Commercial door questions, answered.

It depends on what actually gets replaced. A door-only replacement that reuses an existing frame and compatible hardware costs considerably less than a complete opening with a new door, frame, hardware and closer.

The variables that move the price are the door construction, size, hardware, fire rating, frame condition, anchoring, access-control requirements, finish, site conditions, and whether the work can happen during business hours. As a budgeting rule, commercial door replacement is usually a low-thousands project per opening, and specialized openings cost materially more.

We price each opening on its actual configuration rather than on a range that may have nothing to do with your door.

Look for a contractor who can tell you what is being replaced, what is being reused and what is excluded, before the work starts.

A professional installer should be able to identify the door, frame and hardware requirements, recognize fire-rating, accessibility and egress considerations, say whether the existing frame can be reused, and put a scope of work in writing. For commercial work, confirm insurance, WSIB coverage, warranty terms and experience with the type of opening involved.

Be careful with a quote that says "replace door" without addressing the frame, the hardware, the existing conditions, or who is responsible for the work around the opening.

Start with what the opening has to do, not with the door.

Consider whether it is interior or exterior, the daily traffic, security, weather exposure, any required fire rating, accessibility requirements, appearance, and the hardware that has to operate on it.

Hollow metal is common in industrial, commercial and institutional buildings because it is durable and highly configurable. Solid core wood suits offices and finished interiors, and aluminum and glass systems are typical at storefront entrances. The right door is the one that meets the requirements of the whole opening.

Not every problem needs a replacement. Poor closing, misalignment, worn hinges, closer trouble, latch issues and damaged hardware can often be corrected by repairing or replacing individual components.

Replacement makes more sense when the door itself is significantly damaged, corroded or deformed, when recurring problems are being caused by its condition, when existing hardware preparations are damaged or incompatible with the hardware you need, or when the opening needs a real upgrade in security, accessibility, durability or performance.

The frame matters too. A sound, properly aligned frame can usually be kept; a damaged, corroded or badly out-of-square one may need remediation or replacement.

Often, yes.

An existing frame can be reused when it is securely anchored, in good condition, properly aligned and compatible with the replacement door and hardware. The hinge locations, strike preparation, dimensions and any required rating also have to work with the new door.

If the frame is badly rusted, damaged, twisted or no longer plumb, level and square, putting a new door into it produces recurring trouble with clearances, closing and latching. Minor adjustments can sometimes bring a frame back into service.

Not necessarily.

Existing hinges, locks, exit devices and closers can sometimes be reused if they work properly and suit the new door, and that is an effective way to reduce cost when the hardware still has service life left.

A new door is also the moment to correct worn, obsolete or poorly functioning hardware. High-use components, hinges, closers and latching hardware, should be evaluated rather than transferred automatically. On fire-rated or electrified openings, compatibility matters more than the saving.

Separate the project timeline from the installation itself.

Once the right door and hardware are on hand, many straightforward replacements are installed in a few hours or a working day. Frame replacement, masonry conditions, electrified hardware and multiple openings all add time.

The longer part of the schedule is usually measurement, procurement and fabrication rather than the install. Readily available standard products move quickly; custom sizes, finishes, fire-rated products and specialized hardware carry lead time.

A commercial door is considerably less forgiving than a residential one.

The leaf may be heavy, the frame has to be properly aligned and anchored, and the hinges, closer, lock and strike all have to interact correctly. Small errors produce a door that drags, slams, fails to latch, is hard to open, or creates a security problem.

Fire-rated openings, exit doors and electrified hardware add requirements that make doing it yourself particularly risky. On a simple non-rated opening an experienced tradesperson may manage it; for most ICI work, professional installation is the safer route.

The closer is the first thing to look at, but not always the cause.

Most commercial closers let the closing and latching parts of the swing be adjusted separately. A closer that has lost hydraulic fluid, is damaged internally or was sized wrong for the opening is past the point where adjustment helps.

