Panic Bar Installation in Los Angeles, CA

What is a panic bar, and which doors need one?

A panic bar is the horizontal bar you push to open a door from the inside. The trade also calls it a crash bar, push bar, exit device or panic hardware. The name changes from one contractor to the next, but the job does not: let anyone leave a building with a single push, no key, no knob to twist, no thinking, even when a crowd is moving toward the door at once.

Doors that serve as exits in places where many people gather are commonly required to carry this kind of hardware. Restaurants, retail floors, offices, classrooms, event spaces and busy stairwells are typical examples. Which doors need it, and which type is acceptable, depends on the building's occupancy classification and occupant load. The people who decide that are your local building and fire authorities, not a locksmith. Our part is to install the hardware properly, repair it when it fails, and tell you plainly when a door looks like it needs something different from what you asked for.

This page is about panic bar installation, repair and replacement. If you are looking at the bigger picture of hardware across a commercial property, including entry doors, storefronts and interior doors, our commercial door hardware page covers that side of the work.

What goes wrong with panic bars and emergency exit doors?

Exit devices are mechanical, they get pushed thousands of times, and in many buildings nobody thinks about them until one fails. The failures we see described most often are these:

• The bar sticks down or does not spring back after being pushed, so the latch stays retracted and the door will not hold closed.
• The latch does not fully retract, so the door takes a hard shove or a shoulder to open. That is a safety problem, not an annoyance.
• The door will not latch when it closes. The cause is often the strike plate, a sagging door, or a worn closer rather than the exit device itself.
• The bar is loose on the door, the end caps are cracked, or the mounting screws have pulled out of a tired door skin.
• Vertical rods on a two-leaf or older door are bent, binding or out of adjustment, so the top or bottom latch does not engage.
• The outside trim, whether a lever, a pull or a key cylinder, is worn, loose or no longer lines up with the device inside.
• Someone has dogged the bar down, chained the door or added a padlock to stop people propping it open, and now the door is not an exit anymore.

Repair or replace: how do you decide?

Many exit device problems are repairable. A worn latch, a tired spring, a misaligned strike or a loose mounting can often be put right without replacing the whole device, and that is usually the more economical route. We repair first when the device is a known, serviceable model and parts exist.

Replacement makes more sense when the device is cracked or bent, when parts for an old model are no longer available, when the device was never the right type for the door, or when repeated repairs are costing more than a new unit would. We will tell you which situation you are in before any work begins, and we will not push a replacement when a repair will do the job.

A door that will not close properly is sometimes a closer problem, not an exit device problem. If that is what we find, our door closer repair service is the right fix, and we would rather tell you that than sell you hardware you do not need. If the bar has jammed and someone is stuck outside or inside with a door that will not open, see our business lockout page for how we handle that.

How does panic bar installation work, step by step?

A new installation or a swap follows the same order every time. Skipping steps is how exit doors end up failing a month later.

1. You call (213) 577-1366 and tell us about the door: wood, hollow metal or aluminum storefront, single or double, which way it swings, and what is on it now.
2. We look at the door in person. We check the door material, the width and style of the stile, any fire-rating label, the clearances, and the frame and strike condition. Hardware that fits one door will not always fit the next.
3. We choose the device type that suits the door and the use, and we explain why. That includes whether you need outside trim, a key cylinder, an alarm or a delayed feature, or a connection to access control.
4. We remove the old hardware, check the door and frame for damage, and prepare the door using the manufacturer's template so the holes and cutouts are in the right place.
5. We mount the device, set the latch, align the strike and fit any rods or outside trim.
6. We adjust the door's closing action and check the closer, because an exit device only works as designed if the door actually swings shut and latches.
7. We test the device repeatedly from the inside and, where trim is fitted, from the outside. Then we show you how the dogging, trim and key work, and hand over the keys.

Which type of exit device suits your door?

There is no single panic bar that fits every door. The main families are these:

• Rim exit devices mount on the face of the door and latch onto a strike on the frame. They are common on single doors and are often the simplest to service.
• Surface vertical rod devices latch at the top and bottom of the door and are typically used on pairs of doors where there is no center post.
• Concealed vertical rod devices hide the rods inside the door for a cleaner look, but they need a door built or prepared for them.
• Mortise lock exit devices use a mortise lock body in the door edge. These are common on aluminum storefront doors with narrow stiles and on some older commercial doors.
• Fire-rated devices are made and labeled for use on rated doors. A rated door needs rated hardware, and we do not substitute a device that is not labeled for it.
• Alarmed and electrified devices add a local alarm, a delay, or electric latch retraction that works with a door controller.

Can an exit device work with access control?

Yes, many can. An electrified exit device lets people badge or buzz in from outside, while the inside still opens with a push. The key point is that the exit side must always work without a key, card or power. We can fit the device and coordinate it with your system, and our access control installation page explains the electronic side in more detail.

What affects the cost of a panic bar job?

