What Are Kick Plates and Why You Need Them?

What do you do when you need to open a door, but your hands are full? If you’re like most Americans, you use your foot. In residential homes, this tendency leads to a lot of scuff and scratches. In commercial businesses, however, it can lead to serious damage.

Restaurants, retail shops, warehouses, hospitals, theaters, convention centers, and factories not only deal with higher foot traffic, but also equipment such as carts and dollies. Repeated impacts from staff, customers, and hand trucks can significantly shorten a door’s lifespan, forcing owners to replace them more frequently.

What’s the solution? Kick plates ‒ a simple strip of metal across the bottom rail of the door. They’re normally 10-16 inches high, though they can cover the lower half of the door entirely if waist high impacts are more common. (In hospitals, for instance, as they transport stretchers.)

Kick plates act as armor plating, absorbing impacts in order to protect the door from damage. They’re made mostly from aluminum or steel. Plastic and vinyl plates are also available, though they don’t last nearly as long. Kick plates are always installed on the push side of the door. They’re one of the most affordable cost saving devices you can purchase. A kick plate extends the lifespan of your door by years without any need for maintenance or repair.

Installing Kick Plates in Your Business

Vortex offers a full range of door accessories, including kick plates. Our team can identify which doors will benefit from them most and which type of plate will hold up best. Contact us today for help protecting your doors and your business.