First, I need some help. I've seen photos of this application a few times (including this one from Jim Jensen of Ingersoll Rand Security Technologies), but what do you use to attach the two closers together? Is it something that has to be custom made, or is there a standard part that can be repurposed for the job?
Some of you will no-doubt recognize these doors if you attend a certain monthly meeting that I attend as often as I can. The meeting is held in one of several large banquet rooms in a restaurant, and they all have the same hardware installed. If anyone is NOT sure why this is a problem, read this post.
I'm pretty sure I asked for a PAIR of boots for Christmas, but Santa must have misunderstood. I ended up with one walking boot after falling off of running fountain while trying to take the perfect photo of a door for y'all. OK...actually I stepped off a little lip in a walkway while checking into our hotel in the dark and did some ligament damage. We won't know the extent of the damage until the swelling goes down. BUT - I did get a photo.
I have been struggling with this post. I can't answer the question the world wants an answer to -
Yesterday's mall shootings in Oregon should serve as a reminder to be aware of the available exits regardless of where you are. This door could be tough to navigate in an emergency.
I recently compiled my family's annual photo book, and I found A TON of door photos in the process. Here are a few doors I've seen in my travels...
I have LOTS of reader photos that I haven't had a chance to edit and post, so here's the first batch! Thank you for sending them, and keep them coming! I'll try to work faster in 2013!
I can't figure out whether these are providing security or acting as the door closers, but either way they leave me wordless!
Bangladesh fire: Exit door locked - News 24
I just returned from a trip to visit my brother and sister-in-law in Grassy Cove, Tennessee. If you're a long-time reader of IDH, you may remember when I visited them way back in 2009 for the Chip Falcon Road Trip (my brother did the cycle testing).
Although the schools in Providence, Rhode Island, are supposed to be inspected by code officials annually, some had not been inspected for 10 YEARS. I wonder how many public schools are in the same boat?
I'm not going to post the name of the person who sent these photos in, because I contacted the restaurant and I don't want them to see his name here and seek revenge the next time he places an order. I got no response after sending two emails...I wonder if the fire marshal eats here.
This is becoming a recurring theme. I'll be in a few airports later this week...maybe I'll see some more.
This post was printed in the January 2013 issue of Doors & Hardware
On my way to Tucson I had a layover, and every single emergency exit door was set up similar to this one. Thoughts?
This is the emergency exit for a day care center, sent in by Dwight Isaacs of US Homeware Inc. If you look closely, you'll see that the latch is up near the top of the jamb post, out of reach of the kids. This seems like it could be a viable solution, except that in another situation when I asked all of my code official pals about how I could prevent a child with special needs from exiting out of a school without permission, most of them said that they would not allow a latch mounted above the range mandated by code.
Here are some recent news stories you might be interested in reading...
I couldn't have said it better myself..."Mullion? Who needs a mullion when you can just turn the exit devices 90 degrees?" From Chris Steward of Steward Steel, by way of Jim Phillips of SBS Associates.
Whatcha think? Is this exit visible enough?
Since this blog began, it has had visitors from 165 countries. I've been contacted by readers from outside of the United States, and have heard first-hand of door and hardware professionals in other countries using the site as a resource. That amazes me.
In case you're wondering, I do know that it's not Wednesday, but I'm never actually Wordless either.
Free Webinar: NFPA 80, Inspection, Testing, and Maintenance of Swinging Fire Doors
Question: Is there a code requirement for how often the delayed egress hardware in my facility must be tested?
Here's a little something to enjoy with your morning coffee. Most of us are aware of the requirement for egress doors to be able to be unlocked/unlatched without a key, tool, or special knowledge or effort, but sometimes this requirement is overlooked, especially when hardware is retrofitted on an existing door.
This is an actual problem on a current project, and I'm hoping some of you will have ideas to help out. The doors and a portion of the hardware have already been installed, and the remaining hardware is on-site. It's a double-egress pair in a health-care facility, and it is equipped with a system to prevent patients with Alzheimer's Disease or other conditions from "eloping". There is a sensor in the vicinity of the doors which detects an approaching occupant wearing a transmitter bracelet, and when an occupant is detected the system automatically arms the delayed egress locks, which prevent the patient from leaving the unit before staff members can arrive.
