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The Diverse World of Overhead Stops and Holders

Clockwise beginning at top left: surface mounted GJ 70 and 79 series and Rixson 7 series; Rixson 6 series concealed; bottom right, GJ 81 series surface mount; bottom center, ABH 3400 series with side jamb bracket; bottom left, GJ 90 series surface mount; and above that, ABH 1000A series.

For some applications there is no truly adequate substitute for an overhead stop. Yet many times they are omitted from from hardware schedules where they should be used. But unless concealed OH stops are included at the design stage, retrofitting surface stops to a job after the fact can present a significant challenge.

All overhead stops and holders are designed to accomplish basically the same goals, but in differing situations. If it is a stop, its purpose is to stop the door before it hits something, usually a wall. If it is a stop and holder, its purpose is to stop the door and, under the right circumstances, hold the door open. Overhead stops protect the door closer arm, and they can also make it more possible for the door closer to shut the door in high winds when the stop is templated to allow the door to open to 90 degrees or less. Maximum degree of opening with an overhead stop tends to be in 110 degree range.

Installation of surface-mounted models is simple except when a door closer is involved. Then an amount of thinking and/or additional parts may be required. This is one of the main reasons overhead stops are not often used. However, in at least one circumstance there is no comparable substitute; that is, exterior, high-use, out-swinging doors that are frequently exposed to high winds.

Most overhead stops are sized according to door width and type of hinge used, for example, you would use a 792S (size 2) for a butt hung door with an opening width of 23-1/16 inches through 27 inches, and a 793S for a door with butt hinges that is 27-1/16 inches wide through 33 inches wide. This is information found in the installation instructions. There are also adjustable overhead stops available from most manufacturers; one example is the ABH 1000A series.

The sections below discuss a few of overhead stops shown in the illustration at the top of this article.

Glynn Johnson 70 and 79 Series

Glynn Johnson 70 and 79 Series Surface Mount Overhead Stops
The 70 series is heavy duty and the 79 is extra-heavy duty. These are overhead stops for doors that are regularly exposed to high winds and/or abuse.

At left is a drawing of the 79 Series installed. You can see the problem of where to put the door closer.


One solution might be the LCN 1460 with 62A shoe that significantly lowers the door closer on the door as shown below:

LCN 1460 with 62A shoe and 70 series LCN overhead stop

The drawing above comes from a GJ / LCN applications guide I stumbled upon many years ago. If you look at overhead stop installation instructions, you’ll see they don’t mention a door closer. I have searched for other guides that show door closers with overhead stops, but I have found none.

If you have an aluminum-and-glass narrow stile storefront door with a 3-1/2-inch top rail, you can see that dropping the door closer this much might be a problem. At best, there would need to be a drop plate added that would show through the glass. Not pretty. Another common solution with all surface mount overhead stops is to install the stop on the push side of the door and the closer on the pull side – a viable choice on interior doors, but not usually on exterior doors.

Glynn Johnson 90 Series

Glynn Johnson 90 Series Surface Mounted Overhead Stops
This is the most common type of surface mounted overhead stop, and all overhead stop manufacturer’s make something like it.

In the drawing above you can see the space it takes up on the door. Here’s how it translates into an application with a door closer:

GJ 90 Series with LCN 1460 closer mounted top jamb
Side View, GJ 90 with LCN 1460 series

As you can see, this is not too bad as hardware conflicts go. The measurements are tight, but do-able.

Rixson 7 Series

Rixson Series 7 Surface Mount Overhead Stops
Rixson doesn’t talk much about this overhead stop in their catalog. They say it is ‘industrial duty,’ so, I guess, it must be well suited for high use and abuse environments like factories and warehouses. Much like the heavy spring on the GJ 70 series above, the cantilever design works as a shock-absorber. I included it because if its unique design, which is to say it looks kind of cool.

Rixson 7 Series

Rixson 6 Series Concealed Overhead Stops
All overhead stop manufacturers make concealed overhead stops.

