There's an article in the May/June 2009 issue of the NFPA Journal about the inspection of egress doors and fire doors. You can access the article here. It's an excellent overview of the inspection requirements found in the 2009 Edition of NFPA 101 - The Life Safety Code.
Name: Steve Monroe AHC, CDT
The open back strike hadn't been installed when I took this photo, but what else is missing? It's a tricky one, but you can click on the picture to enlarge it if you need to.
If you're a frequent visitor to this site you probably know the story...I posted a photo of a concealed closer that is installed so that it's visible through the frame face, and the hardware supplier/installer saw the photo on my site and emailed me to tell me the situation. Apparently it was not a mistake - it was an ingenious solution to a problem, and they used it on 15 pairs of doors in a hotel. I asked the supplier to send me a photo of the completed installation with the custom cover plates in place, and he recently emailed me to say that he "drove down to the Dead Sea and took pictures..."
An astragal is a piece of molding used on a pair of doors or between the top and bottom leaves of a Dutch door, to provide security, protect against weather conditions, prevent light or sound transmission, or to retard the passage of smoke, flame, or gases during a fire. On a Dutch door the astragal is used to close the bottom leaf in conjunction with the top leaf. An astragal should not be confused with a mullion, which sits between (fixed) or behind (removable) the meeting stiles of a pair.
I have visited 10 countries in Africa, so in honor of the first African country to host a visitor to this website (the 38th country to visit the site!), I decided to post an African door photo from my collection. I searched through the albums of my trips and found hundreds of photos of elephants, lions, and my fellow campers behaving badly, but hardly any photos of doors! I will eventually find and post my photo collection called the Doors of Zanzibar, but in the meantime, here are a few shots of the doors of the Hassan II Mosque in Casablanca Morocco. To give these openings some scale, that's me sitting in front of a GIANT door, beside a door similar in size to the one in the close-up.
I've added a new page to help you find what you're looking for - the Index tab above. There are already 76 posts (!) and I'll be adding two new features shortly. One will be a series called Industry Profiles - to help you get to know some of the great people who work in the door & hardware industry. The other is in response to your requests...a series called Basic Training. Our office periodically offers a 5-week course by the same name, which is a pretty generic introduction to doors & hardware including mechanical and electrified hardware, codes, and blueprint reading. Many of our current customers are Basic Training alumni. Quite a few people have found this website and asked for more information on the basics, so they can learn about hardware from the ground up. I hope to have the first posts of both series ready next week.
I think this photo speaks for itself. I just love the creativity and the lengths people will go to with these modifications. It's kind of sad that I get my kicks from looking at doors gone wrong, but admit it...you do too!
Here's a little reminder to make sure you size the top rod correctly when using manual flush bolts on doors that are over 7' tall. Most manufacturers offer a top rod that is 12" (standard), 24", 36", or 48" long. In this application, I would have probably specified panic hardware on both leaves depending on the door height and vertical rod capabilities, or an automatic flush bolt for the top bolt, which would be projected by the active leaf. I'm not a big fan of automatic flush bolts, but a 48" long top rod might not be quite long enough to bring the bolt down to an operable height. I have also seen hardware suppliers buy threaded rod to increase the top rod length, but at some point the rod gets too long to operate smoothly.
I recently needed to refer to a copy of HMMA-850, the NAAMM/HMMA standard for fire rated doors and frames. I was pleasantly surprised to find this standard on-line as a free download. Upon further digging, I found that almost ALL of the HMMA and SDI publications can be downloaded for free from their websites. There is a wealth of information there, including free downloadable specifications and ANSI standards. If you're an architect or specwriter, you can even request a complimentary bound copy (or CD) of the SDI Fact File which includes all of their publications. Click the links below to check out the list of standards available for download.
