Questions We Get Weekly
Everything below came off real service calls — the pricing questions, the code questions, and the ones that start with 'is this normal.' Not covered here? Ask a person.
Repairs, pricing, and scheduling
Do you replace doors, or only repair them?
Both, but in that order. The survey establishes whether the existing door and frame can be brought back into service economically. When a slab is delaminated, a frame is rusted through at the floor, or a storefront stile has torn out around the pivot, replacement is the honest answer and you will hear it. When it is a fifteen-dollar part and an hour of alignment work, you will hear that instead.
How is a service call priced?
There is a diagnostic and travel component, then labor and parts against the written scope. You approve the figure before the work portion begins. Rates for after-hours and weekend attendance differ from standard hours, and you are told which rate applies before anyone is dispatched.
Can you get a door secured today if it will not lock?
Usually. A door that will not secure gets treated as a same-day priority because the building is exposed until it is resolved. In many cases the first visit makes the opening secure and functional, and a second scheduled visit handles the parts that had to be ordered.
Do you work on fire-rated door assemblies?
Yes, and they get handled differently from ordinary doors. Fire door assemblies are required to be inspected annually under NFPA 80, and repairs have to keep the assembly's listing intact — which rules out field modifications like drilling extra holes or fitting non-listed components. If a repair would break the rating, we say so rather than making the door look fixed.
My entrance is hard to pull open. Is that a code problem?
It can be. The ADA 2010 Standards set a maximum opening force for interior hinged doors, and exterior entrances are governed by local adoption and building code. In practice, most heavy-feeling doors are heavy because a closer is over-tightened or a seal is dragging, both of which are adjustments rather than replacements.
Do you handle overhead and rolling steel doors?
Not as a core line. Rolling steel, sectional, and dock equipment sit with specialist overhead contractors, and we will point you at one rather than pretend otherwise. Our work is pedestrian openings: storefront, hollow metal, wood commercial, and automatic pedestrian doors.
Will you work with our existing hardware brand?
Where it makes sense. Matching an existing keyway, finish, and hardware family keeps a building consistent and keeps spare parts useful. Where a discontinued product is the reason the door keeps failing, that gets flagged with a like-for-like alternative and the reasoning behind it.
What do you need from us before the visit?
Site address and suite, a contact who can approve work, and any access constraints such as gate codes, dock hours, or a landlord approval requirement. Photos of the opening help more than most people expect.
About the company
Are you licensed and insured?
Yes, and the certificate of insurance goes to your facilities team or landlord on request before the first visit. Vendor onboarding paperwork is routine here rather than a special favour.
Do you take on multi-site accounts?
Yes. Portfolio work is surveyed opening by opening and reported as one prioritized document, so a regional manager can see the whole picture and fund it in order of severity.
Who actually shows up?
One of four named technicians, assigned by the type of opening rather than by whoever is nearest. You are told the name before the visit.
Do you subcontract the work out?
The door and hardware work is ours. Glass replacement, electrical supply to a new operator, and structural masonry get referred to trades that do those things properly, and we say so up front rather than marking up someone else's invoice.
Can we set up recurring maintenance?
Yes, and for buildings with fire door assemblies or automatic operators it is worth doing, since both carry annual inspection expectations. Scheduled visits also tend to catch alignment drift before it becomes a broken part.
What areas do you not cover?
Residential doors, garage and rolling steel doors, dock equipment, and automatic gates all sit outside our scope. Asking is free and the referral will be honest.
Some questions only survive a phone call
The ones that need a photo, a measurement, or a look at the frame do not resolve in writing. Two minutes on the line usually settles them.