Concealed overhead stops have the distinct advantage that they interfere much less with the door closer installation, however they often make a difficult retrofit, especially on wood doors, sometimes requiring that the door be taken down so the mortise for the track can be cut in.

On a fire rated door this would most likely void the rating.

Rixson 6 Series

Like most Rixson overhead stops, the 6 Series is also available as the 6ADJ Series adjustable version.

Shock absorption is achieved by a heavy spring inside the track. The spring engages at the last seven inches of swing, affording a significant layer of protection for the door closer.

From the Rixson 6 Series install instructions.

The picture taken from the Rixson 6 Series installation instructions shows how much real estate is left on the door for a door closer, and illustrates how much better it is to be working with a concealed overhead stop rather than a surface mounted one.



Ligature Resistant Door Hardware

Left: Marks USA Lifesaver series. Right: TownSteel MRXA series.

Ligature resistant, otherwise known as anti-ligature or behavioral health door hardware is designed to make it difficult for folks to use it for suicide by hanging or otherwise harming themselves or others.  Pictured adjacent are cylindrical knob and lever locks by Marks USA and a mortise lock by TownSteel.

All are designed to resist attempts to hang oneself.  The cylindrical lever and knob locks feature more or less conical designs that cause a cord to slide off of them regardless of how one might try to tie it on.  The lever turns freely even when locked, achieving the same result.  The mortise lock uses a conical cylinder collar and sloped trim to achieve ligature resistance.  The opening in the pull is closed by a steel plate, making it impossible to pass a cord through it.  The exposed fasteners are security fasteners that require a special tool to loosen, and they fit flat and flush to the escutcheon and lock front.

When you sell or install ligature resistant hardware it is best not to modify the product in any way, because in doing so you will assume all responsibility for anything that happens as a result involving the hardware.  This can include disassembling a cylindrical lock to rekey it.  For this reason I recommend that when keyed anti-ligature locks are specified they are specified as interchangeable or removable core locks.

Ligature resistant hinges have hinge tips called “hospital tips” that are sloped to discourage suicide attempts (see McKinney hinge adjacent).  Security screws also help keep folks safe by making it difficult to use the hinge to hurt oneself or others.   Select Hinge offers a little gem called the “Tipit” for continuous hinges that makes continuous hinges ligature resistant.

Increasingly I field inquiries for ligature resistant door closers for butt or offset hung doors, but to my knowledge there is no such animal as of this writing.  Various factory tech support people have recommended overhead concealed security closers for ligature resistant applications, and this seems to be the consensus at this time.

I believe that using doors that are center hung with single acting, concealed overhead or floor closers would be safer and would eliminate the need for anti-ligature hinges; but this is impractical for retrofit applications where butt or offset hung doors are already present in abundance.

In the illustration below I show why I feel a center hung, concealed, single acting door closer would be the best choice for ligature resistance.





In door hardware, safety is the most important consideration.

 

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Exit Device Retrofitting Adventures

Monarch model 18

As door hardware evolves, new products emerge to replace older products. This may happen because of a design improvement, or because a company changes ownership, but in either case it means that there are older products in the field for which there are no exact replacements. Any door hardware product may become obsolete over time. Today we are talking about exit devices.

Falcon Model 25

In the mid-Twentieth Century mass production of doors was standardized so that the mortise pocket within a door that houses the mortise lock would always be the same size. Before this standardization mortise locks were available in a wide variety of sizes, but from this time forward all architectural grade lock fronts would be eight inches tall by one-and-a-quarter inches wide. Of course this affected mortise exit devices. So when I went to replace a Von Duprin 8875 mortise exit device manufactured sometime between 1897 and 1920, I found that the mortise pocket was only about six inches tall and I had a bit of cutting to do to make the new device fit.

Companies pay varying attention to the ‘retrofit-ability’ of their products. Some companies make it easy to replace an old device with a new one, and some do not. As an installer it is easy to find oneself marooned out in the field, having identified an exit device by its appearance for the purpose of providing an estimate to replace it, only to find out during installation that it is the old version, and installing the new version is either going to be a lot of extra work, or extra hardware that was not on the estimate.

