Re:The History of American College Dorms
by Scoundreller on Thursday September 05, 2019 @12:42AM
(#20883885)
Or the ugly middle: where colleges built dorms in the old style/dimensions, but you were still forced to have self-closing 50lb fire doors because of fire code regulations.
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Re:The History of American College Dorms
by shawxe on Thursday September 05, 2019 @01:20AM
(#20884045)
Honestly, these doors are terrible. I just moved out of an apartment building where they were for some reason required and everything from carrying in furniture to carrying in groceries. I know this is extremely tangential, but if anyone can speak to exactly how/why these are supposed to improve outcomes in the event of a fire, I'd love to hear it.
Re:The History of American College Dorms
by function_seven on Thursday September 05, 2019 @01:31AM
(#20884098)
They compartmentalize whatever fire may occur, so that it doesn't quickly spread down the hallways and corridors. They also serve as barriers to smoke.
The cheap way of doing this is to have self-closing doors that remain shut all the time. Hospitals and other high-traffic locations will have door holds that keep the doors open unless the fire alarm is tripped. When an alarm occurs, the door holds release and the fire doors close.
Re:The History of American College Dorms
by saagarjha on Thursday September 05, 2019 @01:53AM
(#20884191)
FWIW, door stops work quite well.
Re:The History of American College Dorms
by Symbiote on Thursday September 05, 2019 @05:41AM
(#20885199)
My residence hall (we don't really say "dorm" in the UK any more) had these "expensive" things to hold the doors open, back in the early 2000s. It's an electromagnet connected to the fire alarm system; the door has a metal plate.
This is a safety improvement, because it avoids people propping doors open with wedges, chairs or fire extinguishers.
All the halls had them, as well as many doors in the academic buildings, whether they were new buildings or renovated 19th century buildings.