Specifications

T
he electric strike
installation is perfect!
There are no ghastly
gaps between the frame
cutout and the strike
body or faceplate. The faceplate sits
flush with the frame. The wire run was
easily accomplished and the
termination was neat and clean. The
door swings shut, and ... oh, darn!
This, unfortunately, is not an
unusual scenario for an electric strike
installation. Despite making an
extraordinary installation, the unit
does not work properly when the door
is shut. Some of the common
problems include a binding strike that
does not release the latch, a strike that
does not catch and secure the latch,
and a closed door whose latch is easily
probed because the deadlatch is not
properly positioned.
In a properly latched door, the
latch of the knob or lever set extends
fully behind the jaw or keeper of the
strike. Little or no pressure is applied
against the jaw by the latch. The
deadlatch, on the other hand, rides or
sits on top of the jaw and remains
depressed. While there may be some
play between the latch and jaw, there
should never be enough to allow the
deadlatch to fall into the keeper area.
(See illustration 1.)
The strike binding and not
releasing the latch occurs as pressure
is applied to the strike’s jaw or keeper
by the latch when the door is in the
closed position. The pressure against
the jaw binds the release mechanism.
Consequently, the solenoid or coil is
not strong enough to retract the
release mechanism, therefore, not
releasing the jaw and the door latch.
Not catching and securing the latch
occurs when the horizontal alignment
of the jaw does not let the latch to
properly enter and latch behind the
keeper. Also, under such conditions, if
the door slams or is closed hard
enough for the latch to fall behind the
keeper before the release mechanism
relocks the jaw, the latch may raise
the jaw to a position where it cannot
lock and hold the latch. (See
illustration 2.)
Finally, a jaw that allows the
deadlatch of a knob or lever set to fall
into the keeper occurs when the jaw is
not positioned correctly. (See
illustration 3.)
36 • The National Locksmith
E LECTRONIC S ECURITY
Test Article #132
Strikes, Doors And
Adjusting Your
Jaws
1. A properly adjusted strike
allows the latch to fully enter the
keeper while the deadlatch is
positioned on top.
2. Doors that are not operating
correctly often do not allow the
latch to correctly or fully enter
the keeper. The result is the jaw
being held open or the door not
latching at all.
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