will cover Basic Hardware - products used to hang, secure, control, and protect the door. The webinar offers 1 CEU for AIA members and there is no charge to attend the class.
There are some of my favorite Wordless Wednesday photos ever. They're simple, yet complex in their irony. Found in a state office building and sent to me by John Gant from Allegion.
I'm working on some more information to post here, but for now I wanted to share this article from Al Jazeera America. It is the very FIRST mainstream media article I've seen that addresses some of the problems associated with the use of classroom barricade devices...
This question landed on my desk recently...What is the minimum clear opening width for each leaf of a double-egress pair?
According to the facility, the doors are no longer required as an exit, but if that's the case, why not just lock them up, add some signage ("Not an Exit"), remove the exit sign, and make it look less like a Fixed-it Friday contender?
If you're thinking that this post doesn't apply to you because you're not in Ohio, think again. Several states are becoming more proactive about this issue to try to avoid similar legislation...
This Wordless Wednesday photo kind of ties in with yesterday's pool gate post. This is NOT the way to provide access control on swimming pools, tennis courts, or any other chain link gate for that matter...
I know that much of the US is beyond swimming pool season, but this question just came up again so I'll leave it right here for you to find when you need it...
A 91-year-old man with dementia has died after wandering onto the roof of the housing authority apartment building where he lived in Batavia, New York. News reports are citing an unlocked door leading to the roof - it may have locked after the man passed through it...
I saw this door as I was walking down the street an hour ago. It's your run-of-the-mill trash-can hold-open, with an added security layer consisting of a stack of giant bottles of water (we call them garrafones) inside...
From the November issue of Doors & Hardware...the table below addresses the requirements for delayed egress and controlled egress, for both the IBC and NFPA 101. Do you know the difference?
John Lozano from Allegion sent me this photo he took at a festival in Wisconsin...I've seen worse at the state fair, but this exit is a little sketchy...
In the October issue of Doors & Hardware, Lt. Hendry shares the law enforcement perspective on the use of classroom barricade devices, in an article called America's Maginot Line - Why our focus on secondary locking devices makes us more vulnerable to threats...
In the October issue of Doors & Hardware, I have an article on what took place in Ohio with regard to the state legislation on classroom barricade devices, and another article covering the myths and facts presented at the National Association of State Fire Marshals' annual conference (here's a video version of this information)...
Andy Lindenberg, one of my Allegion coworkers, sent me today's Fixed-it Friday photos from a university that has an obvious wind condition. This door has a spring-cush arm on the closer, a heavy duty overhead stop, and a chain stop. Do you have any better ideas?
Today's question...is it code-compliant to have panic hardware along with additional stationary horizontal push-bars?
This is the exit access leading to a 3rd-floor fire escape in a Montreal hotel. I'm Wordless.
Whether panic hardware is required by code or specified for increased security and ease of use, there are three basic styles and four types that are commonly used...
Whether we’re specifying, supplying, installing, or inspecting doors and hardware, it’s our responsibility to speak up if we see situations that we know are not code-compliant and do our best to rectify them...
Last week's Fixed-it Friday photo has raised some questions about the best way to handle an unequal pair...a) Do both leaves of a pair require panic hardware?...
This is not how I would have specified the hardware for this unequal leaf pair. I think the panic hardware on the small leaf actually results in an opening that is less safe, because the removable mullion makes the small leaf difficult or impossible to use...
With increased enforcement of the fire door assembly inspection requirements, deficiencies will no longer be ignored. When an AHJ sees non-labeled doors or frames in a location where a fire door assembly is required, it may be an indicator of other problems with the opening protective. In the past, there were limited options...
According to Nathan Burkhardt of Opening Technologies, this church addressed their classroom security by adding shades for the vision lites, and changing the locks to office function with a turn-button. Because the kids and teachers were getting injured by the sharp turn-button design...
Austin Baumann of Central Indiana Hardware sent me this photo of the emergency exit in a mirror maze. This would be considered a special amusement building - I wrote about some of the requirements for those occupancies here. I have often seen means of egress modifications...
It's been a really long time since I posted a collection of reader photos because I've been using a lot of these submissions for Wordless Wednesday and Fixed-it Friday. Here are some of the reader photos that have been patiently waiting in my inbox...
We still do almost all of our shopping in the small tiendas and larger mercados, but last weekend I saw this door at la bodega. At first glance I saw the sign and thought it had a delayed egress lock...
Who knew "Wordless Wednesday" translated so perfectly into Spanish? I think "mudo" is more like mute than speechless, but I'm going with it! I've become somewhat numb to Mexican egress, but some of the accessibility modifications are extreme enough to catch my eye...
You may have read the AP article that appeared in the news media across the country over the weekend, addressing some of the concerns associated with classroom barricade devices. In case you missed it...
Ideally a classroom door can be locked from within the classroom without opening the door and potential exposing the teacher to an intruder in the hallway. Many schools have existing classroom function locksets, which have to be locked by inserting a key in the outside cylinder. When a district doesn't have the funding to replace the locks...
This article is currently posted on ConstructionSpecifier.com...The question, “When is panic hardware required by code?” is one that many specifiers continue to struggle with because there isn't a simple answer to this seemingly simple question...
Chris Ostwinkle from DH Pace sent me today's Wordless Wednesday photo. The bar above the panic limits the degree of opening, which may have contributed to the closer issues. And in case you missed it...that's a double-cylinder deadbolt above the panic, in addition to the slide bolt. :(
It’s Fire Door Safety Week in the UK, and I can’t help but wonder why the US is so far behind in educating the public about the value of fire doors. It’s a shame, really.
I need your help! And for the first 10 people who find a mistake that nobody else has found, I'll send you a $25 Amazon.com gift card by email (limit - one gift card per person).
This Fixed-it Friday photo was taken at an open house by JJ Normandeau of CFS Canada. I know that hardware can be difficult and confusing, but come on... (also - please help identify the access control product pictured at the bottom of this post)
What do you think? Is this the safest school in America?
This is the rear exit of a liquor store. Although the store was closed when this photo was taken, on the other side of the door there is an exit sign, panic hardware, a surface bolt, and a padlock. This type of retrofit is common when additional security is needed, but it is NOT code-compliant...
This is another one for my code development wish list. The typical height for a dutch door shelf is usually 39-42 inches above the floor. It can be tricky to coordinate the latching hardware in the bottom leaf...
One more whiteboard animation in the latest series...this time on hinges!
I didn't know whether this should be a Wordless Wednesday photo or a Fixed-it Friday photo, but it's Friday so here goes (I AM Wordless though)...
Ohio BBS Guidance Document: "Schools are being cautioned against purchasing and deploying devices before the rules take effect as some devices currently on the market may not be allowable once new rules are adopted."
Today's Wordless Wednesday photo came from the New York Daily News. The full article about the high-end furniture store being cited by OSHA for blocked egress routes and propped open fire doors can be read here...
Sometimes a question crosses my desk that surprises me - it seems like after 6+ years of writing about doors and hardware every day I would have heard them all, but this was a first. I was asked to find out where in the codes it states that a removable mullion is acceptable to use on a fire door assembly...