Door weight, wind, building pressure, worn hinges and alignment all affect closing too. A door that suddenly starts slamming, especially with visible oil around the closer, usually has a failing closer rather than one out of adjustment.

A door that reaches the frame but does not latch has several possible causes: a misaligned strike, worn hinges or pivots, a frame that has shifted, a closer that no longer provides enough latch speed, weatherstripping in the way, or a damaged latch.

The important part is that turning the closer up is not the answer. The alignment and the hardware get checked first, because raising the force hides the cause and leaves you with a door that is harder to open.

Rubbing means the relationship between the door and the frame has changed. Usual causes are worn or loose hinges, damaged pivots, a sagging door, impact damage, or a frame that has moved. Seasonal building movement can also expose a clearance problem that was there all along.

Where it rubs tells you something: contact near the top, the bottom or the latch side points at different alignment problems. Correcting the cause beats grinding material off the door or the frame, and on a fire-rated opening grinding is not an option at all.

A door that feels unusually heavy may have a closer that is oversized or adjusted too high, binding hinges or pivots, a misaligned frame, too much weatherstripping, or a pressure difference between the inside and outside of the building.

It matters most at public entrances and on accessible routes, where opening force affects both accessibility and safe use.

Check the whole opening before fitting a weaker closer. Reducing the force without fixing the cause gives you a door that opens easily and no longer closes and latches reliably.

Some clearance around a commercial door is normal. Excessive or uneven gaps are not.

Exterior openings use perimeter gasketing, sweeps, thresholds and other weather seals to limit air and water infiltration, and worn seals are straightforward to replace.

Uneven gaps are a different problem. They point at a sagging door, damaged hinges or a frame that is no longer square, and thicker weatherstripping hides that instead of fixing it.

It depends on where the opening sits and the building conditions around it, not on the type of building.

Doors in certain fire separations, exits, corridors and service rooms may require rated assemblies, and the required rating can differ from one opening to another in the same property.

Do not assume an opening is unrated because the existing door has no obvious label. Drawings, door schedules, existing labels and the applicable code requirements should all be reviewed when there is any doubt. Ontario requirements also cover self-closing and positive-latching performance for many doors in fire separations.

Sometimes, but a modification to a rated opening is not ordinary field work.

Cutting new hardware preparations, adding glazing, drilling the door or frame, changing the latching hardware or substituting components can all affect the rating. Whether a given modification is acceptable depends on the door and frame listings, the hardware, the manufacturer requirements and the applicable code.

A fire-rated door has to be considered together with its frame and hardware rather than as an isolated slab. If an opening is known or suspected to be rated, confirm the change before anything permanent is done to it.

Panic or exit hardware lets an occupant release and open a door by pushing on a bar rather than operating a lockset.

Whether it is required depends on the occupancy, the occupant load, the use of the opening and its role in the building exit system, so it comes from the building requirements rather than from the size or the look of the door.

Even where it is not required, it is a practical choice on a high-traffic exit because people operate it quickly and without thinking. Exit hardware also has to preserve safe egress: Ontario Fire Code requirements cover the ability to open an exit door from the inside.

Not every accessible door needs a powered operator.

Accessibility at an opening involves clear width, maneuvering space, thresholds, hardware, opening force and the way someone approaches and operates the door.

Operators and push-button controls improve accessibility significantly and are required in certain applications, but the requirement should be assessed in the context of the building and the opening rather than assumed from the door alone. When an entrance is being modified, it is worth looking at accessibility at the same time, so that one improvement does not create a new conflict.

Often, yes, but the opening has to be evaluated first.

An electric strike, electrified lock or other access-control device has to be compatible with the door, the frame, the mechanical locking hardware and the required egress function, and the frame may need the right preparation, reinforcement and a pathway for wiring.

On a fire-rated opening, the components and the modification also have to remain appropriate for the rated assembly. Commercial access control is a coordination exercise between the door hardware and the access-control system, not a single product decision.