For example, in the late 1990’s Von Duprin redesigned their narrow stile 33 and 35 series exit devices. The rails remained the same, but the heads were completely changed. The old version did not accept a rim cylinder tail piece, and the new one does. This means the old outside trim will by no means work with the new device – a potentially expensive problem if not anticipated.

Similarly the Precision 2000 series Apex devices are not backwards compatible with the old 1000 series trims.

Monarch was bought by Ingersoll Rand and rebranded under the Falcon line of products, now part of Allegion. During these transitions the trims changed part numbers two or maybe three times. Check with your favorite hardware genius as to whether the trim you have will work with the device you need.

The lesson here is not to judge by appearances. The new Von Duprin 33 looks a lot like the old one and the Precision 2000 looks just like the 1000 series. To avoid expensive mistakes, pull the device off the door and positively identify it before you write your estimate.

Both Doromatic and Jackson responded to the need to replace crossbar devices with touch bar devices by creating touch bar versions that fit the same footprint as their crossbar predecessors. The Doromatic 1690 and 1790 devices replace the 1990 and 2090, and the Jackson 2085 and 2095 replace the 1085 and 1095 devices with very little trouble. A big bonus is that a in the case of the 2085 Jackson and the 1690 Doromatic concealed vertical rod devices, you can reuse the exiting concealed vertical rods.





Knowing what you have is the key to knowing what you want.

 

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Electric Hinge vs. EPT (and oh yeah, Molex)

McKinney Electric Thru Wire Hinge with Molex connectors

I was taking a class on Molex connectors a while ago and the teacher – a manufacturer’s representative from a major hardware manufacturer – expressed the opinion that for high traffic applications, a power transfer is preferable to an electric thru wire hinge.  I confess that until that moment I had not actually thought about it much, but what he said made a lot of sense.  After all, almost everyone prefers an electric hinge to an EPT because of the relative ease of installation.

But the rep made a good point.  The wires that run through an electric through an electric hinge are pretty thin – usually 24 or 26 gauge wire – and every time the door is used these wires are bent back and forth.  If you’ve ever bent a copper wire back and forth in your hands until it breaks you will know what I’m getting at here.  When you bend a copper wire back and forth, over and over, first it heats up, then it breaks.  The same process is going on in the knuckle of that hinge.  There’s a whole lot o’ twistin’ goin’ on.

Von Duprin EPT10

When you open a door equipped with an EPT, however, there is less twisting happening.  The wires must still bend with the motion, but only a fraction of the bending that occurs with an electric hinge.  That’s why the rep always recommends EPT’s over electric hinges if the opening is to have any serious traffic through it.  Sure, installing an EPT is a lot more work, but a callback to replace a failed electric hinge is at least as much work, especially considering travel time.

Yes, you’re right, I did mention Molex connector class.  A few times now I’ve run into applications where the installer wants to convert a regular removable mullion into an electric mullion so they can install an electric strike on the mullion.  Since the advent of the surface mounted electric strike for rim exit devices, it was inevitable that someone would want to do this.  The problem?  What do you do with the wire at the header?  Well, if you just run a continuous wire, the mullion is no longer removable, is it?

But, aha!  I said.  We’ll use a Molex connector at the header.  What is a Molex connector, you ask?  Those would be those plastic connectors attached to the ends of the wires on the McKinney hinge above.  Molex is a company that has created a system of plug-and-play wire connectors, and these connectors are becoming more and more common in the door hardware industry.  Major door hardware manufacturers are now incorporating Molex connectors into all their electrified products and offering what are in effect extension cords with Molex connectors.

So a couple of connector-equipped extension cords would solve the problem of the suddenly non-removable mullion, right?  Well, not so fast, buckaroo.

This is what I learned in Molex class.  In Molex connectors, which connector will connect to what other connector is determined by the pin crimped onto the end of the wire.  They give them genders, “male” and “female”, because the male can be inserted into the female.  Okay, great.  Where is the problem?  The problem is that as of this writing, door hardware manufacturers’ extension cords all have connectors of the same gender on each end, so you cannot plug them into each other.  They will only plug into an electric hinge or EPT that has Molex connectors.

