§ 12-144. Doors and entrances.

(a)

All wood doors and door jambs or frames, serving as front, side, or rear entrances to the ground or first floors, and those on upper floors having exterior stairways, as well as any other doors accessible to rodents outside of buildings or between buildings and different business establishments shall be treated in each case according to the following specifications as directed by the Health Officer:

(1)

Solid, strong doors constructed of hardwood or metal that fit snugly in their frames and on their thresholds or sills so that rodents can not gain entrance through them and that do not present irregular surfaces or cracks for rodents to gnaw through them may be passed without any treatment, at the discretion of the Health Officer;

(2)

Doors in such disrepair or in such a poor condition that they cannot be satisfactorily rodent-proofed are required to be replaced by new ones or repaired to the extent that they can be satisfactorily rodent-stopped and they shall swing smoothly and easily on their hinges;

(3)

All doors on the sides and rear of a building that are constructed of soft wood, any doors that show evidence of rodent gnawing or have any irregularities, cracks, or small openings along their lower margin or sides that offer potential sites for rodents to gnaw and doors that have any openings over three-eighths (3/8) inch wide between the door and door sill or threshold are hereby required to be fortified and rodent-proofed by using either metal channels of twenty-four (24) gauge or heavier or to be flashed with twenty-six (26) gauge or heavier metal, as directed by the Health Officer in the following described manner:

(A)

A metal channel shall be applied when it is necessary to extend the lower edge of the door downwards or when the wood along the lower edge of the door is too soft to hold nails firmly in place, a metal bending brake shall be used in making the channels so that they will have sharp edges and sides at right angles to each other. The side pieces of the channel shall not be less than eight (8) inches in length and three (3) inches in width, on their exterior surface, and two (2) inches in width on their interior surface. The width of the lower part of the channel extending from one (1) side piece to the other will depend on the distance it extends beyond the lower margin of the door and condition of the wood. The lower arm should not be less than two (2) inches wide on its exterior surface and one (1) inch wide on the interior surface.

(B)

When the condition of the door permits, and there is no necessity to extend its lower margin, metal flashing on the exterior surface shall be used with side pieces not less than eight (8) inches long by three (3) inches in width, and the lower piece extending from one (1) side piece to the other not less than two (2) inches in width. Metal flashing should not extend beyond the margin of a door at any place. If it is necessary to extend metal around the side of bottom edges of doors, metal channels should be used.

(C)

After the application of either metal channel or flashing the door should swing smoothly without any binding.

(4)

Wooden door frames are required to be flashed with twenty-six (26) gauge or heavier metal to the same height as the door flashing whenever there is a crack or other defect between them and their doors that may be utilized by rodents for gnawing through the frame;

(5)

Irregularities or defects in wooden door sills are to be corrected by flashing the sills with twenty-four (24) gauge or heavier metal;

(6)

Any irregularities or defects in door thresholds constructed of cement or masonry which produce any openings under doors three-eighths (3/8) inch or greater shall be corrected by pointing up with cement, mortar, or other suitable material or by constructing a new threshold of similar material as directed by the Health Officer;

(7)

Sliding wooden or metal doors and swinging metal doors that have any spaces greater than three-eighths (3/8) inch wide between them and their sills or thresholds are required to have either rigid or movable sliding strips of twenty (20) gauge metal or equivalent material fastened to their lower margins so that spaces under such doors when closed will not exceed three-eighths (3/8) inch in width;

(8)

Mail slits in the lower part of doors that are accessible to rodents shall be fitted with covers that cannot be raised by rodents from the outside;

(9)

Other openings in exterior doors used as vents or for other purposes shall be fitted with iron grill work having no openings larger than one-half (1/2) inch in diameter or wire cloth of the same mesh of nineteen (19) gauge or heavier; and,

(10)

All exterior doors on the sides and rear of business buildings are required to be kept closed at night and during the day unless protected by screen doors with automatic closing devices.

(Ord. and Res. 1963, Sec. 12-3; CB-127-1987)