Door Closers

INNadequate Closer (& More!)

I spent last weekend in Stowe, Vermont with one of my BFFs and we stayed at an "inn," which seems to mean bigger than a bed and breakfast but not as modern as a hotel.  As my friend said, "I got the keys...they're real keys - how quaint!"  I won't get into how the lock on our room had to be unlocked with the thumbturn before you could turn the knob for egress, but I will share the completely inadequate mini-closer on the exterior door adjacent to our room.  The door never closed and latched, and the kitchen staff hung out on the landing smoking butts (not the hinge kind).  Good thing we had the high-security privacy chain on our room door.

By |2012-01-27T21:57:29-05:00July 26th, 2011|Beautiful Doors, Door Closers, Doors & Frames|5 Comments
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Knockoffs

Picture this. You wait by the mailbox for your brand spanking new iPad 2 to arrive. You carefully open the box and breathe in the intoxicating scent of Apple, then plug in the cable, sync your iPad with your iTunes account, and settle back to watch a movie. A few minutes into Despicable Me, the screen goes black. AAHH!!! You pack up your iPad, take it to the Apple store, and find out that it's not an Apple iPad after all - it's a KNOCKOFF!!!

By |2016-09-11T22:42:01-04:00July 22nd, 2011|Door Closers|7 Comments
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Closing Speed & Delayed Action

Back in the early 90's when the ADA was the newest focus of the door and hardware industry, delayed action closers were often specified and installed 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 for up to a minute (or more depending on the manufacturer) from the maximum degree of opening to approximately 70 degrees.  The delay is controlled by an additional valve which slows the flow of fluid for that initial period in the closing cycle.  This feature can be helpful in some applications, but it is not required by code.  The other segments of the closing cycle, the main speed and the latch speed, are also controlled by valves (see diagram below).

By |2014-11-03T15:07:01-05:00July 19th, 2011|Accessibility, Door Closers|0 Comments
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Doors in Pockets (not Pocket Doors)

Every time I specify hardware for a door that swings into a pocket, a little alarm sounds in my head because at least 50% of the time there will be a problem that urgently needs to be fixed at the end of the job.  This application requires coordination between the architect designing the pocket, the contractor building the pocket, and the distributor supplying the doors and hardware, and that's a lot harder than it sounds.  The other problem is that when one pair on a project goes south, in most cases ALL of the pairs are a problem.

By |2013-12-04T23:51:34-05:00June 23rd, 2011|Door Closers, Doors & Frames, Fire Doors|7 Comments
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The National Zoo

On our way home we had great weather while we were in the DC area, so we decided to stop at the zoo and let the kids get some of the crazies out.  The lions were my favorite...a pride of 2 lionesses, 1 lion, and 7 cubs - just gorgeous.  I could have watched them all day.  At one point a lioness went to the door and I thought maybe she could smell food or hear someone making preparations.  Apparently big cats can open doors, because the knob had a shield around it.  The door in the tiger exhibit was the same, except that the tigers must be more impatient because instead of waiting and watching they're trying to dig their way in (see below).

By |2012-01-27T21:58:10-05:00April 24th, 2011|Door Closers, Road Trips|0 Comments
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The Door Closer Fairy Was Here

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 door didn't.  It lost all of its fluid and started looking for fingers to lop off.

By |2014-11-08T11:19:56-05:00March 7th, 2011|Accessibility, Door Closers|13 Comments
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The Rector Wanted it Quiet!

All the discussion about the unidentified piece of antique hardware reminded me to create a post about the invention of the door closer.  Luckily, the story of the original LCN door closer was written down in approximately 1937, and I have reproduced it in this post.  This story is near and dear to my heart, since the door closer was invented at Boston's Trinity Church, and I wrote the hardware spec for a large renovation there a few years back.  The photo at right was taken about 10 years ago, and shows one of the original LCN closers at Trinity.

By |2024-09-24T01:03:58-04:00December 9th, 2010|Door Closers|10 Comments
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Connections

When I started this blog, my goals were to organize all of the code information I had into a searchable database, and to offer a more painless way to learn about hardware.  I think one of the hardest things about starting out in this industry is the way most of us learn about it - at the School of Hard Knocks.  There are some great classes available through DHI and other sources, but it can take a very long time to attend them all, which gives us plenty of opportunities to make mistakes.  I know I've made my fair share over the years, so I wanted to help people learn a little bit at a time and hopefully make it as painless as possible.

By |2014-10-08T09:10:36-04:00December 5th, 2010|Door Closers, Doors & Frames, Doors Gone Wrong, Means of Egress|0 Comments
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Bungee Closer

I swear, this blog is not going to become a collection of photos that can be found elsewhere on the web, but since two people sent me this photo today and it's pretty horrible, I just have to post it.  It's another one from thereIfixedit.com, which is a really funny collection of weird stuff that people do to try to fix things.

By |2013-02-13T18:58:31-05:00June 7th, 2010|Door Closers, Funky Applications|0 Comments
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Another Gravity Closer

I'm off to Carmel this week so it's going to be a busy one.  I don't know if I'll get to the next smoke door post but I'll post some more application photos to tide you over.  Here's another gravity closer with a bonus padlock on a temperature rise egress door.  And before someone comments that these don't need to be temp rise doors, this opening is in Israel so I'm not sure which code was in use when they were installed.