The solution to the DIY electrified mullion problem:  make your own DIY Molex connector for the wire in the header.  To do this you will need a standard wire stripper, some 12-conductor cable, the special Molex crimping tool, Molex connector housings, and Molex male and female pins.  There is a service kit available that contains all these parts.  It is a fairly time consuming process to make your own Molex connector, and it requires skill, but it is the only solution that I know to the mullion problem.

Get your surface mount electric strike with Molex connectors (several electric strike manufacturers offer these) and an extension cable from Assa Abloy or Allegion to get the wire from the strike to the top of the mullion.  Now you have the capability to connect your makeshift electrified mullion into the connector you must make.  You can attach your homemade Molex to as long a cable as you like – long enough to reach the power supply or access control panel.

Does this solution comply with code? I do not know. Best check with your local AHJ before embarking on your Molex DIY mullion adventure.

Why is the industry moving to Molex connectors?  They do not fall off, look ugly, or take up a lot of space like wire nuts, and if you need to trade out an electric hinge or electric strike they sure do make it a whole lot cleaner and easier.

 





That’s right. As usual, it all comes down to sex.

 

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The Wacky World of Wireless Access Control Locks

Wireless access control locks are at the leading edge of door hardware evolution, creating hybrid devices that are both credential reader and locking hardware all in one. Some of these locks are designed to integrate with existing access control systems without the need to run cable back to the panel from the door; others interface with their own software on the end user’s computer or computer network using a wifi gateway.

Left: Dorma Kaba Eplex ………… Right: Alarm Lock Networx

The Independent Systems

Alarm Lock and Dorma Kaba are two manufacturers that offer wireless access control locks with proprietary software designed only to control and monitor these locks.  This represents a step up from standalone programmable locks that needed to be visited with a notebook computer or handheld programmer for programming and audit trail download purposes. The locks connect via a wireless router or gateway to a single PC or to a server on the end user’s computer network.

The Alarm Lock Networx product can also be integrated into a few access control systems; see the Alarm Lock Networx web site for details.  The Dorma Kaba wireless Eplex lock is compatible with Dorma Kaba E-Enterprise software.

These independent solutions are good for folks who want to upgrade from mechanical locking systems to electronic access control, offering full featured access control capabilities, near-instantaneous reporting and monitoring and requiring very little wiring to install.

If, however, the end user has an existing access control system that they would like to expand, using the Alarm Lock Networx software or Dorma Kaba E-Enterprise software would mean adding a second access control system – a complication many end users would like to avoid.

In the past, when a facility wanted to expand their access control system their access control company would be called in to run wire and install credential readers and the door hardware installer might be called in to install electric locks or strikes to be controlled by these new readers. Today, however, the door hardware installer can install wireless access control locks that can be integrated into the end users existing system.

But wait! Not so fast, there, champ.

Left: Schlage AD-400 ………. Right: Sargent IN120

The Integrators

Allegion and Assa Abloy are two major lock manufacturers that offer wireless access control locks that integrate with existing access control systems. This means that the end user can program these locks using the same access control software they are currently using.

Using the Allegion AD series wireless as an example, a single interface panel can allow up to sixty-four of these locks to the panel. There is actually some wiring involved with wireless locks: the interface panel (or wifi gateway) must still be wired to the main access control panel. This is the great attraction: that one can greatly expand an access control system without spending a lot of time and money on wiring. A wire is run from the access control panel to the interface panel in a distant wing of the building, and then the interface panel (or a few of them) communicate with all the locks in that wing.

Conflict arises from the very fact that these locks are designed to integrate with existing systems. Over the last several decades, access control systems have become big business. Traditionally, for every door in the system, the access control company sells a reader. In addition, an expansion module may be needed at the access control panel. If we install sixty-four wireless locks and integrate them into the existing access control system, it can be said that we just deprived the access control company of the sale of sixty-four readers.