A commercial door contractor handles the door, the frame and the architectural hardware in its scope. Locksmiths are usually best placed for restricted key systems, master keying, cylinders and specialized lock servicing.

Access-control contractors handle controllers, readers, programming and low-voltage systems, and a licensed electrical contractor may be required for power and related electrical work.

On an electrified opening, defining all of that before the work starts is what prevents the familiar situation where the door contractor, the locksmith and the access-control contractor each expect one of the others to finish the opening.

It depends on the municipality and on the work.

The City of Toronto currently identifies the replacement of windows or doors, in buildings other than certain houses, as work that requires a building permit, and enlarging, relocating or creating a new opening can add further requirements. Confirm the current requirement with the City for your building before you rely on it.

Elsewhere in the GTA, check with the applicable municipality. Either way, decide who is responsible for the permit before work begins rather than assuming it is included in an installation quote.

The more we know about the opening, the more accurate the price.

Useful information: the building address, the number of doors, approximate opening dimensions, whether the door is interior or exterior, photos from both sides, the existing frame, and the hardware currently installed.

It also helps to tell us why the door is being replaced. A security concern, a damaged frame, a recurring latch problem, an accessibility upgrade and a cosmetic replacement lead to very different recommendations. On a project with drawings, the door schedule, hardware schedule, specifications and architectural plans are the fastest starting point.

For many straightforward replacements, yes, photos carry enough to build or substantially develop a preliminary configuration.

Send clear photos of the whole opening from both sides, plus close-ups of the hinges, the lock or exit device, the closer, the frame, the threshold and any labels. Photos of damage or of anything unusual are especially useful.

Measurements and site conditions still get verified before fabrication or installation wherever they could affect the product selection or the cost.

Measure the existing door leaf itself: width, height and thickness. Do not assume the frame opening represents the door size.

Depending on what is being replaced, we may also need the frame dimensions, the wall thickness or frame throat, the hinge locations and the hardware preparations.

Commercial openings are usually described in nominal sizes, and two doors that look identical from across a lobby can have different preparations. Measurements you send are enough for configuration and budgeting; the critical dimensions get verified before anything is ordered or fabricated.

Yes, and on a larger project drawings are the preferred starting point.

Door schedules, hardware schedules, architectural plans and specifications let the openings be reviewed together rather than one at a time, which is what surfaces quantities, door and frame types, ratings, hardware requirements and the places where the documents need clarification.

For a project with multiple openings we can carry estimating, supply and installation as a single scope. If your tender package already has drawings, sending the documents is faster than entering each opening by hand.

On a straightforward replacement, the opening is only unavailable while the existing door comes off and the new components are installed and adjusted, and many individual openings are done within the same working day.

A complete frame replacement, electrical coordination, masonry conditions, finish work or unusual site conditions extend that.

In an occupied building, the work can usually be sequenced to limit disruption and keep access through other entrances. If an opening is operationally critical, the only way into a tenant, a secure area or a loading function, tell us before we schedule so the work plan accounts for it.

Every remove-and-replace scope includes removal of the components being replaced, installation of the new ones, adjustment for proper operation, and disposal of the removed materials.

What varies is the configuration. Depending on the condition of what is there and the scope you select, we replace the door only, the door and hardware, or the door, hardware and frame.

Work outside the opening itself is excluded unless it is specifically quoted: drywall, plaster, tile, flooring, wall coverings, baseboards, millwork, painting, staining, electrical work, access-control programming, structural repairs and other surrounding finish or specialty work.

The quote establishes the configuration and the price from the information available. The assessment confirms the physical conditions that no product selection, drawing or photograph can settle on its own.

That means the exact dimensions, the frame condition, the hardware preparations, the handing, the wall conditions, the clearances, the labels and anything else that changes what should actually be ordered.

It matters more on replacement work than on new construction, because the new components have to meet a building and an opening that already exist. The assessment resolves those variables before materials are ordered and installers arrive, which is when an incorrect assumption becomes expensive.