As a business owner, you know how important it is to have a panic bar installed on your doors. Panic bars are crucial to fire safety and help people quickly escape an emergency.
Our commercial door experts in Washington, DC, have compiled a short guide to these practical fire safety tools. Read on to learn more about how panic bars can keep you and your employees safe.
What Is a Panic Bar?
The panic bar is essential safety equipment that allows you to unlock a door in an emergency quickly. Also called crash bars or push bars, panic bars are horizontal bars fastened to the inside of an egress-opening door. Applying horizontal force on the panic bar activates the mechanism and releases the door. They extend at least halfway across the width of the door. As a result, it allows people to evacuate the building quickly and efficiently, preventing delays and congestion at exits.
What Kinds of Doors Require Panic Bar?
When an emergency arises, it is important to have a means of quickly and safely exiting the building. That is where panic bars come in. Panic bars offer the fastest way to leave the building and are frequently found on emergency exits and fire doors. Some people tend to go for the entrance they came in when exiting a building in an emergency. For this reason, panic bars are frequently found on commercial front doors.
Horizontal Panic Bar
They are usually installed on doors used as emergency exits and designed to be pushed open in an emergency. When someone pushes on the door, the panic bar releases the latch and allows the door to open. Horizontal panic bars are positioned at the top of the door and run the entire door length.
Vertical Rod Panic Bars
Panic bars with vertical rods look similar to horizontal panic bars. When pushed, they activate the mechanisms at the bottom and top of the door. It reinforces the door’s stability and enables a smooth exit from the building.
Concealed Vertical Rod Bars
Doors with concealed vertical rod bars are much more difficult for criminals to break into. This is because the rods running through the door frame make it much stronger and less likely to be pushed in. Their lightweight and thin construction make aluminum doors excellent candidates for concealed vertical rod bars.
Panic Bar Levers
The exterior side of the door is where you’ll find the lever for the emergency exit. It is there to get into the building in an emergency, like a fire. However, criminals can also use the lever to get into the building, so it is important to deter them with locks or passwords.
Benefits of Panic Bars
Safety
In an emergency, a panicking crowd can easily and safely exit through a door with a push bar. In addition, the push bar can prevent entry from the opposite side. You can connect the push bar to an alarm system in high-security situations. In the event of a robbery or active shooter, pressing the push bar will activate an alert.
Cost Effective
There are many reasons to install panic bars on the doors of your business, including improved security and convenience, panic bars are also more affordable than automatic doors. The high maintenance costs of automatic doors are one important factor. In addition, many customers prefer automatic doors. However, they may pose a security risk in the event of an issue. Panic bars offer a level of convenience and peace of mind to customers, all while being a less expensive option for businesses.
Durability
There is no denying that when it comes to high-traffic doors, the only suitable escape device is a panic bar. These bars can handle a never-ending stream of people going in and out much better than any other option. Not to mention, high-quality bars can withstand being kicked or having trolleys crash into them daily.
Door Services Near Me
At MacArthur Locks & Doors, we understand the importance of security for businesses. That is why we offer a wide range of commercial locksmith services, from door installation and repair to panic bar installation. We are the locksmith Washington DC businesses trust for quality service and products. Call us today to see how we can help you keep your premises safe and secure.
