FF: Please Shut Door
The door in these photos is at the top of the stairs in a bar, exiting from a non-sprinkled basement assembly room that is used for weddings and parties. What do you think? OK or NO WAY?
WW: Close Fire Doors
This sign - and the fire door it's attached to - are definitely left over from the Olden Days. There was a time when fire doors were closed manually to protect the building when it was unoccupied.
ASHE on Fire Door Inspections
The first step in improving fire door safety is identifying the problems that are consistently seen in the field. How can the industry help improve the durability and performance of opening protectives?
QQ: Existing Frame, No Fire Label
Regarding an existing fire door assembly - the door has a fire label but the frame does not. Is the frame required to have a label?
Top-10 – FF: All-Time Fave (so far)
Here it is - my favorite Fixed-it Friday photo of all time (so far)! If you have any interesting door photos from your summer vacation, I'd love to see them!
Allegion Code Reference Guide
The day has finally arrived. The updated Allegion Code Reference Guide is ready - 40 pages of code information that you can download for free!
Classroom Lockdown Modification
Will this screen door latch keep out a school shooter? Or maybe two would be sufficient? Hopefully we'll never have to find out.
WW: Fire Door Smoke Test
Much of the work to replace deficient fire doors in London residential blocks has not been completed, so one man decided to take matters into his own hands to prove a point. Don't do this.
QQ: Fire Test Standard for Sliding Doors
An architect is interested in specifying a sliding fire door assembly for a project, but I see that the product is listed to UL 10B. I thought fire doors were required to be listed to UL 10C?
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.
QQ: Coordinators on Fire Doors
When a pair of fire doors has manual flush bolts and no closer on the inactive leaf, is a coordinator required?
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.
New York in the News
These news stories both happen to be from New York City, and both address topics that made me go hmmm... What do you think?
QQ: Painting/Refinishing Fire Doors
Does painting or refinishing a fire door in the field void the label? The answer to today's Quick Question seems obvious, but can you prove it?
North Tunica County Fire Department
Someone recently asked me...if residential bedroom doors do such a great job of keeping the fire out, why bother with fire doors? What's the difference?
Decoded: Why Barricade Devices? (May 2019)
Why would a school district consider using unregulated security devices, given the associated risk and liability? The answer may surprise you.
QQ/WWYD?: Old Fire Doors With 2 Hinges
Is an existing fire door assembly with 2 hinges acceptable, or should it be noted as a deficiency during a fire door inspection?
WWYD? Arched Brick Opening
The fire marshal wants these stairwell doors to close more reliably than they do with the original system. Note the arched brick "frames" and the swing-clear strap hinges (cool, right??). WWYD?
QQ: Hinges for Fire Door Assemblies
Quick Question: Are steel, ball-bearing, butt hinges for fire door assemblies required to be UL listed?
WW: Wordless
I have spent two days trying to figure out what to write in this post. I'm still thinking.
WWYD? NFPA 80/105 Updates
It's almost time to submit change proposals for NFPA 80 and NFPA 105 - tell me what's on your wish list and I'll see what I can do to help!
Enforcement of 5-Pound Operable Force Limit
Heads up - the 5-pound force limit on operable hardware is something everyone should be aware of long before the final inspection by the AHJ.
NFPA Journal: Mind the Gap
To bring more clarity, the Fire Protection Research Foundation has begun work on a full-scale fire test on fire doors with varying gaps between the door and frame.
WW: What’s Wrong?
Eric Laidlaw of Jensen Hughes sent me these Wordless Wednesday photos...I'd love to hear your theories/analyses of what's going on with this opening.
More on GWB Penetration – Fire-Rated Frames
Have you ever run into a situation where a piece of hardware or a mortar box in a fire-rated frame prevented the GWB from penetrating 1/2-inch into the frame, as required by NFPA 80?
