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Facility and maintenance teams
Identify the failed part from a photo, replace it with the right grade, and keep the specification on file for next time.
How do you replace hardware on a door nobody has paperwork for?
Photograph it. Latchford Hardware identifies failed commercial door hardware from a photo, specs the replacement in the right grade and finish, and keeps that specification on file for the building so the next failure is a one-line reorder. A closer leaking oil, a lever that spins, an exit device that will not latch: none of them need a part number to start.
What changes when the door is fire rated?
The replacement has to be listed for that opening. A fire door needs positive latching, so the latch or exit device must close and latch on its own every time, with no mechanical dogging holding the bar down. The closer must be listed for fire door use, and a hold-open closer or arm belongs on a rated door only where the closer is listed for that use. Tell us the opening is rated when you send the photo, and photograph the rating label on the door or frame edge if you can find one.
Panic hardware is required on doors serving assembly (Group A) or educational (Group E) spaces at an occupant load of 50 or more, and high hazard (Group H) spaces at any load. Fire doors are also due an annual NFPA 80 inspection, which is often when the failed closer or the latch that no longer catches gets written up. We sell listed hardware and confirm the specification in writing. We are not code consultants; your Authority Having Jurisdiction (AHJ) makes the final call.
What usually fails, and what replaces it
Six work orders, and what to put in the email so the quote comes back the same business day.
| Symptom | Likely part | What we need from you |
|---|---|---|
| Closer leaking oil, or the door slams | Surface mounted door closer, replaced as a unit. A quote line, priced per order. | Photo of the closer body and arm, which side of the door it sits on, door width, and whether the door is fire rated. |
| Lever loose or spinning | Cylindrical lever lockset, or its trim, in the same function as the one coming out. | Photos of both sides and the latch edge. Does it lock, from which side, by key or turn? Should the key match your existing keys? |
| Exit device not latching | Rim exit device or its strike. Sometimes the bar is dogged down or the strike has moved, and the fix is an adjustment, not a part. | Photo of the whole bar, end caps, strike and door edge. Door width, any outside trim, and whether the door is fire rated, which changes the device we spec. |
| Keypad lock or electric strike dead | On a standalone keypad lock, try fresh batteries first. On an electric strike, the cause is often the power supply or a latch bearing on the keeper rather than the strike. | Photos of both sides of the door, the strike and the frame, any model marking, and the voltage if it is marked on the power supply. |
| Hinge sagging or squealing | Ball bearing hinges, replaced as a set. NRP pins where the door swings out. Continuous geared hinge where the frame is worn, quoted with its lead time. | Photo of one hinge with a tape across it, the hinge count, and whether the pins are on the outside of the door. |
| Kick plate or threshold damaged | Kick plate, threshold, sweep or gasketing. Mostly special order, so allow for the lead time on the quote. | Door width, the height of the existing plate, the finish, and whether the threshold is on an exterior door. |
Finish is matched to what is already on the door: 626 satin chrome on locks, 630 satin stainless on exit devices and plates, 689 aluminum on closers. Handing is read from the outside, and many mortise locks, exit trims and keyed cylinders cannot be reversed on site (handing chart).
From work order to tracking number
- 01Send the photoThe failed part on the door, the door edge, and the ship-to ZIP. Name the door (Room 12, east stair) so the file still makes sense next year.
- 02We identify and quoteSame business day: part number, grade, finish, price and lead time. If the part has been discontinued, the current equivalent and what changed.
- 03You confirm in writingHanding, finish and keying on any handed, keyed or keyed-alike item, before we order it. Non-handed, non-keyed items skip this step.
- 04It ships directFrom the distributor warehouse with stock, tracking on every box. Ground, 1 to 4 business days in the contiguous US, most metro addresses 1 to 2.
No account, no credit application, no minimum order. Prepaid, card by default; bank transfer (ACH) is offered through the quote channel on larger orders and clears in 4 to 6 business days, so it does not carry the 1 to 2 day ship promise. No sales tax is added; we are not registered to collect in any state, and your organization may have its own use-tax obligations.
What maintenance teams ask
The door failed on a Friday night. Can you help over the weekend?
No. Email is answered on business days, within one business day and usually the same afternoon US Eastern, and orders placed and paid on a business day ship the same or next business day. If the door has to be secured tonight, a local locksmith is the right call. Send us the photo anyway, and the permanent replacement is quoted the next business day.
Can the new lock work with the keys we already carry?
Usually. Tell us the keyway on the ring and we quote cylinders keyed to your existing system through the quote channel; keyed alike across a group of doors works the same way. Where the keyway cannot be matched from the lines we carry, we say so before quoting. Keyed orders are confirmed in writing and cannot be returned once cut.
Can you tell us whether a door needs panic hardware?
We can tell you the general rule and what a device is listed for: panic hardware is required on doors serving assembly (Group A) or educational (Group E) spaces at an occupant load of 50 or more, and high hazard (Group H) spaces at any load. We cannot tell you the occupancy classification or occupant load of your room; that is a determination about your building, not about the hardware. We sell listed hardware and confirm the specification in writing. We are not code consultants; your Authority Having Jurisdiction (AHJ) makes the final call.
Grade 1 or Grade 2 for a classroom door?
A classroom door is interior but not low traffic, and it is a door the school needs to lock reliably, so we generally quote Grade 1, heavy duty commercial, in a classroom (F84) or classroom security function, and say why on the quote. Grade 2, lighter commercial duty for lower traffic interior doors, fits the storage closet or the office off a quiet corridor.
Photograph it before you pull it off the door
A photo of the hardware where it sits, plus the ship-to ZIP, is enough to start. Quoted the same business day, confirmed in writing where it matters, shipped direct from a US distributor warehouse with tracking.