Exit route doors must be unlocked from the inside.
Should fire exit doors be locked.
Many use a push bar system that will open the door when pressed down.
The final fire exit door must.
Fire exit doors should open in the direction of escape.
The first although rare restricts use of an exit.
However this presents a problem.
Fire exit doors can be any colour.
The need for outward opening fire exit doors official guidance to the rro from the communities and local government department recommends that that all doors on escape routes should open in the direction of escape but states that this is particularly important if more than 60 people use them or they provide an exit from a high fire risk area.
There are also additional requirements where the door is the final exit point of a building.
Above all equip doors with panic hardware and fire exit hardware.
The door should open in the direction of evacuation.
The important thing is that the exit doors are clearly signed.
They must be free of devices or alarms that could restrict use of the exit route if the device or alarm fails.
There should be no locks or catches.
In an ideal world you wouldn t have to worry about locking doors but leave one unlocked and you can almost guarantee you ll have uninvited guests.
Osha requires that the height of an exit must be seven feet.
And not only do you have to lock them they also need to be alarmed and in certain cases made to be almost bomb proof.
For example this should not be less than 30 inches and not more than 44 inches above the floor.
If it is a security door that is usually kept locked but will be used by members of the public in an emergency situation it will have to be fitted with a panic or push bar.
Side hinged exit doors must be used to connect rooms to exit routes.
Openings into exits must have self closing fire doors that remain closed but not locked or automatically close at the sound of an alarm the door frame or hardware must be listed or approved by a national testing laboratory.
However there are two exceptions.
However in the workplace it may be permissible to have an exit.
Fire exits doors should open easily and wherever possible in the direction of traffic flow.
Emergency routes and fire exits must be indicated by signs.