Choosing door strikes

[mikefamig]

Give me a call, really.

I'd suggest the Securitron unit I posted, unless you're OK with a face cut on the door.

DEL
 
I did some reading and I think that I understand what you mean by a "face cut on the door". Did you mean to say a face cut on the door frame?
 
Does this video pretty much describe the preparation for a Trine or comparable strike?
 
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dImYdCY89CM
Mike.

 

[Del91574]

TL;DW in it's entirety. BUT, if you're watching that video, the bulk of it and the finished install is a good "what to NOT do" for many products/applications. The header he put in with the combination involved here is really kinda hokey, I mean, it's the footprint of a normal hydraulic closer, but the execution of product and their install is horrendous.
 
That AR strike was one I tossed up there I believe. It'll release with preload which you're most likely going to have on the door, otherwise that'll be viewed as "slop" by most HO's and unacceptable.

 

[newalarm]

Problem is the constant power requirement. So if power goes out for extended time, while you are away, the garage is unlocked.

 

[ano]

Problem is the constant power requirement. So if power goes out for extended time, while you are away, the garage is unlocked.

Much preferable to dying in a fire if the power goes out.  Just add a battery backup that lasts for 8 hours and you should be fine.

 

[newalarm]

Much preferable to dying in a fire if the power goes out.  Just add a battery backup that lasts for 8 hours and you should be fine.

Not going to happen if your house is up to code... All egress out of a home should be thumb turn to unlock. Some of the deadbolts are released when you turn the handle on the door. I do not believe that keyed deadbolts on secure side are permitted anymore.
 
Plus another battery, another expense, another thing to monitor/upkeep/replace. Simpler is always better.

 

[Del91574]

Much preferable to dying in a fire if the power goes out.  Just add a battery backup that lasts for 8 hours and you should be fine.

Ano, I'm sorry but you don't know what you're talking about here.
 
The most commonly installed and preferable electric hardware is going to be fail secure. The physical door hardware must be free egress at all times with the unsecure side of the door being locked at all times. I think people are confusing the cheap builder hardware that is always installed on a door instead of the right product for the application. Depending on electronics or a power source to allow egress is not permissible in any code or standard.
 
Fail safe hardware would only be used if the path of emergency egress is going to require entry into a normally secured space. The only time you'll see fail safe hardware installed is when either it's required to be used in that manner, such as a high rise elevator lobby with a business occupying the floor around the elevator lobby (facilitate access to emergency stairs in the event of a fire) or a special circumstance that must meet tighter requirements due to DPH which would supercede most AHJ (mental health or other institutional) but that's an entirely different discussion altogether. I'm also not going to get into the discussion of crash bars, when and where they're required or delayed egress applications.
 
Maglocks require a lot of special consideration, though they are considered fail-safe in nature, but the execution and installation are key, which unless the party is duly informed and understands the real requirements, is a poor option to bring up for a novice.
 
Further reading: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lockset
 
A lot more exists than what's available at the local blue or orange big box hardware store.

 

[Del91574]

Not going to happen if your house is up to code... All egress out of a home should be thumb turn to unlock. Some of the deadbolts are released when you turn the handle on the door. I do not believe that keyed deadbolts on secure side are permitted anymore.

That sort of hardware is generally not compatible with strikes or other access control hardware. Completely different beast or animal compared to builder spec hardware and functionality. Same goes with deadbolts or deadlatches.
 
Double-keyed were almost always generally frowned upon, but until it was addressed in the statutes and codes, not much could be done, but now it becomes the AHJ's discretion as to whether or not it's permissible or grandfathered.
 
The handset on an access controlled door would normally be specified as storeroom or similar. You can also order with a privacy locking functionality, but generally, when the access hardware is already being considered, it's really a moot point.

 

[mikefamig]

Going back to my original question on how to properly automate the door in my detached garage tell me if I understand this correctly
 
The first thing is to ensure that the lock/handset is the type that is always unlocked from the secure side of the door whether it is in the locked position or not. In my house all exterior door locks behave this way except for a sliding door to the patio which requires me to manually unlock it from the inside with a lever.
 
Next the electric strike should be fail-secure meaning that the door is locked in a power failure and requires current in order to unlock.
 
Now considering that I was to do the above it still leaves me with one point to clear up in my mind -
How long can the door strike be activated for? I have to walk about a hundred feet from the keypad in the house to the door which will take a few moments and I would like the door to remain unlocked long enough for me to get there without running like the place is on fire. Or can it be activated and remain in the unlocked position for hours without harming it?
 
Mike.

 

[Del91574]

1. Yes
2. Yes.
3. Can't comment about your patio door hardware.
4. Yes. (the Unlatch only requires a constant power feed and is activated by the trigger input. It is still fail secure.
5. Typically a normal unlock cycle is 5 seconds and then the door contact is normally what tells the system to relock (no need to hold the door unlocked once it's opened).  If you're going to have it unlocked for hours, then something like a HES Smartpak or equivalent would be recommended for the hardware, to reduce the voltage from the full inrush current to a hold current only and allow the hardware to run cooler.
 
If you were doing something like having the lock unlocked for 18-20 hours a day, then you'd revisit the fail safe question, but a few hours, we have a few hundred locks that are running on a schedule with no real issues, it just shortens the overall lifespan (solenoid).
 
I'd recommend using a KAM and putting a reader at the door. It'll make life a lot easier.

 

[mikefamig]

If you were doing something like having the lock unlocked for 18-20 hours a day, then you'd revisit the fail safe question, but a few hours, we have a few hundred locks that are running on a schedule with no real issues, it just shortens the overall lifespan (solenoid).
 
I'd recommend using a KAM and putting a reader at the door. It'll make life a lot easier.

I'd rather not have to carry another remote device to activate a proximity reader.
 
What's key for me is that I can keep the strike activated for a few minutes without doing it any harm. I think that it will work for me if I just program the Elk to activate the door strike for five minutes when I disarm the garage, that will give me plenty of time to walk down there and it will re-lock if I get distracted and don't go down there. I don't suppose it matters if the door re-locks once I'm inside.
 
Ideally I would like to have a bolt lock that I can lock and un-lock with the Elk. I don't see how it would be any less safe in a fire as long as you can open it manually from inside just like the keyed bolt lock that is in the door now. Is this possible or am I asking too much?
 
Mike.

 

[Del91574]

Strike unlock would be pretty easy. No harm for the time involved.
 
Part of the reason for suggesting a reader would be to allow you to swipe, disarm the area, unlock the door and go in with no codes involved. Reverse could also happen or a pushbutton wired to the panel as a momentary keyswitch inside the secured area.
 
I'm sure you could probably hack apart an electric deadbolt and control it...I have one on my garage that I never got around doing just that. The downside of the bolt would be no real status if it actually locked or hung up, as many deadbolts do as the seasons change. Strikes offer the ability to monitor the latchbolt, if so inclined, in addition to the normal DSM.
 
The main issue is you're not going to find a cheap, controllable lockset with the features you desire. Trust me, we have 2 pallets of them that we're working on installing. Assa product.