There's an exception in the Health Care chapters of NFPA 101 that I've always wondered about. It's in the chapters regarding New & Existing Health Care Occupancies (18 & 19), in the section about corridors:
After over 20 years in the hardware industry, my family has grown accustomed to me taking photos of doors. They still think it's strange, but it's no longer surprising. Last weekend we were on a Fathers Day outing and I saw this sad door on a gas station ladies' room. I couldn't help but wonder...who would be this desperate to get into the ladies room? I guess someone REALLY had to go.
The new Vermont Fire & Building Safety Code went into effect on June 15, 2009. The new code references the 2006 edition of the International Building Code, and the 2006 edition of NFPA 101 - The Life Safety Code.
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.
My last post referenced the term "exit enclosure", and I received a few questions about its meaning. An exit enclosure is the enclosure around an exit. For our purposes it usually refers to a stairwell. According to the IBC, exit enclosures connecting 4 or more stories require a 2-hour fire resistance rating, and those connecting less than 4 stories require a 1-hour fire resistance rating (IBC-2009-1022.1). Exit enclosures must lead directly to the exterior or to an exit passageway, which will typically have the same fire resistance rating as the exit enclosure. The IBC includes some exceptions for exits which do not need to be enclosed, such as stairs in parking garages.
A temperature rise door is a fire-rated door which limits the heat transfer through the door for a period of 30 minutes. Temperature rise ratings indicate the maximum rise above ambient temperature on the non-fire side of the door, and will be either 250°, 450°, or 650° F. The 250° door is the most restrictive because it limits the heat transfer to only 250° for a 30-minute period. A typical hollow metal door would reach approximately 1400° F in the same time period. By minimizing the transfer of heat, a temperature rise door could protect an exit enclosure, allowing people to pass below the floor of fire origin.
My only hesitation in posting these photos is that they are probably the best photos of Doors Gone Wrong that I have ever seen, and any future photos will pale in comparison. These are the holy grail of bad door photos, which I received from Eyal Bedrik of Entry Systems Ltd. in Israel. According to Eyal, these are temperature rise doors, which you can learn more about in my next post.
I started this website a few months ago as a way to connect with our customers and help them find answers to their code questions. I have been amazed at the response to the site, from all over the United States and 18 other countries (and counting!). It really is a small world.
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 online. You can download it here by clicking on the link at the top that says "ERIC Full Text".
I'll get back to the long, wordy posts about code questions soon, but in the meantime here's another cool door photo from Paul Goldense of Goldense Building Products. This opening is used by a water authority to access their pumps for maintenance. It's hung with continuous hinges on a channel iron frame. As an extra challenge, the door is located at the top of a dam. Very cool!
Well...the latch is retracted and it involves a wire! As a follow-up to yesterday's post about retrofit dogging accomplished with a tie-wrap, here's a photo from Brendan Daley of Horner Commercial Sales that was taken in a new hospital. I'm guessing they weren't happy with the lock function so they came up with this ingenious solution. I especially love the tape on the lever. Thanks Brendan!
I've spent several phone calls this week discussing "dogging" with one of my favorite clients. I guess it is kind of hard to keep straight if you're not a hardware person. The term "dogging" refers to holding the latch(es) of a panic device retracted to create a push/pull function. When the panic device is dogged, it is unlocked/unlatched and you can just pull on the door to open it. When the panic device is not dogged, it is latched and you need an active trim (like a lever) or a key to retract the latch(es) and open the door. In either case, free egress is achieved at any time by pushing on the touchpad or crossbar of the panic device.
I love it when I'm able to solve one of life's great mysteries. Today I was asked whether a 90-minute fire rated door required a threshold. The short answer is "no" but my coworker Greg chimed in to ask about fire rated openings with combustible floor covering running through. There's a paragraph in NFPA 80 that I've wondered about in the past (for about 5 seconds), which says that combustible floor coverings can extend under doors that are rated up to 90 minutes as long as the minimum critical radiant flux is .22 W/cm2. What that means, I have no clue, although Zeke tried to put it in terms of a lightbulb for me one time.
