As most of you know, the codes require egress doors to be operable without special knowledge or effort. This door is on a something like a bus that moves people around the airport (except with "normal" doors), but what are these exit instructions trying to say?
On Wednesday I shared some photos from the island of Zanzibar, which is where I took today's Fixed-it Friday photos as well. This "fix" is a creative way to keep the door closed, and I like the composition of the photo too. :D
This padlock and hasp have been added to the only exit serving a seating area for an indoor soccer facility. Thank you to Marc Bates of the University of Missouri - Kansas City for the photos, even though they made me cry a little.
Qasim Mousa from Allegion's office in Saudi Arabia, sent me today's Fixed-it Friday photo, taken at a new school. This is a great example of how so-called "value engineering" can negatively impact a project.
Shannon Tracey of Allegion sent me today's Fixed-it Friday photo from a project where she wrote the hardware specification. I can't even imagine how this happened or why someone thought it was a good idea. The good news is, it has since been fixed.
Lee Frazier of Allegion sent me today's Fixed-it Friday photos of doors found in a school. Luckily, this is not a fire door assembly. Maybe my retirement gig will be in door forensics...I have so many questions. :D
I'm wondering why these doors swing toward the soccer field, but it's hard to know the egress route without a floor plan. Regardless, someone has solved the problem of unauthorized access to the stands with today's non-code-compliant Fixed-it Friday modification.
Krystina Regan of Allegion sent me today's Fixed-it Friday photos, taken at the local nail salon. Although I do have an appreciation for clear instructional signage, the hex wrench replacement for the thumbturn and the added surface bolt are a no for me.
As many of you know, my oldest daughter recently graduated from the University of Tennessee in Knoxville. When I attended one of her graduation events, I noticed an interesting application that I'm sharing in today's Fixed-it Friday post.
For my Fixed-it Friday posts, I typically share photos of creative modifications - often applications that are not code-compliant. But I also like to share product changes that solve a problem. In today's post, a retrofit kit for the Schlage AD993.
I don't know for sure what happened in these Fixed-it Friday photos, but my guess is that this property was split due to an unresolved inheritance, and the doors were part of the fix. What do you think? Do you have another theory?
RB Sontag of Allegion sent me today's Fixed-it Friday photos, and I'm wordless! In all of my years in the industry, I don't recall ever seeing electromagnetic holders installed this way. How about you?
It can be very challenging to keep gates secure and to protect the hardware from the weather. I saw today's Fixed-it Friday photos posted by Dani Livshin on the Locksmith National Facebook page, and I'm sharing them with Dani's permission.
One of these things is not like the others...one of these things just doesn't belong. If are a Sesame Street fan, this song will be stuck in your head for the rest of the day. Can you see the problem in today's Fixed-it Friday photos?
I saw this Fixed-it Friday photo posted by Vincent Zito on the Locksmith Nation Facebook page, and I asked for permission to share it. This is NOT an authorized means of repairing this product, which looks like it has faced more than its share of abuse.
Would this door be code-compliant if only one of the panic devices actually latched? Or would it be considered "special knowledge or effort" because the building occupant would have to know which touchpad to use?
Drywall anchors, that is! This is a 90-minute wood fire door, and someone tried to install the door closer (twice) with drywall screws and plastic anchors. I'm wordless! Happy Fixed-it Friday!
Our local library has a small theater that holds just under 100 people. The space only had one code-compliant exit and the building is hundreds of years old and difficult to modify. TGIFixed-it Friday!
I'm wordless about today's Fixed-it Friday photo, which I saw posted on the "There's no crying in hollow metal" Facebook page. I asked Scott Foley of P&M Doors for permission to share it with all of you. Enjoy!
Today's Fixed-it Friday photo was sent in by Shari Dial of Walsh Door & Security - the photo shows the rear exit serving a gas station in rural Illinois. If you see any interesting doors in your summer travels, you can submit photos using the photo submission link.
I have mentioned this before...it's great when I receive photos or emails from "door people", but I absolutely LOVE when family members of iDigHardware readers start weighing in on door issues. :)
Today's Fixed-it Friday photos were taken at the main entrance of a function space that has an occupant load of 600 people. I was so fixated on the creative locking method that I didn't take a close-up of the closer fix, but the security fix has me wordless.
I saw Alexander Wright of Allegion in my code update class at UNC-Charlotte yesterday, which reminded me that he sent me these Fixed-it Friday photos of door closers in the wild! Keep 'em coming!
I once wrote a hardware spec for the hotel chain where today's Fixed-it Friday photos were taken. Based on that experience and the architect's attention to detail on that project, I'm positive that this is not what they would expect to see on a return visit.
This is an amazingly beautiful church right on the main square in the city of Aguascalientes, Mexico. As you can imagine, there have been a few "fixes" in the last 300 years. TGIF-iF!
