Hi folks! I'm looking for some recommendations/advice to install access control on some doors in a challenging pig farm environment (gasses, wash-downs, etc...). Bonus challenge: they are roll-up style overhead doors -- think mini garage doors like you would see on a backyard shed.
A product like this: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ClIPqWiurFs would surely work in a normal environment but these doors are inside of a hog barn that gets washed down daily.
I've gotten a quote for a product that I think would work from a company in the UK but I'm looking for other products like this or alternative solutions! Magnet Shultz IP65 rated Electric Bolt Lock video: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nM9Q-DVD6C0 . The company claims they can be used in wash down areas but I do wish they were IP66 rated. Has anyone used IP65 Rated devices where walls are washed down daily?
I considered using a fully sealed mag-lock but I foresee alignment issues, and very custom brackets to even make that solution work.
I'm open to any ideas!
Thanks,
Jake
Help With A Locking Solution For A Unique Scenario - Inside A Pig Farm!
Welcome! Thanks for the interesting first question!
In my area, livestock processing access is a fairly common application, and the washdown requirement is often commonly expressed as 'NEMA 4 or better'. For clarity, 'NEMA 4' is 'watertight', while 'NEMA 4X' is 'watertight and corrosion proof'.
To your point, IP66 or better is often the same thing, but IP ratings seem to be very common in electronic devices, whereas NEMA ratings may describe basic enclosures and things like maglocks.
With that in mind, maglocks often carry NEMA ratings if they don't carry IP66. For example, the Securitron M32 carries both ratings, and is commonly used in washdown facilities:
Though I think he’s looking for an electric bolt, preferably.
I don’t see any ip66 or nema 4x bolts from anybody, though I may have missed something.
Do you think that’s because its especially difficult to achieve a high ip rating because the action of the bolt itself would have to be watertight?
How tall are the doors? Can you mount the latch/lock up higher so that it would not be in direct contact with the wash down?
My other concern would be the alignment of the door.Watching the liftmaster video, it looked like that was a pretty tight clearance. In my limited experience with commercial doors, and everything I have read, commercial roll up doors have horrible slop and play.
Interesting. Over the years I've had a lot of experience in food processing plants for all sorts of proteins. The washdown shift is extremely common, and tough. Before we learned our lessons about pressure washing a facility daily with heated ammonia solutions, we were melting REX motions and other accessories around the doors.
Overhead doors do have a lot of slop and play, but the higher up you can get on the mechanism the better as the slop tends to be minimal at the top of the travel.
The mag mentioned above by Brian is definitely suitable, and if you can modify the door to accept a bolt, we've had good success with the GL-1 gate locks as well. In some cases we used a locking mechanism on both sides of the overhead door as well to ensure a positive lock.
Hope that helps,
Greg
The challenge is dealing with (high) pressure washers and operators getting a kick out of pointing these directly at items such as maglocks or cameras. No IP66 device will withstand 120 bar of pressure pointed at them as we have experienced! Selecting the correct product is one step, where to mount it the next and educating the client the last.
Selecting the correct product is one step, where to mount it the next and educating the client the last.
So what do you have in mind for step one?
I wish I could guide you on this one but unfortunately I cannot recommend any products in that field. I'm sure there will be others on here who could share their experience.
I wish I could guide you on this one...
Thanks, I’ll let Jake know...
Hi again, everyone, and thanks a lot for all the input.
We are borrowing bits and pieces of advice from many of you and I think we've come up with a solution that will work. I wanted to jump back in to provide an update to where we are in the process.
We plan to use the M32 from ASSA with a custom bracket system, up high where it's less likely to be sprayed.
We've got a tech who's actually a whiz with a welder who's going to create a bracket for the armature plate that will attach to inner part of the door. It will traverse up and down with the door and will have a split section in the middle where it can span the side rail of the door and will come down to bond on top of a mag lock attached to an L-bracket mounted to the wall.
We are in discussions with the potential client now and I'll be sure to update with pictures and any other info I can if the project moves forward.
You all rock!
Jake Peterson
Ask questions and get answers to your physical security questions from IPVM team members and fellow subscribers.