This is one of those openings that makes me cringe...yuck! But I can't let a teachable moment go by. Yesterday I got a call from an architect who asked whether it was acceptable to put a panic device on one leaf of a pair when only that leaf is required for egress width. The codes aren't 100% clear on this, but I have had code officials require panics on both leaves of a pair even if only one leaf is required for egress. You also need to consider the alternative to using panics on both leaves...a panic on one leaf and auto flush bolts on the other. This application also requires a coordinator and overall it's a problematic application.
1008.1.8.6 Delayed egress locks. Approved, listed, delayed egress locks shall be permitted to be installed on doors serving any occupancy except Group A, E and H occupancies in buildings that are equipped throughout with an automatic sprinkler system in accordance with Section 903.3.1.1 or an approved automatic smoke or heat detection system installed in accordance with Section 907...
Last week someone called me with a "quick question" about a double egress pair in a hospital. The hospital wanted to install shear locks on a pair of double egress doors, to use during emergency lock-downs. Unfortunately, as some of you have figured out by now, I don't usually have a quick answer. There are actually two issues here:
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 Board (521 CMR) to get the real scoop. All 3 agencies told me that there was no specific dimension required for clearance behind a door pull. I was recently asked this question about a cabinet pull, so I made all 3 calls again to make sure I wasn't missing something. I was again told that you need to be able to slide a flat hand behind the door pull, and to open the door without gripping the pull. During both research projects I asked about a closed fist and was told that the clearance was not required to be large enough for a closed fist.
This article was written by Carl Prinzler, one of the creators of the original exit device, at the end of the 1930's. I think it's an interesting insight into the development of the first exit device and the code requirements at that time.
Since Maine and Massachusetts have adopted the 2007 edition of NFPA 80 which requires the annual inspection of fire doors, we have received enough questions about it that I put together a list of frequently asked questions. Here they are:
What you're looking at is an existing fire rated frame with a new door that I saw recently during a fire door inspection. Most of the other doors that I inspected that day had steel hinge fillers to fill the existing hinge preps before the continuous hinges were installed. So why were a half-dozen or so filled with expandable foam insulation? Hmm...it's a mystery.
There's a great resource for code information on the Reed Construction Data site. It includes information for all 50 states, major cities, and some counties, and lists contact information for many of the AHJs in each jurisdiction.
I didn't want to scare anyone by adding more information to my previous post about stairwell re-entry, but I do get questions about how to accomplish this. The stairwell re-entry requirements state that the stair side lever must unlock on fire alarm or on a signal from the fire command station depending on the code (there is always free egress from the non-stair side). I have seen stair doors that had been retrofitted with card readers and electric strikes. If these doors are required by code to meet the stairwell re-entry requirements, an electric strike is not an acceptable way to do this.
I saw this hold open device on a fire rated door to a computer lab recently.
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:
The 2007 edition of NFPA 80 contains an important change regarding the clearance at the bottom of a fire rated door. In previous editions of this standard, there was a somewhat confusing table (Table 1-11.4) listing different allowable clearance dimensions depending on the flooring material. The 2007 edition simplifies this requirement, allowing 3/4" clearance under the bottom of the door regardless of the flooring. The only exception is when the bottom of the door is more than 38" above the floor, ie. dutch doors and counter shutters.
The locking requirements for roof doors are a bit of a gray area, due to the varied preferences of local code officials. In most cases, the roof door can be locked on the interior side, preventing access to the roof. It is very rare (except in movies) that the egress plan for the building includes going to the roof for helicopter access. If the roof was part of the egress path, the roof would have to be maintained as an egress route, snow removed, etc.