I received today's Fixed-it Friday photo from Scott Tobias of arkaSpecs, and I definitely did a double-take. Then I found out that he's on vacation with his family, and this egress door serves a ride at a popular theme park. What do you think?
Jim Billings sent me today's Fixed-it Friday photo, which was posted in a Facebook group with a comment that it was found in a postal facility. Any theories about what happened here?
For today's Fixed-it Friday photo, I am updating an old post from almost 10 years ago. This week I have received several questions about holding open and locking doors in schools. Could delayed action closers be a good solution?
Credit for the post title - and for today's Fixed-it Friday photo - goes to Tyler Michieli of Alan Ford Architects. It's so rare to see doors where such careful coordination is apparent...maybe the whole point is for us not to notice the doors at all.
I received these Fixed-it Friday photos from Steve Quinn of The Flying Locksmiths. This panic hardware is installed on some service doors in a mall, and clearly they have seen a lot of cart traffic and the resulting damage. WWYD?
This Fixed-it Friday photo leaves me with some questions because it doesn't look like a location that would typically require a fire door, BUT - the wired glass (and the creative dogging method) kind of hints at a possible fire rating. What do you think? Any theories?
Avi Schenk of BY Locks and Keys LLC sent me these Fixed-it Friday photos of the damage to a Schlage deadbolt caused by students trying to remove a broken key that was stuck in the lock. Note: This is not the recommended fix for broken key problems.
As I walked the streets of Havana last week, I saw so many examples of doors (and everything else) that had been reused, repurposed, or recycled. I took hundreds of photos and I'm sharing them in today's Fixed-it Friday post.
I've said it before and I'll say it again...the desire for convenience is the greatest threat to security. I need to put that on a t-shirt. Thank you to Deputy Jeff Tock of Allegion for sending today's Fixed-it Friday photos, taken at a university.
Logan Piburn of Dyron Murphy Architects sent today's Fixed-it Friday photos of an egress door modification. I can see a few problems here...how about you?
Greg Thomson of Allegion shared today's Fixed-it Friday photo of an accommodation made in the field for an LCN 6400 COMPACT series automatic operator. I wonder at what point during the installation the problem was discovered.
When Stan Hubbell posted these Fixed-it Friday photos in the "There's no crying in Hollow Metal" Facebook group, I knew I had to share them (with permission). How would you handle this installation properly?
What do you think about the location for the auto operator actuator shown in these Fixed-it Friday photos? Based on the BHMA A156.19 standard and the accessibility requirements, is there a code issue?
Joe Cross of Allegion sent me today's Fixed-it Friday photo of an "electrified" removable mullion, which is definitely not a listed application. If you've seen any creative door or hardware modifications, submit a photo for a future post on iDigHardware!
Lee Frazier of Allegion sent me today's Fixed-it Friday photo, taken in a school. I have edited this post based on a reader's email telling me that this is not a DIY EPT, but a concealed power transfer. I have never seen this product in the wild, and I guess Lee had not seen it either!
I received this photo on New Year's Eve 2021 from Cathy Kopp of Norwood Hardware, and I kept it filed away until the holiday season rolled around again. I will be taking some time off next week to recharge, and I hope you do too. See you next year!
It has been wonderful to work remotely from Denmark, but it's time to go back to reality. I am headed home tomorrow, so here's one last post to share a few more of the beautiful doors of Copenhagen. Enjoy!
I saw the door in today's Fixed-it Friday photos at Kronborg Castle, which was the setting for Shakespeare's play, Hamlet. Today it is known by many as Hamlet's Castle. Of course I can't resist sharing some other photos from the castle as well...
I spotted the huge "doors" in today's Fixed-it Friday photos on the front of a library, and of course I had to go check them out. The wood panels give the impression of books, and I figured that the doors would be closed at night for security...
Scott Tobias of arkaSpecs sent me today's Fixed-it Friday photo taken in a school library. This door leads to a closet, but what if this was the egress side of the door? Do you think the paint job would be code-compliant?
One of my favorite retired fire marshals sent me today's Fixed-it Friday photos, which illustrate one of his pet peeves. Could signs like this delay or deter egress during an emergency? What do you think?
I saw this "fix" during my travels in Indiana and Pennsylvania over the last couple of weeks. Any theories about the reasoning behind the pulls shown in these Fixed-it Friday photos? I have no ideas.
You may have to look closely at this Fixed-it Friday photo from Brian Lavallee of Doors by LAVA Inc. Have you ever seen this "creative" application in use?
People always send me photos with a note saying, "I saw this door and thought of you..." I LOVE getting those messages (who wouldn't?)! And last week when I was flying home from the BHMA meetings, I saw these doors and thought of YOU! :D
The wear on this lock gives us some clues that could jeopardize the access control to this space. Assuming the code has four digits, with at least one #3 and at least one #4, and no #1's, #2's, or #5's, how many possible codes would it take to find the right one to open this door?
