Shop&Lock's Signals Magazine

Electromagnetic Lock Deployment Considerations

Posted by Dan DeMerchant on

The misunderstood electromagnetic lock.  The device was initially designed as a solution to secure doors in large stadiums while safely releasing them in case of emergency.  Should an emergency arise in this setting, a sea of humanity could come running to the exits, causing massive pre-load situations on the existing latch-based electrified hardware available at the time.  The maglock was a way to safely release access-controlled doors in these settings without utilizing moving parts.  It had an inherently safe mechanical design but had electrical control and code compliance considerations to achieve this safety goal.  The Montreal Forum was the first...

Read more →


Avoid Using the Incorrect Cable Type When Connecting Door Locking Hardware

Posted by Dan DeMerchant on

I spoke with a customer on the phone that was having two problems. First is that their electric strike is only sometimes released when energized. Second, the Wiegand card reader does not reliably report a card number on the controller with every swipe. Being familiar with these issues after outfitting thousands of door installations, it's evident that the correct cable type may not have been used for the application. We asked the installer..."What type of cable was used to wire these two devices to the controller?"  Answer...CAT5 cable. We then asked, why didn't you use the correct cable types that were...

Read more →


Apply Surge Suppression Devices to Maglocks and Electric Strikes

Posted by Dan DeMerchant on

Don't forget to install the surge suppression devices, especially if they are included with the lock when installing electric strikes and maglocks. Many people doing installs make this common omission that causes technical support calls and premature equipment failure. They think that these devices are optional.Diodes, MOVs, or TransZorbs (TVS) act as surge suppressors that prevent high voltage spikes from radiating to other electrical components. A strike is an inductive load (coil of wire) internally, and when they are allowed to de-energize rapidly (when a controlling relay cuts power), the strike briefly acts as a source of voltage. This voltage can be...

Read more →


What are the components of a professional access control system?

Posted by Sales Shop&Lock on

This article describes some of the common components in a professional access control system.

Read more →


Using Hole Saws with Hand Drills

Posted by Dan DeMerchant on

Hole saws have cutting speeds that should be considered when drilling into frames and doors. I once saw an installer take a $60 (employer-supplied) hole saw new out of the box to drill a hole in a steel door frame. The saw got burned up before the hole was completed. When using a hand drill, be aware of the drill's RPM. Many hand drills can run up to 2000 RPMs, most to 1000. This may be too fast for the saw, depending on the material. Using a bi-metal saw, you should stay under 80 surface feet per minute (SFM) cutting...

Read more →