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Commercial property or business owners don’t often find themselves wondering how much weight a commercial door can hold. When they do, one of two things has likely happened: they're looking to invest in a commercial door that suits their needs or their old door has quit on them and they’re searching for a replacement.
Every commercial door is a little different, making this question a difficult one to answer. Here's how to figure out how much weight a commercial door can hold.
When it comes to commercial doors, there's plenty of variation in terms of materials, styles, and manufacturing methods. Because of this, there's no standard amount of weight that all doors can withstand.
With that being said, some general points can help you make a better comparison between materials. Note that these are only averages based on uniform door size — the actual weight a door can bear will still depend on its individual makeup.
Most would expect steel doors to score exceptionally high on the weight-bearing scale. But wood can go toe-to-toe with some of the sturdiest steel doors on the market. In fact, oak doors are the undisputed champs, weighing around seven pounds per square foot, compared to hollow metal doors, which are typically five pounds per square foot.
Oak, mahogany, hollow metal, and ash doors are all above five pounds per square foot. Solid-core and birch are just slightly under, while white pine, fir, and hollow-core all rank toward the bottom, with the hollow-core doors coming in dead last at around two and a half pounds per square foot.
These weights mainly demonstrate durability and do not serve as a detailed or accurate scale. Height, width, and depth can also affect a door's weight-bearing abilities, even if the two doors are made of the same material. Still, the weight of the door itself will significantly impact how much it can hold.
Your door's weight will determine what kind of hinges you invest in, and the hinges will in turn play a role in how much weight the door can hold. The variance in weight tolerance comes from how frequently the door is used.
Commercial doors use specialty commercial-duty hinges that can hold between 400 and 600 pounds. Meanwhile, heavy-duty hinges are standard in certain commercial buildings and can hold between 600 and 1000 pounds.
It's important to remember the door's weight, as this is a crucial factor in its total weight-bearing capacity. For instance, if a 150-pound oak door uses 400-pound capacity hinges, there's about 250 pounds of capacity remaining.
But frequency, above all else, is the real test of the hinge's strength. The more a door opens and closes, the weaker the hinges become over time. It's best to go with the correct hinges for the job, so consider how many people use your door on a given day.
Standard or high-frequency hinges perform well with heavier, frequently used doors. These hinges are typically the most suitable for commercial spaces, especially employee entrances or store-front doors.
If you're curious about hanging something on your door or making modifications that could increase the stress on its hinges, you’ll want to learn a little about hardware. Specifically, you should consider screw size and material if you want your door to be able to withstand sustained or higher amounts of weight.
You can replace the screws that secure your hinges to bolster your door's weight-bearing capabilities. The longer the screw, the more weight it will hold, and the easier it will be to support it.
Small or flimsy screws aren't recommended for commercial doors. It won't matter how durable your door or hinges are if you use weak screws to prop everything up.
For more information about your specific door's weight capacity, investigate the material and manufacturer in-depth. While you could reinforce your door with proper hardware, it's generally best to do some research to ensure that you're buying a door and hinges suitable for their intended purpose.
Are you searching for heavy-duty commercial doors and top-quality hinges? CDF Distributors has something for every situation imaginable. Check out some of our best-selling products today!
January 18, 2023
Wayne Foreman
