Q: I'm trying to reduce the sound transmission on wood door & frame separating 2 residences. I'm going to order Pemko 4131CPKL door bottom from you. For the jamb & head, I am considering replacing the compression bulb that's now on this pre-hung door with one of the Pemko S773W's, if that'll be an improvement. The compression bulb gasketing that's installed now has a flange that's inserted into a narrow slot cut into the stop (to keep it in place). What do you recommend?
A: I think you are off to a good start, would keep the existing kerfed in place, or replace it but not simply remove it, and add the S773W is another good choice which is Sound Tested To: ASTM E 90-2009 which is defined as:
Products indicated by this symbol have been acoustically tested in accordance with ASTM E 90-2009. Method for Laboratory
Measurement of Airborne Sound Transmission Loss of Building Partitions Tests were conducted by accredited laboratories for
acoustic testing. Contact ASSA ABLOY for recommended PEMKOSTCSET kits.
I can suggest other items would be variations on those items you have already selected.
Q: Can it be use for sliding door? Thanks
A: While the Pemko 4131CPKL 36" Clear Anodized Aluminum Automatic Door Bottom with Pemko Prene insert - Surface/Semi-Mortise Mount can certainly be coaxed to fit onto a sliding door I would argue that this model would not be your best choice and here are the reasons:
First, the action on an automatic door bottom from Pemko can be reviewed under the drop bar seal actuation diagram is shown here:
Download File
The typical movement of an automatic door bottom is where it drops down unevenly and does so on the hinge side and then drops towards the lock side of the door. This would not be ideal because you would want an automatic door bottom that would drop evenly as the plunger is actuated.
Second you would want to order a unit that will not only drop evenly but will feature a reduced closing force as it would take noticeable effort to to fully push the sliding door to the closed position overcoming the resistance of the flat spring in the body to keep the unit sealed. This is where the low closing force model would come in.
Third as a result of the amount of force being exerted on the flat spring your sliding door would have a tendency to of course creep open because that plunger that is actually waiting the door bottom would force the door into the open position.
Lastly I believe you would want a model that would be mortised into the bottom of the door so that it is centered in the bottom of the door rather than doing a semi-mortise version of the 4131CPKL which is most commonly surface mounted (but can be semi mortised which I would expect you would want if you preferred the seal to be biased on one elevation of the door versus the other or in the center of the door).
We do have a manufacturer that focuses on automatic door bottoms as its primary product line that company is called
Legacy Manufacturing and a link to their product catalog can be reviewed here:
Download File
From that catalog I would draw your attention to page 8 where I would suggest a model such as the 7063 which can be ordered with the 'SL' suffix for sliding doors. We would also specify, and be sure that you do so, a low closing force required to spring when assembling this automatic door bottom for your application.
As you peruse the balance of the catalog you are certainly welcome to consider other options provided the ‘SL’ suffix is available for that model.
Please reach out to us and let us know what additional services or guidance we can offer.
Q: can this model be cut on the length ?
A: It can be up to a maximum of 4”. You can also order the next longest piece or pieces and indicate in the comment field the net length of the item that youd like for it to ship out at.