When my daughter was in preschool, she told her class that when she grew up she wanted to be a "hard work insultant", just like her mom. After 20+ years of explaining to people what I do, I can't blame her for being a little confused. In case you've been wondering why anyone would need a hardware consultant, here are the answers to some frequently asked questions:
The hot topic of last week was how to handle locks on dormitory entrance doors, since the students have figured out how to reach under the door with a coat hanger and pull down the lever to unlock the door. There's a minute+ of bad video below to illustrate the procedure, as reenacted by a couple of college boys. The video has already been viewed 1,419 times by students who need help with their coat hanger technique, so the problem is bound to get bigger.
A few years ago, an architect that I've worked with for over 20 years called me and indignantly asked, "Do you know the maximum height for a kick plate on a fire door?!" I answered that it was 16" above the bottom of the door. The architect said, "Well! We tried to write our own hardware spec for a 15-door job. There were 11 hardware sets and there has been a problem with every set except one, and now there's a problem with THAT set...the kick plate is too high!" As far as I know, they never tried to write their own hardware spec again.
I'm currently working on several projects that have glass doors in walls that are acting as 1-hour fire barriers with closely-spaced sprinkler heads above the glass. The problem with this application from a hardware standpoint is that the Blumcraft, CR Laurence, and Dorma Glas panic hardware that is typically used on glass doors does not have active trim (like a lever handle) to retract the latch from the secure side. To unlock these doors, you would typically use the dogging feature of the panic device to leave the doors in a push/pull condition, but because they require positive latching, dogging is not an option. I have searched the world over for a solution to this problem, but the only possibility I've found so far is using fail secure electric strikes to release the latches. Unfortunately, this application is extremely noisy, as illustrated by the video below. If anyone has any ideas, I'd love to hear from you.
I am running into more and more all-glass doors on my projects, and in the words of one of the contractors I'm working with, "Doors are being asked to do things they've never done before." I've had large glass panels pivoting at the center, glass doors acting as opening protectives in fire-rated walls, and glass doors with all types of electrified hardware applications - all with invisible wires, of course. Given the limited options available for glass door hardware, it's often a real challenge to specify hardware that meets the functional and aesthetic requirements for the project. On one project I specified Schlage mortise locks installed in Blumcraft center housings and it was a great solution. The glass door manufacturer had no problem accommodating them, the architect was happy with the way they looked, and I had the full range of lock functions to choose from.
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 drafting jobs we were offered instead of choosing the glamorous field of door hardware.
I readily admit that I get excited about things that wouldn't excite the average U.S. citizen but that's part of my charm. ;-)
Last week I conducted a 3-hour class for the New England Chapter of the Door & Hardware Institute. The class is available to any hardware suppliers, architects, or end users in New England who need to understand code requirements related to doors and hardware, including recent changes to the Massachusetts State Building Code, and the 2006 and 2009 editions of the International Building Code and the Life Safety Code. If you have 12 or more people who are interested in attending, I will conduct the class at your facility or our office in Needham, Massachusetts. It's worth 3 HSW learning units for AIA members, and 9 continuing education points for DHI members.
I recently conducted a fire door assembly inspection and I noted that many of the existing frames had old holes that had been patched with Bondo filler putty. NFPA 80 requires that holes left by the removal of hardware must be filled with steel fasteners or with the same material as the door or frame. To the best of my knowledge, there isn't a filler putty-type product that has been tested for this use. If anyone knows of a putty that is acceptable for use on fire-rated doors and frames, I'd love to hear about it.
In the last 2 days, a certified fire door inspector and a hardware supplier have both asked me where it is stated that Maine and Massachusetts have adopted the 2007 edition of NFPA 80, which includes the requirement for the annual inspection of fire doors.
I've been asked this question so many times you'd think I'd know the answer by now. By the way...the photo at left doesn't have much to do with the question, I just think it's funny.
According to the International Residential Code, the door between a private garage and a single family home must provide protection from fire. The picture to the right is from a fire department website describing how the door between the garage and the home protected the rest of the residence and its occupants. The door must be a solid wood or solid/honeycomb core steel door, at least 1 3/8" thick, or a door with a 20-minute label.
