✨ Resident Life

Thanks, everyone. Very helpful pointing me in the right direction.

Linda Kilcrease

Resident of a CCRC

Linda - regarding fire doors for your laundry room. It isn't the door that is hard to find/install but rather the "assembly" that opens and closes the door. From your description it sounds like you have doors that close immediately. The "easy open/delayed close" doors Claudia describes are that way because they have rather complex assemblies/peripherals that may provide a bit of mechanical assist with opening (so the door doesn't feel as heavy as it really is) and hold the door open for a short length of time. This is likely only 30 seconds, at the most a minute or so but long enough for a person with a walker to get safely through. In order to get quotes/pricing someone would need to reach out to a commercial door company. Commercial prices aren't commonly posted online as they might be for residential building components. Many times even a quote would require a site visit. This is a job for door specialists, it is highly unlikely that this would be something that could be installed by your facilities in-house maintenance people. This would likely be a capital project.

Here is a section of the PA fire code describing the requirements for a delayed close fire door. It may give you some idea of the complexity.

§ 50.33. Fire door assemblies.

 Fire door assemblies in vertical openings shall be self-closing, latching, and normally kept closed. Electromagnetic hold open devices may be approved by the Department where all of the following conditions are met:

   (1)  Upon release, the door becomes self-closing.

   (2)  An approved release device is provided, so arranged that upon interruption of electric current, the door will be released.

   (3)  The release device is so designed that the door may be instantly released manually by some simple and readily obvious operation, and upon release the door becomes self-closing.

   (4)  The electric current will be positively interrupted by one or more of the following methods:

     (i)   The operation of an approved automatic sprinkler system which protects the entire building, including both sides of any horizontal exit.

     (ii)   The operation of an approved automatic fire alarm system installed to protect the entire building.

     (iii)   By the operation of approved smoke detectors installed in such a way to detect smoke or other products of combustion on either side of the door opening.

Kay, what do they do for laundry rooms that are (or should be) fire rated? These are heavy doors here in PA, at least in our old apt bulding.

Linda Kilcrease

Resident of a CCRC

I need a vendor / company name or brand. This is too undefined to search and find any door that could be used. It is a fire-rated door in my state of PA and easy-open may not itself work. Too generic.

Linda Kilcrease

Resident of a CCRC

At Goodwin House Bailey's Crossroads (Falls Church, VA), managment installed easy open/delayed closing doors on all laundry and trash rooms. These were cheaper than the auto openers for doors. I do not know the exact cost.

Hi Linda, I am disabled and live (alone) in independent living at Medford Leas in Medford New Jersey. While I have had to pay for some things like an automatic door to my apartment, I have found easy living at Medford Leas. I suspect that ableism is at work.

Kay Roberts

We have a few disabled residents in Independent Living. Those with rollators/ walkers have to push with their backs to open heavy laundry room doors several times each laundry day. These doors are fire rated, so they cannot be propped open. One person is returning from skilled nursing with a spine issue. We asked management for guidance in making this easier for these residents. The reply was, "The door closer is functioning properly. No further action is necessary”. My request for help had the ADA rules for interior doors. For fire doors, as the laundry room doors are, the ADA simply says, these doors must have the minimum opening force allowed by the local authority, which sounds pretty weak to me. Automatic opening doors cost upwards of $5,000. If one door is done, they would have many more that need that, too. So, there is a cost factor in all this.

Your thoughts?

Linda Kilcrease

Resident of a CCRC