Turns out, it's the door closer that is groaning. Sigh. After all that work.
Well, it's all good. I got some really nifty ideas of how to deal with squeaky hinges. And a few wiseacres, who reallly brought smiles to my face. Most of you are great people, with good ieas, and a sense of humor.
Was it the closer piston or the hinges on the closer itself that was the problem?
So you have to replace the door closer then...
I have heard some loud ones on exterior doors that my superiors at the time wouldn't let me replace until they started to leak oil...
~ Evan
I'd several times oiled the external pivots and hinges. So, it was something in the hydraulic closer.
Yes, that is true. I sense that with the church's reduced budget for the Facilities Management group, that they will do exactly that. Ignore it, until it's either uncontrollably slamming, or leaking oil.
It sounds like they might be willing to cough up some cash to fix this one though since the offending door closer is near the main worship space and makes noise every time someone opens the door...
It would be an investment in not having everyone in the room be aware that someone has gotten up to use the bathroom during services...
~~ Evan
Years ago I did maintenance in a church. Door closers were always causing problems. It seems like they last a few years and after that they just become troublesome. I originally tried to fix them but found that they are just a pain in the ass to work on and it seemed that if I did get them working, the "fix" only lasted a few months at best. I tried to find a company that would rebuild the old ones but there was none. I finally convinced the church directors to just purchase a case of new ones. That way I had them on hand, and could replace them as soon as they became a problem. Plus we got a better price buying a whole case of them, rather than getting one at a time.
The rarely used doors, such as the ones that went to storage rooms often got some of the older ones that still worked but were a little noisy or operated too slow. That saved a few bucks.
Before they ordered the case of new ones, they were paying more for my hourly wages to keep fixing (or trying to fix) those old ones, which is how I convinced them to buy new ones. Granted, I liked the extra hourly pay, but then I would get complaints when they quit working again. Plus they are a pain to work on. IF you only need one or two, just buy them. You'll waste more money trying to fix them, and once they are worn, you keep fixing them over and over and over again.
For good or bad, the hydraulic closer that groans is far removed from the chapel. But, it's a good thought.
Due to fire codes, all the doors in the building have door closers. As you can imagne, there are a lot of rubber door wedges, that get used. If I'm locking up at night, I like to knock all the wedges out, and leave the doors closed. I figure the 45 minute fire ratng is zero, with the door wedged open.
I havn't given it a lot of thought, as to which doors get used the most. There are 13 exterior door, and 2 womens bathrooms. So, it's reasonable to figure that the womens bathrooms get a bit of use. Two congregations, with probably
450 persons who attend in one session or other. I'd figure 250 or so persons each Sunday who use the womens room, if you include boys under age of 3. So, the womens room door gets plenty of use. About 200 males, age 2 and over, for the mens room. Some men change their babies, so it's not all the kids 3 and under in the womens.However, those bathroom doors are likely to be high usage.
I'm with you, in that door closers need regular adjustment. I showed a friend how to adjust the closers, and he really enjoyed that new knowledge. We went through the entire building, and did them all. About six months from now, several will be slamming, again. I just did a quick count in my head, and there are about 70 (seventy) door closers in the building.
Did you refil them with fluid, or just adjust the allen screws?
I did attempt to refill a few of them, but if they already leaked, they would be replaced because of the mess. Most of the time I just adjusted them, but I also swapped parts from other old ones. New parts were not available.
You must have a huge church. We probably had about 25 to 30 of them. The "main" outside doors and the restrooms were the ones that were breaking the most. Obviously because they got the most use. In our state they were required by code on entrance doors, and what they called "fire doors" inside the bldg. I never knew if the restrooms had them by code, or just because that's what the people wanted. They were just there when I got hired. But some rooms did not have them., like some of the classrooms and offices. Yet, some storage rooms did have them and I never understood why. The boiler room in the basement was another one required by code and the church was cited for that one being broke once, after an inspection, so that one needed to be replaced immediately. I worked there 8 years, and during that time we used 9 or 10 from the case, which I believe came with 12.
To make matters worse, when I was hired there, it seems every one in the building was a different brand and style and they all mounted a little differently. So replacing then required drilling new holes, filling the old ones, and a lot of other hassles. It was nice to eventually get most of them the same. I guess when they built that place they just added then as they went, and bought them all over town, rather than getting them all at once. That was another reason to buy a whole case of them. They all matched.
I did attempt to refill a few of them, but if they already leaked, they would be replaced because of the mess. Most of the time I just adjusted them, but I also swapped parts from other old ones. New parts were not available.
CY: Right, leaking n ow is leaking later. Isn't that the way. Buy the whole thing, and no parts available.
You must have a huge church. We probably had about 25 to
30 of them.CY: yes, it's large.
The "main" outside doors and the restrooms were the ones that were breaking the most. Obviously because they got the most use.
CY: Sounds similar, to here.
In our state they were required by code on entrance doors, and what they called "fire doors" inside the bldg. I never knew if the restrooms had them by code, or just because that's what the people wanted. They were just there when I got hired. But some rooms did not have them., like some of the classrooms and offices. Yet, some storage rooms did have them and I never understood why.
CY: I don't know what the logic is.
The boiler room in the basement was another one required by code and the church was cited for that one being broke once, after an inspection, so that one needed to be replaced immediately. I worked there 8 years, and during that time we used 9 or 10 from the case, which I believe came with 12.
CY: Sounds like you got your use out of them.
To make matters worse, when I was hired there, it seems every one in the building was a different brand and style and they all mounted a little differently. So replacing then required drilling new holes, filling the old ones, and a lot of other hassles.
CY: I did that a couple weeks ago. A company I do work for, I got a call to replace a Norton door closer. So, they sent me a US lock, though my local parts house sells Norton. As you notice, none of the holes line up. I ended up on a step stool, drilling four new holes through battleship armor steel. For what? So they could save twenty bucks on the cost of the closer?
It was nice to eventually get most of them the same. I guess when they built that place they just added then as they went, and bought them all over town, rather than getting them all at once. That was another reason to buy a whole case of them. They all matched.
CY: I'm with you, they likely had them from here or there. Or the various builders and handymen each had his own brand.
At one time I worked on a lot of doors, mostly automatic but a great many hydraulic spring loaded closers. There is a company that's been around for a long time that rebuilds hydraulic closers and they do a very good job. In case you're wondering:
Those things probably contain silicone oil which is a real pain to clean up. The closest thing I've found to it is silicone brake fluid.
TDD
Most closers are rip and replace. But, some of the older ones. Would be nice to have them rebuilt. Thanks for the link.
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