At Anderson Lock, we spend a lot of time helping customers secure ways into their buildings. But thinking about how to get out of your building in an emergency situation is just as important. When we’re talking about exiting the building quickly and safely, we’re talking about panic bars.

In this guide, we’ll explain the essentials of panic bars and related exit devices so you can feel equipped to talk with a contractor about your options.

Understanding Panic Bars & Exit Devices

You have certainly seen a panic bar before — probably hundreds of them — but didn’t know that’s what they were called. A panic bar is a horizontal bar or touch pad installed just above waist level on the inside of a door that, when pressed with a minimal amount of force, unlatches the door so you can get out. If you’ve thought of them at all, you’ve probably just thought of them as an exit button or bar.

The word panic may not be the best term from a marketing point of view — no one wants to think about anyone panicking in their building — but you can also call them crash bars, push bars, or by the industry term exit devices. They are a regular requirement in most building codes.

The Importance of Safety and Compliance

That last line is important: Crash bars are not primarily about aesthetics, convenience, or cost-effectiveness. They are legally required by the building codes that govern your municipality.

Safety codes regarding panic bars developed in response to major disasters in the 19th and 20th centuries, including:

  • The Victoria Hall Disaster, 1883  In Sunderland, England, 183 children died of trampling or asphyxiation during a toy giveaway because a door at the bottom of a stairwell was bolted shut and could not be opened.
  • The Iroquois Theater Fire, 1903  In Chicago, over 600 people died trying to escape a fire because the door latches were difficult to operate.
  • The Collinwood School Fire, 1908  In Collinwood, Ohio, 172 students and 3 adults died in a fire because the school had too few and poorly designed exits.

Panic bars won’t guarantee there won’t be unfortunate outcomes in an emergency, but they can at least ensure you have done what you can so people can easily exit your building.

Typical Applications for Panic Bars

We typically see panic bars in buildings that tend to have a certain occupant load as defined by building codes. Occupant load refers to the number of people who may be in your building or space at the same time.

  • Commercial buildings  Shopping centers, restaurants, grocery stores, clubs, office buildings, and so on that may have a lot of people inside at any given time. Interior spaces such as conference rooms or banquet halls may also have panic bars.
  • Factories and industrial facilities  Many of these will meet the occupant load requirements, but even smaller facilities may use panic bars if they work with potentially hazardous materials that, in case of emergency, would require quick evacuation.
  • Healthcare facilities  Hospitals, clinics, nursing homes, etc. use panic bars for safety and for the convenience of use when some users may have physical limitations.
  • Transit hubs  Crash bars are often required in airports, train stations, and bus terminals due to occupant load, but they offer the additional benefit of being quick and easy to operate, which improves traffic flow.
  • Schools, colleges, and university buildings  These buildings have a high occupant load for large parts of the day. Interior spaces like gyms, auditoriums, or other large assembly rooms usually have panic bars.
  • Entertainment and sports venues  Concert halls, amphitheaters, and arenas can hold hundreds, thousands, and even tens of thousands of people all at the same time.
  • Public and government buildings  Your local town hall, library, and museums will almost certainly have crash bars both because of occupant load and an abundance of caution about public safety.
  • Residential buildings  Possibly the least common application, but high-residency buildings such as apartments or condos will require panic bars.

Key Features of Crash Bars

Crash bars can be quite sophisticated, but the basic concept hasn’t changed in many years. In essence, a panic exit device consists of a horizontal bar or pad extending at least half the width of the door and usually made of a durable metal. The latch and crash plate can be mounted externally, or they can be inside the door like the mortise (pocket) locks you are familiar with on residential doors.

A crash bar may also have additional features such as visual indicators, an alarm, a delayed egress timer, or some form of dogging.

Types of Panic Bars and Crash Bars

Rim Panic Bars

Rim crash bars and their crash plates are mounted on the surface of the door and the doorframe. They are simple to install and common for single-door applications.

Mortise Panic Bars

Mortise panic bars are mounted on the surface of the door, but the latch mechanism is hidden in a mortise or pocket inside the door. They are slightly more secure than rim bars and offer the added benefit of looking more discreet since most of the hardware cannot be seen.

Vertical Rod Exit Devices

This refers more to the lockset than the panic bars. They feature vertical rods that extend from the crash bar mechanism to the top and bottom of the door. They can be surface mounted or concealed inside the door just like the crash bars. They are often used for double doors or where you want multiple latching points. 

Push Pad or Touch Pad Exit Devices

To this point, we’ve been using: ”bar” rather loosely. Technically, the wide, flat components mounted against the door that you press like a large button are called a push pad or touch pad. We will know what you mean if you call it a panic bar or crash bar, though.

Cross Bar Exit Devices

Cross bars are rounded bars that extend away from the door as compared to a push pad. They are often preferred in restaurants, clubs, and office spaces that feel the cross bar looks less functional and more classic. They may also be a good choice if the design of your door doesn’t suit a touch pad. If you refer to an exit device as a cross bar, we will assume you mean this device and not a touch pad.

Multi-Point Panic Bars

These feature at least three locking points for even more security. In addition to the main side lock, they use vertical rods to connect additional locksets also on the door’s side or at the top and bottom like a standard vertical rod device.

Electronic Panic Bars

These devices can have built-in alarms or can work with your access control system to automatically open, close, or dog the doors as the situation requires.

What is Dogging?

We’ve used the term dogging a couple times now. Dogging simply refers to locking a latch in the open position, effectively rendering the door a simple push/pull door. This can be useful in high-volume situations where there is no need to secure the door from the outside. Some devices can be dogged with a hex key, while others use a cylinder and key. Others can be activated electronically.

Safety and Compliance Codes Related to Panic Bars

There are two main codes governing the use of panic hardware: the International Building Code (IBC) and the National Fire Protection Association’s Life Safety Code, known as NFPA 101.

The IBC requires panic hardware for doors when you have an assembly or educational space with an occupant load of 50 or more people or for any high-hazard space.

NFPA 101 requires panic hardware for assembly, educational, or day care occupancies with an occupant load of 100 or more or for high-hazard spaces with an occupant load of 5 or more.

In addition:

  • The activating part of the device must extend at least half the width of the door.
  • The exit device must be mounted between 34 and 48 inches above the floor (the same as for ADA compliance).
  • No additional lock such as a chain, hasp, padlock, etc. can be used on the door.
  • Balanced doors (which hinge several inches in from the edge of the door) must use push pads that do not extend more than half the width of the door. This ensures no one will push on the wrong side.

The codes require that the latch can be opened with a force of no more than 15 pounds of pressure. However, many customers and manufacturers opt to comply with the ADA requirement of 5 pounds of pressure.

Panic Exit Hardware versus Fire Exit Hardware

This part is important: Not all panic hardware can be used as fire exit hardware. Fire exit codes are concerned with fire escape routes that lead out of the building. Many interior spaces such as assembly halls or conference rooms may require panic hardware but not be considered fire exits.

Panic hardware has fewer requirement for materials and design than fire hardware, and they can include mechanical dogging. Fire exit hardware, by contrast, must be tested for both panic and fire conditions. Because doors need to remain closed during a fire, they can only have electronic dogging, which would be deactivated in case of a fire.

Replacing or Installing Panic Exit Devices for Your Facility

Because they concern the safety of the people who use your building, it is important to have any panic exit hardware professionally installed. While you’re considering your options, you can browse our selection of exit devices to get an idea of your range of options.

Ready for some expert guidance? Contact us today to speak with one of our exit device specialists.