Access control does a lot more than control access these days. Access control, environmental control systems, fire and security alarms, elevator control, employee time and attendance, student meal plan administration and other systems may all be incorporated into the same system, run by enterprise level software on a server on the end user’s computer network. You might say the access control company that owns the rights to the software and manufactures the access control panel is in a very secure position. Extricating one access control company to replace it with another could be a monumental task, involving every person whose life the system touches.

What can access control manufacturers do about these wireless locks being attached to their systems? Plenty. They can update their software so that these locks are incompatible. They can charge the end user a licensing fee for every lock that is added. In short, they can make the addition of wireless access control locks to their system expensive or impossible.

Both Allegion and Assa Abloy have made agreements with access control manufacturers that allow their products to be added to existing access control systems. Allegion has a range of agreements with various manufacturers limiting to whom Allegion wireless access control products can be sold. In many cases Allegion wireless products can only be sold to the access control company with whose system they will be integrated. Assa Abloy wireless access control locks can only be sold to their designated Certified Integrators. It is through these channels that wireless access control locks make it onto job sites.

Because of these sales limitations, bidding on jobs that specify these kinds of locks can be complicated. Bidders often find they must exclude specified wireless access control locks from their bid because they are unable to buy them. In the case of Assa Abloy products, some bidders may elect to take the online course and become a Certified Integrator. In the case of Allegion, they might be fortunate enough to be bidding on a job in which the access control manufacturer has no agreement with Allegion, and the job can therefore be freely bid. In either case, however, it is a more complicated process than simply pricing out a piece of door hardware.

 





Evolution or intelligent design? Wait, did you say, ‘intelligent?’

 

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Field Reversing the Precision E2203 SVR Exit Device

The Precision E2203 is a Surface Vertical Rod exit device with a solenoid in the head that controls the outside lever trim.  Ordered complete with trim: part number is E2203 × 4908A, specify door width, finish, handing, fail safe or fail secure.  The right thing to do is to order it fail safe or fail secure and handed at the factory for your application. 

But… let’s say for the sake of this article that you ordered the device and did not specify handing or fail safe / fail secure. You might find yourself needing to field reverse the handing.  Here is what you need to know.

Handing

Changing the hand on the basic 2200 device is not very difficult, but changing the hand on the E2200 is fairly difficult, and requires skill, patience and … tape.
For the non-electric, purely mechanical version of this device, changing the hand is not as simple as it is with some other exit devices, for example, flipping the device over, but it is not all that hard to do.  Below are the directions for field handing excerpted from the 2200 Series installation instructions from the Stanley Precision web site.   Why they have arranged the steps to be followed in counterclockwise order is a mystery to me, but I am not here to judge, just inform.

At a glance you can see that there is some disassembly of the exit device head required to change the handing of the device. But when you add electrified trim control it complicates things a bit.

In the photo below you see the wires for the solenoid where they pass through the hole in the bracket.  That bracket is an integral part of the active head and it does not move.  However, the solenoid must be installed at the other end of the active head in order to interface with the working parts of the device and the wires are just long enough to allow it to be installed where it is.  There is no play in the wire that would allow the wire to remain where it is and yet allow one to move the solenoid.

 

 

 

In order to move the solenoid to the other side of the active head, one must either cut the wires (a nightmare, do not do it) or to completely disassemble the exit device, bar and all.

Why do you have to completely disassemble the exit device to pull the wire through?  Because it is taped to the baseplate of with a piece of filament tape that runs the length of the bar.  The tape must be removed to free the wire so you can pull it out through the hole in the bracket.

I could not find the directions for changing the hand of the E2203, but here is a drawing of the solenoid placement for the E2103 rim exit device taken from the installation instructions from the E2103 Kit.

 

 

Once you have pulled the wire through the hole, changed the hand of the head, taped the wire back down the length of the bar baseplate and reassembled the device, you’re done.

Below is a picture of the E2203 with handing freshly changed and the device reassembled and ready to install.

 





Like I said: order it fail safe or fail secure… AND ORDER IT HANDED.

