The test is behaviour, not appearance
Open the door fully, let it go, and watch. If it stops short, rests against the strike or needs a push, the assembly has failed. An inspector does exactly that and so can a manager on a walk.
Condo and HOA
Doors and hardware for Miami condo and HOA
A corridor door that closes but does not latch has lost its fire rating while looking completely normal, and most buildings have several.
Corridor and stairwell doors in a multi-family building are rated assemblies, and the rating depends on the door closing and latching under its own power from any angle. Constant use is what takes that away, and nothing about the door looks different when it happens.
The other recurring problem is propping. Residents and contractors wedge doors for moving, deliveries and airflow, and a wedged fire door is the finding inspectors record most often.
What we get called for
- Corridor and stairwell fire door closers, latching and coordinators
- Hold-open devices that should release on the fire alarm
- Amenity, mailroom and garage door hardware
- Doors that close but do not latch, which is a rating failure
- Alignment and hinge work on high-cycle common doors
- Panic hardware and exit devices on required exits
- Removing wedges and props, and fixing why they were there
Performed in-house
Who carries out this work.
Performed by TrionX employees. No Florida contractor licence is required for this trade, and TrionX carries general liability and workers compensation covering the work.
Why TrionX
How we approach it.
A wedge is not a hold-open device
Where a door genuinely needs to stand open, the answer is a device that releases on alarm activation. Wedges are always there for a practical reason, which is worth solving rather than just removing.
A written record per door
We number the doors, record what was checked and what was done, and hand it over. An inspection record referring to a corridor door on a floor with six of them is nearly useless a year later.
Common questions
Questions we get asked
Our corridor doors close but do not latch. Is that serious?
On a rated assembly it is a failure. The rating depends on the door latching under its own power from any angle, so a door resting against the strike does not hold. It is the finding inspectors record most often and it usually traces to alignment or a weakened spring.
Residents keep wedging the stairwell door open. What can we do?
Fit a hold-open device that releases on the fire alarm, so the door can legitimately stand open and still close when it matters. Removing wedges without addressing why they appear means they come back within the week.
Do you certify fire doors?
No. We repair and maintain the hardware, meaning closers, hinges, latches, alignment, seals and coordinators, which requires no Florida contractor licence. We do not issue certification, and our record does not replace a formal inspection where one is required.
Who pays for common area door repairs?
Corridors, stairwells, lobbies and amenity spaces are normally common elements and therefore association responsibility. A unit entry door is frequently a limited common element with responsibility split, so the governing documents decide it and our report identifies which side the failure sits on.
Further reading
Field notes on this.
Written for the people who have to make the call. More in our insights, and the vocabulary in the glossary.
Related
The rest of the picture.
Every common door, checked and recorded
Closers, latching, coordinators and hold-open devices are performed by our own employees, with each door numbered and the result written down. Association or unit owner responsibility identified in the report.