We do not quote prices on a web page, because the honest answer depends on the door, and two jobs that sound alike can be very different. Here is what moves the cost up or down:

• The device itself: the type, the brand and grade, and whether it is a standard rim device or something specialized like a fire-rated or alarmed model.
• Whether it is a repair, a replacement of a like-for-like device, or a first-time installation on a door that never had one.
• Single door or pair of doors, and whether vertical rods are involved.
• Door material and condition. Hollow metal, aluminum and solid wood are prepared differently, and a damaged door may need reinforcement or repair before new hardware will hold.
• Outside trim: a plain blank plate, a pull, a lever or a key cylinder each change the parts list.
• Electrified features, alarms or connection to an access control system.
• Whether the frame, strike or closer needs work so the door latches reliably.
• The time of day. After-hours or urgent calls differ from scheduled daytime work.

What does panic bar work look like across Los Angeles?

Los Angeles is a city of very different building types, and exit hardware has to suit each of them. Our storefront is at 10740 Wilshire Blvd in Westwood, ZIP 90024, and our mobile vans work across the city, from the Westside to downtown ZIPs such as 90014, 90017 and 90012.

In Downtown's Historic Core and Fashion District, storefront lock and panic-hardware repair is a routine scenario. Many of those buildings are early-1900s commercial structures, some converted to lofts. Doors and frames there can be old, out of square or built to unusual dimensions, so the first job is often making the door and frame sound enough to carry a modern exit device. We check that before recommending a model.

Along the Wilshire Corridor through Westwood, the condominium high-rises are managed by HOAs, and the exit doors in stairwells, garages and shared amenity areas fall on the building's side. Boards and managers usually want the work documented and the hardware matched across doors, and we can work that way. In Century City, office towers raise a different issue: suite doors and shared exits must coexist with tenant keying. For that, our master key system work is the companion service.

Across Koreatown, Mid-Wilshire, Palms and Sawtelle, much of the housing is mid-century apartment buildings and dingbats, and renters outnumber owners. Controlled-access entries are common there, which makes the exit side of each door matter. Shared stairwells, rear exits and ground-floor commercial spaces need devices that open easily from inside while the outside stays secured. Retail and restaurant doors in Hollywood and around Westwood Village follow the same logic.

Climate matters only a little here, and we would rather say so than overstate it. On the Westside, the regular morning marine layer can leave exterior hardware damp, which can wear outside trim and cylinders over time. On older wood doors in foggier areas, seasonal swelling occasionally affects how a door latches. Neither is a reason to avoid a particular device, but they are good reasons to check strike alignment during seasonal changes. If you are repairing a storefront door as a whole, our storefront lock repair page covers the rest of the hardware.

Does my panic hardware have to meet code?

If the door is a required exit, yes. The details depend on how the building is classified and used, and the authority that interprets them is your local fire and building department. We are not that authority, and we will not pretend to be. What we can do is install hardware correctly, use devices labeled for the door they go on, and flag anything that looks wrong, such as a chained exit, a dogged bar left on during business hours, or a device that does not fully retract.

If you are preparing for an inspection, or a fire inspector has flagged a door, tell us exactly what was written up when you call. We will look at the door and fix what is within our scope. If the citation concerns something outside hardware, such as the number of exits, signage or door swing direction, we will say so and point you back to the authority or your contractor.

One more point on trust. California requires locksmith companies to hold a BSIS LCO license, which is the state's locksmith company license. Ask any locksmith you hire for their license number before work begins, and check it with the state.

Why call Wilshire Lock & Key for exit device work?

We have been in business since 1987 and serve 140 cities across Los Angeles and Ventura counties, so commercial doors in every condition are familiar ground. We run a real storefront in Westwood plus mobile service vans, which means you are calling one company, not a dispatch center that sends whoever is nearest. The person who answers the phone is part of the same operation that does the work.

David is the owner and lead technician, and he oversees the work. That matters on exit doors, where small mistakes in alignment or latch adjustment become real problems later. Our commercial locksmith service covers the rest of the doors on your property, so one company can look after the whole building rather than you juggling vendors.

The phone line at (213) 577-1366 is answered 24 hours a day, 7 days a week, year-round. An exit door that will not latch does not wait for business hours, and neither do we.

What should you have ready when you call?

A few details make the first conversation much more useful:

• The address and the type of business or building.
• Whether the door is single or double, and whether it swings in or out.
• The door material: wood, hollow metal or aluminum storefront.
• What is on the door now, plus any brand name or model number printed on the device.
• A clear description of the problem, such as a stuck bar, a door that will not latch, or a missing device.
• Any inspection notice or written citation, if there is one.
• A photo of the door, the device and the frame, if you can send it.

More locksmith help in Los Angeles

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• Commercial Door Hardware in Los Angeles
• Commercial Locksmith in Los Angeles
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• Master Key System in Los Angeles
• Storefront Lock Repair in Los Angeles
• All services in Los Angeles

Panic Bar Installation near Los Angeles

• Beverly Hills
• West Hollywood
• Culver City
• Santa Monica
• Marina del Rey
• Inglewood