 

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Compatibility Issues

What’s wrong with this picture?

When specifying door hardware I understand that it can be like being an kid in a candy store.  But like that kid, you may not be able to always get everything you want.   Sometimes “this” might not go with “that.” There are some examples that should be obvious, such as fire rated exit devices with cylinder dogging, since fire rated exit devices must positively latch each time they close without exception and any kind of dogging could prevent that.  But other combinations of options are less obviously incompatible.

One elusive combination of exit device options that pops up sometimes is delayed egress with electric latch retraction.  In most electric exit devices this is almost a contradiction in terms because they use the same mechanism for delayed egress as they do for electric latch retraction, except it works the opposite way.  For example, the Von Duprin Chexit uses the same kind of motor that the Von Duprin EL devices use, except that the Chexit motor pushes out on the latch mechanism while the EL motor pulls in.  What would be necessary I guess would be to build a little transmission so one could shift gears from push to pull to switch from delayed egress to electric latch retraction and back again.

But since no one has yet invented this miniature transmission neither the Sargent Electroguard nor the Von Duprin Chexit currently offer both delayed egress and electric latch retraction in the same device.  The only device I have encountered so far that does offer these two options together in the same device is Detex.  There could be others.  Check with individual factories to be sure.

Two options that are offered together in many, but not all exit devices, with varying degrees of availability, are cylinder dogging and electric latch retraction.   For example, Sargent offers cylinder dogging with electric latch retraction, but only when factory installed.   Von Duprin offers “Special Dogging” (SD prefix) with electric latch retraction.  In this case the effect of cylinder dogging is accomplished by a cylinder operated latch holdback feature in the center case of the device.  (Not quite the same as traditional cylinder dogging.)  Precision can offer cylinder dogging and electric latch retraction in the same device without complication because their electric latch retraction and cylinder dogging mechanisms happen in different sections of the rail altogether.  Corbin and Yale offer devices with cylinder dogging and electric latch retraction in the same device.   Yes, the electric latch retraction and cylinder dogging combo is all over the charts when it comes to availability.

 





As in all facets of life, when in doubt, contact your friendly door hardware genius.

 

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Von Duprin QEL Kit Diversity

qelhdqel

QEL and HD-QEL modular conversion kits.

Von Duprin offers several versions of its QEL (Quiet Electric Latch retraction) conversion kits for its 33, 35, 98 and 99 series exit devices.  The variations are:

  • Modular (no baseplate)
  • Modular, with connectors (Molex)
  • Modular with hex dogging
  • Modular with hex dogging and connectors
  • With baseplate, specify 3-ft. or 4-ft.
  • With 3- or 4-ft. baseplate and connectors
  • With 3- or 4-ft. baseplate and hex dogging
  • With 3- or 4-ft. baseplate, hex dogging and connectors

None of the modular kits come with baseplates.  Kits with baseplates offer a small ease-of-installation advantage because replacing the whole baseplate is slightly faster than field installing the modular kit onto an existing baseplate.  Modular kits can be installed in either 3- or 4-ft. devices, so if you want to have one kit on your truck, a modular kit would be the logical choice.

Which modular kit should you get?  I would suggest the HD-QEL Modular Conversion Kit with Connectors.  If you don’t want hex dogging, you can use a blank cover plate or plug the dogging hole in the existing cover plate.  If you don’t want the connectors, you can cut them off.  And since at the time of this writing there is no price difference between a modular kit with connectors and/or hex dogging, or without connectors and/or hex dogging, you might as well get the one with all the bells and whistles.  As I indicated, you can always dial it back.

While Von Duprin recommends any of their PS900 series power supplies together with their 900-2RS relay board to run their QEL devices, many installers are using their own power supplies and this seems to be working just fine.   QEL draws a 1-amp inrush.  I recommend allowing 2 amps for each QEL on a power supply, and it is always good to isolate them on their own set of contacts in the power supply if possible, using a power distribution or relay board.   If these contacts can be protected by a fuses or circuit breakers, so much the better.   A regulated and filtered power supply is also a plus.