As I read about the terrible movie theater tragedy in Aurora, Colorado, I thought about things from a door hardware consultant's perspective. Could future tragedies be prevented by changing the way we think about the hardware on movie theater exits? Because the suspect allegedly propped open the exit door so he could return during the movie with guns, explosive chemicals, and a protective vest, would monitoring or alarming the emergency exit have thwarted his attack?
Question: What's the difference between panic hardware and fire exit hardware? And what's an exit device?
This post was printed in the October 2012 issue of Doors & Hardware
I'll be posting some Moroccan door photos soon, but here are some reader photos to tide you over.
This post was printed in the August 2012 issue of Doors & Hardware
If you don't know why this sign leaves me wordless, read this post.
If you've been reading this blog for a while, you may remember that our annual Fathers Day tradition is to go to Ogunquit, Maine, walk along the Marginal Way, do some shopping, have lunch, and then play on the beach (here are some photos from last year).
Remember this door from my trip to the science museum last week? I asked what was wrong with it and several of you had good ideas.
This post was printed in the July 2012 issue of Doors & Hardware
My youngest daughter graduated from kindergarten today, so we played hookey and took her to the Museum of Science. I didn't forget about y'all though. Here are a few photos from the trip.
What do you think of this exit from a large Assembly occupancy in England? Are the operable doors visible enough for egress purposes?
I met Brad Keyes a couple of years ago when he emailed me to ask about the requirements for the annual inspection of fire doors. Since then, Brad has become my trusted resource on health care life safety requirements. He has started a blog for his health care consulting firm (KeyesLifeSafety.com), and covers various topics related to health care, including some posts about doors. If you have a question for Brad and don't find the answer on his blog, he is very generous with his time and will likely answer your question if you submit it using the link on his site. He is an expert on NFPA 101 - The Life Safety Code, and is my go-to guy for all things health care.
More doors from my (local) travels...
As always, I've been noticing interesting doors everywhere I go...
Sometimes I feel like maybe I'm a little *too* passionate (borderline weird) when it comes to doors and their code issues. Today I struggled with whether or not to call the fire marshal regarding the indoor playground I posted about earlier in the week. At the urging of some AHJs in other parts of the country, I did. It feels like tattle-taling, but I wouldn't be able to live with myself if something happened. It probably won't, but what if?
I realize that I'm probably pickier than most when it comes to doors. I notice things that almost nobody else does (except some of you!). Well, I recently attended a preschool function at a local indoor playground, and I was shocked by what I saw. The facility is relatively new and must have been inspected when it was renovated. The place is huge, and meant for zillions of kids and their parents to play indoors - therefore, it's an Assembly occupancy.
The surprising and sad thing about these news stories that came across my desk this week is that none of these fatal fires were first-time occurrences. Four people were killed in the Ontario retirement home fire that is the subject of a current inquest, but a total of 45 people have been killed in Ontario retirement home fires since 1980 - the worst record in North America. There were fourteen people killed in a Peru rehabilitation center fire this week, and 29 more were killed in another rehab center fire in Peru in January. Nine people died in a karaoke bar fire in Busan, South Korea, and 15 more were killed in another karaoke bar fire in the same city in 2009.
I realize that not everybody is as excited about new code developments as I am, but some of you might want to take a look or a listen...the code development hearings for the IBC/IFC are going on right now, and discussion on the Means of Egress proposals will be starting soon. The webcast is very clear and you can get a sense of what it's like to be at the hearings, if you're so inclined. :-)
My friend Nolan Thrope of Ingersoll Rand Security Technologies really knows how to make a girl cry:
A story arrived in my inbox today, regarding the tradition of the Holy Fire at the Church of the Holy Sepulchre in Jerusalem. The day before Easter each year, clerics emerge from the small room believed to be the site of Jesus' tomb with a flame which is then spread among the pilgrims crowding the church and out to those gathered on the street.
Thanks to y'all I'm never short of reader photos, and these photos leave me wordless...just in time for Wordless Wednesday!
Sent in by Gary Goldberg of Ingersoll Rand Security Technologies...this was so much easier than cutting a hole in the wall. :(
These buildings were ALL OCCUPIED when these photos were taken. Depressing.
I was working on a different post but that one will have to wait. I just received these photos, it's Wordless Wednesday, and I am wordless (yes, again). This is an exit for a hockey rink, sent in by an anonymous reader. Hockey rinks are notoriously tough on their doors and hardware, but this "solution" makes me want to cry.
