Panic Bar Installation & Repair in San Diego

Push bars and exit devices that let people out fast and keep everyone else out. Installed and repaired on wood, hollow-metal and storefront doors across San Diego.

Call (619) 304-9446 Get a quote Open 24/7 for emergencies Based in Ocean Beach

Quick answer

Action Locksmith San Diego installs and repairs panic bars and exit devices for businesses throughout the city of San Diego: rim, surface vertical rod and mortise devices, alarmed exits, fire-rated hardware, outside key trim and door closers, on wood, hollow-metal and aluminum storefront doors. A new panic bar installed with standard hardware typically runs $350 to $800. Call (619) 304-9446 or request a quote.

Typical price: $350 to $800 (new panic bar installed, including standard device). See all prices or get a quote.

Part of our commercial locksmith services. Mobile across the city of San Diego from Ocean Beach.

Locksmith installing a panic bar exit device on a commercial back door in San Diego — A properly installed exit device: free egress from inside, locked from outside.

Exit device services

New panic bar installation

Rim devices for most doors, vertical rod devices for double doors, mortise devices for heavy-traffic entries.

Exit device repair

Bars that don't latch, don't retract, rattle or have been kicked loose. Often a repair beats replacement.

Alarmed exit devices

For back doors that keep getting propped open. Local alarm sounds when the bar is pushed.

Outside trim and cylinders

Keyed lever or pull trim so staff can enter from outside while the door stays locked.

Door closers

A panic bar on a door that doesn't close is decoration. We install and adjust closers so the door latches every time.

Fire-rated hardware

Listed devices and closers for fire-rated doors, installed without compromising the rating.

Storefront door devices

Exit hardware for aluminum-frame glass doors, the most common commercial door in San Diego.

ADA lever trim

Accessible outside trim that meets lever-handle requirements.

When you need an exit device

A fire inspection or a citation says you do. We can usually fix it before the re-inspection.
You're opening or remodeling a restaurant, bar, gym, church or retail space.
The existing bar is broken, won't latch or has been pried.
The back door keeps getting propped open. An alarmed device ends that.
The kitchen or stockroom exit is chained or padlocked. That's a life-safety problem and a liability.
The door has a thumb-turn deadbolt that locks people in. Exit doors need one-motion egress.

Which doors need a panic bar

Generally, exit doors serving spaces where a lot of people gather, and doors on certain occupancy types, need hardware that opens with one motion and no key, knowledge or special effort from inside. Whether a specific door on your property requires a listed panic device depends on the occupancy, the occupant load and the local fire code. We install hardware to those standards and we'll tell you what we see on a walkthrough, but the fire marshal has the final say, so when a citation is involved we work from what the inspector wrote.

Types of exit devices

Rim devices mount on the surface of a single door and latch into a strike on the frame; they're the workhorse for back doors. Surface vertical rod devices latch top and bottom and are used on pairs of doors without a center post. Mortise devices sit inside the door edge for heavy traffic and a cleaner look. Each comes in fire-rated and non-rated versions, with or without an alarm, and with a range of outside trims. We'll match the device to the door and how it's used.

How it works

1
Tell us the door
Single or pair, wood, metal or glass, fire-rated or not, and whether an inspector is involved. Photos help. We quote hardware and labor.
2
Install and adjust
Device, strike, outside trim and closer are installed and adjusted so the door latches on its own every time.
3
Test and document
We test egress, latching and the alarm if fitted, and leave you with the hardware details for your records.