The Building Code places restrictions on the types of doors that can be used in building. So, when can a sliding door be used, including vertically sliding doors?
To apply the Building Code provisions, one must first know if the proposed sliding door will be an exit door, an egress door, or a convenience door. The Building Code regulates both exit and egress doors. Exit doors are doors that are part of an exit system (doors leading into, doors within, and doors leading out of an exit system) that provide a protected space for occupants to reach safety. Exits typically include enclosed stairs and nearly all exterior doors of a building. Egress doors are located within the floor area (occupied space) of a building and are in the egress path leading to an exit (access to exit), such as a door from a suite into a public corridor.
Detailed exit door requirements are outlined in Subsection 3.4.6., with specific allowances for sliding doors provided in Article 3.4.6.14. of the 2024 British Columbia Building Code. As an exit door, a sliding door is only permitted where the door leads directly to the exterior and the door can also swing on a vertical axis when pressure is applied. These doors are commonly referred to as break-away sliding doors and are typically power operated and used on commercial building entrances for hotels, and retail stores. There are four exceptions to the above, specifically for detention occupancies, impeded egress zones, self-storage suites, and dwelling units.
Within occupied floor areas, the allowances for sliding doors are more relaxed and sliding doors are generally permitted. However, where the sliding door serves an occupant load more than 60, or the door opens onto a corridor or other facility providing access to exit from a suite or a room not within a suite, the door must also swing on a vertical axis when pressure is applied per the above “break-away” requirements.
Doors that are not required to achieve life safety requirements for access to exit and exiting, can be designated as convenience doors and therefore are not restricted by the Building Code. This is often seen in the case of vertically sliding overhead doors in storage garages and commercial warehousing to allow vehicles, equipment, and materials to be easily moved around and in and out of the building. In this case, occupant egress or exiting requirements are met by pairing the sliding door with a regular swing door so that compliance with travel distance and occupant load requirements are met.
Sliding doors used in an accessible path of travel have additional requirements including door operating hardware that is capable of being opened with a closed fist, and requiring no grasping, pinching, or twisting motions as noted in Article 3.8.3.8. In some cases – the operating hardware may prevent the sliding door from opening to its full width, so care must be taken to ensure that the clear opening will still meet the minimum 850 mm required by Sentence 3.8.3.6.(2). Additionally, sliding doors in an accessible path require a clear floor space with a dimension not less than 1200 mm parallel to the closed door and 1500 mm perpendicular to the closed door. Where a power door operator is used, the parallel dimension is permitted to be reduced to 1000 mm.