Nora Springs, Iowa

Under the 2010 ADA Standards and Iowa's commercial building code, any business open to the public with an automatic door must meet clear opening width of at least 32 inches, an activation area within power doorway range, and force requirements — not more than 15 pounds for manual doors, automatic operators must stop and reverse upon contact with an obstruction. We'll verify your operator model (e.g., Horton or Stanley) is set to the correct timing and pressure. We can also assess swing door power assist compliance. If your door isn't labeled with an accessible entrance sign, that's a separate requirement.

A lot. Standard closer fluid viscosity changes below 10°F — you'll see doors slamming shut or failing to fully latch. Most closers are rated to -10°F at best; if yours isn't, you'll have trouble by January. EPDM and vinyl bottom seals get hard and compressed after repeated freeze-thaw cycles; we measure the gap — more than 1/8 inch under a closed door lets in cold air and raises heating costs. Aluminum thresholds expand and contract differently than steel frames; that causes threshold-to-frame separation. We adjust sweep speed and latch speed to compensate for winter conditions. And never use WD-40 on hinges in winter — it thickens and attracts dust. Use a dry PTFE spray instead.

For dock doors that cycle 50 times a day (typical for a food distributor or manufacturing facility), schedule maintenance every 6 months. That's 10,000 cycles per door per year. Torsion springs average 15,000 to 25,000 cycles before they snap; scheduling at 10,000 cycles lets us replace them before failure. Track roller wear, cable fraying, and seal compression. For storefront or entry doors with low cycle counts (under 10 per day), once a year is fine. Use a log — DASMA recommends maintaining records showing cycle count and inspection dates. That also covers you for insurance or fire marshal audits.

Here's the threshold: if the steel frame is rusted through or bent at the anchor points, that's a replacement. If the door panel has a hole or delamination, replacement. If the track is egg-shaped in an overhead door from a forklift hit, replace the track sections — not the whole door. But if you have a 3-hour fire-rated door with a missing UL label or a gap that exceeds 1/8 inch under the bottom, and the frame is still solid, that's a repair: new seals, closer adjustment, hinge replacement. Also, if your door exceeds its rated cycle count (check the spring color code) and needs a spring replacement that's approaching the cost of a new door, it's more economical to replace. We'll give you the numbers without pressure.