Unlike many power supplies, I am both unregulated and unfiltered … and I like it that way.

 

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Door Hardware Triage

The Medical Metaphor

medicalAs previously published in Doors and Hardware Magazine, Feb. 2016

As in the medical profession, correct diagnosis of door hardware problems is wholly dependent upon the knowledge, skill and powers of observation of the person whose job it is to correct the problem.  “The devil is in the details,” they say, and it is never truer than when said in reference to doors and hardware.

Another old saying, “ignorance is bliss,” can be liberally applied to who those innocent building occupants and visitors who think that the answer to a lock that is not latching is to slam it until it does – or until the hardware falls off, whichever comes first.  Yet by the same token, door hardware technicians who fail to look at door hardware problems holistically are equally blissful.  If you have ever seen the latch hole in an ANSI strike enlarged to include half the head of the bottom mounting screw in order to remedy what is clearly a hinge problem you will understand what I am talking about.

The above occurs because the technician sent to solve the problem is guilty of treating the symptoms while failing to diagnose the disease.  He or she observes that the latch is making contact with the strike too low to drop into the strike hole as it should, but does not question why this is happening.  This example is a simple one, but the principle applies to more complex problems as well.

Method

A great way to make sure you correctly identify a door hardware problem on the first visit is to have a consistent method of examining the total opening.   An example follows:

  1. If possible, speak with the person who has reported the problem, or better yet, meet with them at the opening so that they can show you what the problem is.
  2. As you approach the door, visually check the gap around the edges of the door on the top and both sides.  (The gap should be one-eighth inch.)  If the gap is greater in one place and less in another, the problem may be a bent hinge or misaligned frame.
    Open the door.  How does it feel?  Does the door itself stick?  If it has a latch, is there resistance when you turn the lever to retract it?  Do the hinges groan or squeak?
  3. Inspect the door for dents and abrasions.  For example, scratches at the top of the lock-side edge may indicate bent or loose hinges.   Dents may indicate attempted forced entry:  check for damage to internal lock parts.  A dent in the gap between the door and frame above the top hinge may mean an object was placed there.  The frame may be damaged and/or the top hinge may be bent.
  4. Inspect the hardware for damage, missing parts and/or wear.   If it is a hollow metal frame, are the silencers installed?  If there are no silencers the door will not align properly and the lock will not latch correctly.  Is the door closer leaking?  Does the door closer arm move smoothly?  Are the hinge screws all present and accounted for, and are they tight?  If there is a latch, there probably is a drag mark on the strike.  Does the drag mark reflect correct alignment?

In other words, look at the door, the frame and the hardware thoroughly and completely, and always do it the same way.  That way you won’t fix one problem just to return the following week to fix another problem that you missed.strike

Tools May Be Required

To identify a door hardware problem you may find it helpful to use instruments or tools.   For example, a carpenter’s level can help you determine whether a door or frame is level or plumb quickly and accurately, and a carpenter’s square can show immediately if the frame is true or sprung.   A tape measure may be helpful to check if hardware is correctly located, whether or not the gap between door and frame is consistently one-eighth inch, and if one leg of the door frame seems to be longer than the other.

One problem most swiftly identified using a carpenter’s level is positive pressure.   If you detach the closer arm and tape back the latch on a door that is level, and it swings open seemingly of its own accord, chances are it’s a positive pressure issue.  Positive pressure occurs when the air pressure inside the HVAC ducts is greater than the pressure outside, causing air to be constantly forced out of the structure.  Positive pressure can be powerful enough to prevent a door closer from closing the door, and sometimes the only cure is when the HVAC technician changes the settings on the air circulation system.

The positive pressure issue is one of those door hardware issues that may require someone besides a door hardware technician to fix.

Waiting For The Electrician

Problems with electro-mechanical and electronic locking systems, like positive pressure issues, may require a low voltage or electronics specialist to solve in addition to a door hardware technician.  For liability reasons it is important to use technicians who are appropriately licensed as required in your locality.

