Educational process note · Wyandotte
Panic bar that will not latch
Educational process note — how this type of job is typically approached. It is not a write-up of a specific completed job.
- Typical setting
- Wyandotte, Michigan
- Vehicle or door
- Commercial rear exit or storefront with an exit device
- Locksmith
- Ryan Taylor, owner · City Locksmith Taylor LLC
- Problem
- Door does not stay latched, or it takes a shoulder to exit. Shop cannot lock up correctly at close. Device may have been dogged, undogged, and abused through a winter.
- Diagnosis
- Check the device, the strike / latch engagement, and the door alignment before ordering a whole new bar. A door that sagged will defeat a new device the same way. Wrong screws and missing end caps are common, not mysterious.
- Work
- Diagnose latch, rods or rim, and door position.
- Repair when the chassis and parts support it.
- Replace when the device is cracked, obsolete, or already beyond a honest rebuild.
- Result
- Door opens under a push and relatches when it closes. That is the whole standard. A wedge in the door is not a repair.