By |2012-01-27T22:07:32-05:00June 7th, 2010|Door Closers, Funky Applications, Reader Photos|0 Comments
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Gravity Closer

I think I'm onto something...asking everyone to send their vacation photos of oddball hardware applications has already netted me several, including this photo of a gravity closer from Quebec City.  The cable goes from the face of the door, through the pulley that the brown outfit is hanging on, then through another pulley and attaches to a weight that the green outfit is hanging on.  Complicated, but pretty inexpensive as long as you don't need door control.  ;-)

By |2012-01-27T22:07:32-05:00June 3rd, 2010|Door Closers, Funky Applications, Reader Photos|0 Comments
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Tiny Closer

I think these are about the tiniest closers I've ever seen.  One was obviously not enough to get the bathroom door closed, so another one was added.  The door still wouldn't close, so the closer was flipped around and mounted the opposite way.  The door STILL wouldn't close, AND the sound of the closers was horrendous!  (video evidence below)

By |2012-01-27T22:07:33-05:00May 21st, 2010|Door Closers, Funky Applications, Videos|2 Comments
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The Gift of Hardware

Long before I started this blog, I had a personal one for my friends and family to keep up on what's going on in our household.  Usually, I don't mix the two...most of my friends and family aren't very interested in door hardware, and I'm not sure I want my colleagues knowing that I sometimes squirt my kids with a spray bottle when they're misbehaving, but occasionally the lines get blurry.

By |2014-03-28T16:55:26-04:00April 5th, 2010|Door Closers, Funky Applications|1 Comment
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Cover Up!!

Back in the day, before my restaurant choices were based on whether the establishment offered crayons, chicken nuggets, and a giant mouse or talking tree, I used to frequent a local cantina.  The "naked" door closer on their ladies room door drove me nuts, so one night I showed up with a closer cover, screws, and a set of hex wrenches.  As you can probably imagine, they looked at me like I had two heads and made me hand everything over to the bartender.

By |2013-12-04T23:51:00-05:00October 29th, 2009|Door Closers, Videos|1 Comment
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“Look Out Beloooow!!!”

Just when I think I've seen it all, someone always surprises me.  I received this photo today, and at first I couldn't really tell what was going on.  Then I realized that the pipe has been cut to length to act as a hold-open.  That's a first!  When I asked what was holding the pipe in place, I was told that it's the pressure from the door closers!  I pity the fool who leans against the door (especially if his friend leans against the other one)!  BONK!

By |2012-01-27T22:09:56-05:00October 13th, 2009|Door Closers, Funky Applications, Reader Photos|0 Comments
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Hospital & Nursing Home (I-2) Cross-Corridor Pairs

The 2009 edition of the International Building Code (IBC) contains an important change that's easy to miss if you're not looking for it.  I stumbled across it a few months ago when someone asked me about the exception for cross-corridor doors without positive latching in I-2 occupancies.

By |2014-04-26T19:26:59-04:00September 23rd, 2009|Door Closers, Fire Doors, Gasketing & Thresholds|16 Comments
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Every Door Needs a Stop

Last weekend I opened the door to a sports facility where my son was attending a birthday party, and I saw an interesting (to me) application.  My three friends scattered when they saw me whip out the camera...I still don't know why it's so embarrassing to be seen with someone taking a picture of a door, but it seems to be a universal reaction unless you hang out with other hardware people.

By |2017-05-30T15:59:08-04:00August 24th, 2009|Door Closers, Funky Applications, General Info|3 Comments
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9 Out of 10 Birds Surveyed Prefer LCN

I have a lot of pet peeves - just ask my family.  One of my pet peeves is when I see a door closer on the "wrong" side of a door.  It could be the corridor side of an electric room, the outside of a bathroom, or, like the photo to the left, the weather side of an exterior door.  I just don't understand how a closer ends up on the wrong side of the door, especially when many of them (the one at left included) come packed with all of the parts and pieces required to install it three different ways.

By |2014-10-08T09:24:45-04:00July 29th, 2009|Door Closers, Funky Applications, Reader Photos|1 Comment
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Where there’s a will, there’s a way…

I love seeing the inventive ways people install door hardware, and it seems like the product with the most creative installations is the door closer.  LCN thought their stick-on installation templates would take the creativity out of door closer installation, but there are still plenty of inventive installations out there.

By |2014-10-08T09:20:25-04:00July 21st, 2009|Door Closers, Funky Applications, Reader Photos|0 Comments
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Special Template Update

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..."

By |2012-01-27T22:10:01-05:00July 7th, 2009|Door Closers, Reader Photos|1 Comment
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Special Templates

Don't let this happen to you!  If you have an application that can't accommodate a standard closer, LCN has thousands of special templates and engineers standing by to help.  Some of my favorite special templates are the track closer for a door with rescue hardware, closers for arch-top doors, and the templates that move the concealed closer away from the face of the frame so you don't end up with the application in this photo. 

By |2013-12-04T23:50:57-05:00March 6th, 2009|Door Closers|0 Comments
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Door Opening Force

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).

By |2012-04-09T16:25:37-04:00February 23rd, 2009|Accessibility, Automatic Operators, Door Closers|18 Comments
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