Often these problems are due to mechanical as well as – or even instead of – electrical or electronic issues.  Therefore the best situation for electronic or electrical door hardware triage is when the technician called upon to fix a problem is skilled in all three disciplines. Out in the world we are finding locksmiths that have their low voltage electrical technician license and a working knowledge of how to troubleshoot or program an access control system, systems integrators who can disassemble and repair a mortise lock, and even electricians who can adjust a door closer or repair an exit device.

This is a phenomenon driven by a market that desires to have one technician who can do everything, both for convenience and economics.  In any event, a technician equally skilled in these areas solves the problem of cross discipline communication.  If you’ve ever had to explain the difference between fail safe and continuous duty electrified door hardware to someone who just does not get these concepts you will understand what I’m talking about.

For this reason alone it behooves one in the door hardware repair and installation business to learn as much as they can and get all the credentials they need to be able to service all the door hardware out there in today’s electric and electronic world.

Closure

The age of door hardware in which we work today is the age of the renaissance woman or  man, student of many skills.  However, diagnosing the often complex ailments of doors and door hardware takes more than skill and knowledge:  it requires mindfulness, openness, resourcefulness and humility.  It is not only necessary to know what could go wrong (and doubtless will, according to Murphy’s Law); it is necessary to be aware enough to observe all the symptoms, to be open to all possibilities and to be imaginative in creating solutions.  One must also have the humility to realize that it is not possible for anyone to know absolutely everything.  Sometimes the most useful tool at your disposal is your mobile phone.  A call to factory tech support can often save hours of fruitless aggravation.

 





No man is an island – but some men belong on one. 

The Pressure’s On

balloonPositive Pressure Issues

Sometimes doors are required to perform conflicting functions simultaneously.  For example, in order to comply with the American Disabilities Act a particular door may be restricted to a door closer that requires as little as five pounds of opening force.  This same door may be required to lock automatically without fail.

One solution could be to use a non-hydraulic, motorized power operator (automatic door opener) instead of a standard hydraulic closer.  Since many non-hydraulic power operators do not depend on a spring for closing force it is possible for them to have an ADA compliant opening force and also exert a closing adequate to close and latch the door.  Most power operators that fit this description must be installed by AAADM certified installers.

Without the magic fix of the non-hydraulic power operator, all a door technician can do is fine tune the door so that it swings perfectly and is perfectly balanced; fine tune the locks, hinges and door closer to peak performance under the opening force restriction; and pray there isn’t a positive pressure or wind issue.

One caveat:  deprived of electricity, a non-hydraulic power operator will neither open nor close the door.

Positive pressure HVAC operation is a prime example of how the intended function of a door can be impeded or prevented by the normal operation of building infrastructure.   Positive pressure in a building is accomplished by using the HVAC system to add air from outside the building to the air that is already in the building.  As with a balloon, the added air pushes outwards in all directions.  When an exterior door is opened, air flows out through the open portal, acting as an invisible barrier that keeps outside air out.

Unfortunately positive pressure acts like a constant wind pushing on the inside of the exterior doors.   Since almost all exterior doors swing out, the net effect of positive pressure HVAC on exterior doors is that of blowing to doors open and/or preventing them from closing.

The non-hydraulic power operator idea discussed above can usually solve the problem, but I have had some success adjusting door closers to compensate for positive pressure situations.  I have found that a slow swinging speed followed by a fast latching speed will often accomplish the mission.  This solution, however, can create other problems such as creating a wider time window for unauthorized persons to enter while the door is still shutting, for example.

I have found no reliable fix for an opening subjected to positive pressure that must comply with ADA reduced opening force requirements; however, since positive pressure on out-swinging doors inherently reduces opening force, there is some hope.

In the best of all worlds, door hardware technicians and HVAC technicians work together to coordinate positive pressure ventilation needs with security and ADA compliance requirements.

Excerpt from Tom’s article “Butcher, Baker, Door Hardware Technician… ” published in the February 2015 issue of Doors and Hardware Magazine, magazine of the Door Hardware Institute.


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