Browse Forums Windows & Doors 1 Feb 19, 2009 9:38 am Had our 3 months follow up inspection today (4 months after handover ), all our other issues were accepted and follow up about them assured (how long the follow-up takes is another story ) anyway the one outstanding issue was the toilet door, there is a small gap at the top, doesn't worry me that much but DH is bothered about it - builder has now told us this door has to have a small gap (we are talking maybe 2mm) as by regulations it has to be a lift-off door, he then demonstrated how the door can be lifted off its hinges from the outside, in case anyone has a heart attack or such whilst sitting on the toilet and then door cant be swung open in an emergency because their legs are jamming the swing space.
Apparently it is only in small toilets, so not a problem in our ensuite because its a bigger room (without a separate toilet) and door has room to swing open, toilet is set well back from door. Has anyone else heard of this? Ed, is this in your field or do you only do windows? Of course, it may only be a regulation in SA? Re: 'lift off' doors: toilet regulations? 2Feb 19, 2009 9:52 am This is correct. Is the gap you talking about on the inside of the room or the outside.
If the gap is on the outside then they builder should have doubled up the stopper. Instead of one have two and the gap will not be visible and still work, with respect to be able to be lifted off. Re: 'lift off' doors: toilet regulations? 3Feb 19, 2009 9:59 am Yep we had it in our last home we built. Funnily enough our door in the main toilet even opened outward into the hall which Beechwood said was also part of the requirements. Needless to say that part of the ruling doesn't seem to have ever been enforced in any subsequent homes we have seen built (or even in this home we are now building.) Some things are worth waiting for. Re: 'lift off' doors: toilet regulations? 4Feb 19, 2009 10:14 am Yep, our Powder Room is the same - it has the lift off door...but there's no visible gap from the outside, just on the insides o they must have done what borg said! Solidarity, not solidity.......The Lexicon of Life Re: 'lift off' doors: toilet regulations? 5Feb 19, 2009 10:33 am The regulation applies where the door is within 1200mm from the face of the pan. Either solution is acceptable. Peter Clarkson - AusDesign Australia www.ausdesign.com.au This information is intended to provide general information only. It does not purport to be a comprehensive advice. Re: 'lift off' doors: toilet regulations? 6Feb 19, 2009 10:54 am The door opens inwards and the gap is visible from the outside, builder offered to put a double stopper on it to hide the gap, as Borg spoke about, which seemed Ok to me but DH thought it was a 'patch-up', he was getting quite worked up about it, was a bit embarrassing so I offered to do some research - aka put the question to the forum - seems like it is all good. Re: 'lift off' doors: toilet regulations? 7Feb 19, 2009 11:59 am this was an issue kev picked up at our inspection. the builder changed the hinges but the door still goes up to the door frame not much use!! we'll be bringing it up at our 3 month check too helyn... "Your emotions are the slaves to your thoughts, and you are the slave to your emotions." — Elizabeth Gilbert Living in our new house. Currently scaping the land. Re: 'lift off' doors: toilet regulations? 8Feb 19, 2009 12:09 pm Direct from the the Building Code of Australia...
3.8.3.3 Construction of sanitary compartments The door to a fully enclosed sanitary compartment must— (a) open outwards; or (b) slide; or (c) be readily removable from the outside of the compartment, unless there is a clear space of at least 1.2 m between the closet pan within the sanitary compartment and the nearest part of the doorway. Explanatory information: 3.8.3.3 requires means of removing an unconscious occupant from a fully enclosed sanitary compartment. If the enclosure has gaps that are large enough to allow access for a person into the sanitary compartment, the compartment is not considered enclosed for the purpose of this clause. Electrical Engineer... Don't hold that against me... And keen owner builder... Mainly the building part!! Re: 'lift off' doors: toilet regulations? 10Mar 19, 2010 5:14 pm I just had a building inspection done on my 40-50 year old house that i'm trying to sell and one of the recommendations was that my toilet doors should have lift off hinges fitted. Does anyone know if retro fitting of hinges is required on all houses that are being sold to meet the code requirements? Re: 'lift off' doors: toilet regulations? 11Mar 21, 2010 1:34 pm Johnny g I just had a building inspection done on my 40-50 year old house that i'm trying to sell and one of the recommendations was that my toilet doors should have lift off hinges fitted. Does anyone know if retro fitting of hinges is required on all houses that are being sold to meet the code requirements? As far as I know, the answer is no. Imagine what a nightmare it would be if all older homes had to be brought up to new building standards before they could be sold. Re: 'lift off' doors: toilet regulations? 12Feb 15, 2014 12:09 pm Reviving an old thread here but have a question. Does this regulation apply to small bathrooms? Our bathroom is 1.5m by 2.5 metres and the space between the pan and the nearest part of the doorway is only a bit over 60cm. Should we have lift-off hinges? Re: 'lift off' doors: toilet regulations? 13Feb 16, 2014 12:20 pm Okay, I've examined the hinges and we do have lift-off hinges but there is no gap at the top of the door. I don't see how you could lift this huge door off its hinges with no gap at the top. Does anyone know how big a gap there should be? Re: 'lift off' doors: toilet regulations? 15Mar 21, 2014 3:49 pm A better option than lift out hinges is to have toilet doors opening outwards rather than into the toilet. In the event of an emergency a property toilet lock should be able to be unlocked with a screwdriver and the door swings open. If the door can't be unlocked someone outside could knock the pins out of the hinges as they are on the outside of the door The Harder You Try - the Luckier You Get ! Web site http://www.anewhouse.com.au Informative, Amusing, and Opinionated Blog - Over 600 posts on all aspects of building a new house. If you don't want to annoy the neighbours then simply get yourself some good head phones. For me the sound is much better using headphones. The NCC (National Construction… 1 26168 You need to reference the manufactures installation guide, your supplier may have strengthened the base where it is not required to sit on a bed. 1 1825 Looking at some of the designs on websites, they are all selling very similar products. I get that you want something stylish. It's worth looking for search terms like SaveH2O… 2 7006 |