QQ: Job-Site Preps for Fire Doors
Follow-Up #1: For which types of hardware does NFPA 80 allow job-site preparations to be made in fire door assemblies?
New: Maximum Hole Size for Job-Site Preps
If you're not in the habit of reading NFPA 80 cover-to-cover each time it is updated, this one might have slipped by you. It's an important change.
Fire Marshal Guidance for Unplanned Fire Alarms
Remember when a fire alarm during the school day meant exiting immediately in an orderly fashion and enjoying a few minutes away from our desks? Times are changing.
Which code, when, and where?
When you're interpreting the code requirements for a particular building, how do you know which code or standard to reference?
Decoded: Where are fire door inspections required by code?
The answer: In almost every US state. With that said, having it required by code and having it enforced by the AHJ are sometimes two different things.
WW: Happy Halloween!
It's that time of year again...when teachers get creative and their classroom doors become the canvas. Don't forget the rules of holiday door decorating!
WW: I’m at a loss for words…
I'd love to hear your thoughts on today's Wordless Wednesday photo. This is in direct conflict with everything I learned about life safety in hardware school.
Classroom Security – 4 Questions
It has been 74 days since I have written about classroom barricade devices. This refresher is posted by request, and in honor of Safe Schools Week.
QQ: Field Preps for Auxiliary Fire Pins
Can less-bottom-rod (LBR) fire exit hardware with an auxiliary fire pin be installed on an existing fire door? If you have anything to add, please weigh in!
WWYD? Hole, No Strike
On a fire door assembly, is it acceptable to drill/cut a hole in the frame for the latchbolt, and not install the strike?
Fire Door Decommissioning Labels
What's the proper protocol when a fire door assembly has been installed where it is not required? If you're considering the use of decomissioning labels, read this first.
Form, Function & Fire Safety: A Clearer View of Fire-Rated Glass and Framing
This video does a great job of summarizing the code requirements that apply to glass and glazing used in fire door assemblies and egress doors. Thanks TGP!
Decoded: Code Requirements for Hotels and other Residential Occupancies (November 2018)
Code issues are not uncommon in hotels, apartment buildings, and other residential occupancies. My next Decoded article addresses some things to look for.
WW: Hotel Hinges
Considering the liability a hotel could face if their fire door assemblies failed to perform during a fire, the repair methods employed by many hotels seem pretty irresponsible.
WWYD? Fire Door Safety Week
The British Woodworking Federation offers dozens of resources to increase awareness about fire door assemblies across the UK. What types of tools do we need in the US?
Fire Door Latching – After the Fire
What happens to fire exit hardware during a fire test, and why doesn't the force of the hose stream actuate the touchpad and cause the door to unlatch?
WW: College Dorm Exit Stair
This summer I visited quite a few colleges, and this dorm left me Wordless. :( Can you find all of the code-related issues with these fire doors and egress doors?
Who’s at fault?
Could a locksmith be held liable for installing non-code-compliant hardware or will a facility manager face liability for failing to maintain openings in code-compliant condition?
Sill vs. Threshold
During the discussions about yesterday's post someone mentioned the "sill" of the fire door assembly, which reminded me of a clarification that has been made in NFPA 80 in the 2016 edition.
QQ/WWYD? Door Bottom Clearance
When inspecting a fire door assembly, how do you measure the clearance at the bottom of the door when the clearance varies between the push side and the pull side?
WW: Seem legit to you?
This door with a mangled fire door label on the latch side was seen in a nursing home. Any theories about what happened here?
QQ: Gasketing Continuity
During a fire door assembly inspection, should a flashlight be used to verify whether the gasketing is continuous?
Oversized Jamb Depth
If I found this application in the field, I would contact the frame manufacturer and see if the application is allowed by their listing. I'm pretty sure the answer would be "no."
WW: Shhh…nobody will ever know!
Just because closer reinforcements are not visible doesn't mean they aren't necessary! Yes - this is a fire door.
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.