At church, all the doors are self closing. Sometimes it's just not convenient, such as when we're moving tables and chairs.
Someone bought a bunch of rubber door stops, which work sometimes, on some doors. But, not a really satisfactory answer.
I've been considering making some out of wood. Do those need a rubber edge? Any particular design, like "really shallow angle" or wisdom like that?
Are the doors made of wood? Wood against wood in the situation you describe could be damaging to the doors. Why are the rubber wedges unsatisfactory? Do they "drift" to the closed position bcause the floor surface below is too shiny? If so, a bit of sandpaper under them?
What kind of floor - carpet? vinyl?
For, like, $2.98 you can get a door locker gizmo. Two parts: One part attaches to the top of the door and looks like the thing that keeps the door from banging against the wall. The other part attaches to the wall and grabs the other dohicky.
Here's one:
Are the doors made of wood? SM: Yes, finished wood. Fire rated, too.
Wood against wood in the situation you describe could be damaging to the doors. SM: Why is that?
Why are the rubber wedges unsatisfactory? SM: Well, with the tile or smooth floors, the doors don't stay open. The rubber wedges get slick. They also collapse, and get soft.
Do they "drift" to the closed position bcause the floor surface below is too shiny? If so, a bit of sandpaper under them? SM: That's an idea, but I suspect that would sand the floor (Daniel san!) and cause more problems.
Carpet?
I made a special door stop for an elderly friend when they had a problem with robberies at her retirement home. It was a wood wedge with a vertical handle so she could place it without bending. It also had several finishing nails pounded into the bottom so the heads stuck out 1/4", so it would bite into the carpet and not slide.
A shallow angle and "sticky" bottom will both increase the hold on most surfaces. The top surface would idealy be hard and slippery to increase downward pressure and decrease sliding.
We have several different floors. Some are very smooth carpet, and some like the kitchen are some kind of plastic. Linoleum, formica, or something.
Someone took to wedging the top of a couple of the doors, between the door and the jamb. I suspect that's going to tear the life out of the hinges.
Wish we could make a hook and loop like you use to keep a storm door closed. Can't drill the fire doors, and can't make permanant hold opens (fire and insurance regs).
I'd have to check with the powers that be. It's my understanding that we're not allowed to have any permanant hold open devices. Wish we could.
I like the one that looks like Dorothy under the Door. Would that be Door-othy?
Try coating the bottom of the rubber stops with a thin layer of polyurethane caulk. It'll give it a "stickier" surface. Glue a thin layer of hard stiff plastic or metal to the top. What you need is the bottom to grab, and the top to slide, which will increase the pressure downward.
Bungee cord from the panic bar to an eyebolt on the wall behind the open position? Some old truck brake drums with rubber on the bottom? (They make great sign bases, too.) The doors I need to prop generally have shipping containers close enough to kick into place to act as a stop. Also check your closers- some of them have a detent at the full-open position. I've also seen clips you can drop over the folding arm at the hinge point, if yours have such an arm.
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I've seen doorstops in commercial buildings that have one part fastened to the floor behind the door and a hook at the bottom back of the door, IIRC....the thingy fastened to the floor flips up with your foot and hangs onto the hook on the back of the door.
Or glue a small patch of something to the floor at the spot the doorstop has to be placed? Or remove wax from flooring at the right spot?
Probably a little spendy for a small church, but at work some of the fire doors have magnetic hold-backs. Alarm trips, the magnets let go, and the doors fall closed. They also have similar mechanical hold-backs that drop over the top of the open door, but when alarm system trips the solenoid (like big electric doorbell dinger), the arm lifts and the doors fall closed. The technology is definitely out there, your fire alarm company can point you to it. And they will know what is code and insurance legal. Of course, all that takes money, and if you are like most churches, the building fund pot is always close to empty.
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"Stormin Mormon" wrote in news:hagorm $3o0$ snipped-for-privacy@news.eternal-september.org:
Sounds right. They're fire doors and suppose to be closed.
Seems like the metal door stops that flip up and clip against the door are the most practical. A gallon plastic jug filled with (holy) water is another practical solution. You will want to keep people from tripping over such an object.
There's nothing in the door closer that will keep it open?
How about a 1 or 2 foot piece of 2x4 where the hinges are?
What if you kick the tall end towards the door. Or maybe put your foot against the tall end and force the door into the stopper, but that's not as good.
Probalby not. Make a couple and see. You probably have to kick them into place to make them stick.
I agree; Sandpaper will sand the floor. Worse than scratching the bottom edge of a door, which can be touched up if necessary with stain or Old English furniture polish/stain.
That's ridiculous. What are the odds people will die in the fire, and if you do lose a few, that's the risk they take. Don't the members know people have to have the doors open to move things.
They could save money by using magnets and when the alarm trips, the siren sounds and the ushers go shut the doors. :)
I agree. If the rubber wedge is pliable, it might be possible to serrate the base with a craft knife, i.e. little slots in the base that are at right angles to the anticipated direction of slippage.
I can imagine folk tapping them hard with their foot to firmly wedge them under the door and crush/ dent the timber.
Ahh. Too soft a wedge? Need a different type rubber/ plastic?
Change the arm on the door closer to a hold-open model. If it is a fire door then get the fire door rated ones. (they have a fusible link) Another option is to install the magnetic hold opens that are tied in with the fire alarm /smoke detector / heat sensor.
If you look at the set-ups they have in the hospital you can see samples.
And wedging anything between the door and the jam will rip the snot out of then hinges. BTW you can make penetrations on fire doors *IF* you do so within the design parameters of the door.
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