Banning Doorknobs

Must be 18 to enter! Talk about anything but Football

Moderator: Team Captains

Post Reply

Do you agree with the Vancouver City By-law prohibiting the use of door knobs

Poll ended at Mon Nov 25, 2013 11:46 am

Yes
0
No votes
No
1
17%
Don't care
2
33%
Yes but only for public buildings
3
50%
No if it means that the doorknobs at City Council go too!
0
No votes
 
Total votes: 6
User avatar
Sir Purrcival
Hall of Famer
Posts: 4621
Joined: Sat Aug 23, 2003 11:48 am
Location: Comox Valley

So, ok, I can understand the logic of requiring levers in public access buildings As an aid to those who are mobility impaired and so on, it makes as much sense as other things such as handicap parking spaces, ramps for scooters and so on. I have nothing against levers, in fact I just did our entire top floor of our house in them. But I have to say, Vancouver city proper has just mandated that all new construction be it private residential or public have levers. So if you decide to build a house in Vancouver or buy new construction, you are going to be stuck with these things whether you like them or not. To me that seems overdone. If I want to build a house with knobs instead of levers, I should have that choice. If someone wants to build a house with levers instead of knobs, they should have that choice. I'm guessing that an inspector will refuse to sign off on a new house if it has knobs instead of levers. Does any one else thing that this is a case of government getting too involved in our choices.
Tell me how long must a fan be strong? Ans. Always.
TheLionKing
Hall of Famer
Posts: 25103
Joined: Sat Feb 19, 2005 10:13 pm
Location: Vancouver

First I've heard of this. The biggest doorknobs are Mayor Robertson and his Vision council.
zark
Champion
Posts: 950
Joined: Sat Oct 11, 2008 3:10 pm
Location: anger management institute

They probably would have been ok if it was a knob.
"'Those are my principles, and if you don't like them... well, I have others."
Groucho Marx
User avatar
sj-roc
Hall of Famer
Posts: 7539
Joined: Thu Oct 14, 2004 2:39 pm
Location: Kerrisdale

Interestingly not much has been said about the public health angle of this issue. Door knobs on the doors of public buildings can be some of the most germ-laden surfaces you can put your hands on. With levers you can usually work them with your forearm or elbow and not actually contact it with your hands. Also easier if your hands are full with shopping bags or whatever. But a person who owns their own private dwelling should be free to outfit it with doorknobs if they so choose.
Sports can be a peculiar thing. When partaking in fiction, like a book or movie, we adopt a "Willing Suspension of Disbelief" for enjoyment's sake. There's a similar force at work in sports: "Willing Suspension of Rationality". If you doubt this, listen to any conversation between rival team fans. You even see it among fans of the same team. Fans argue over who's the better QB or goalie, and selectively cite stats that support their views while ignoring those that don't.
User avatar
KnowItAll
Hall of Famer
Posts: 7458
Joined: Mon Aug 16, 2004 6:32 pm
Location: Delta

I figure this could be successfully challenged in court if anyone cared to do so. My only objection is that it would make it easier for some animals to open doors you don't want them to.
Every day that passes is one you can't get back
User avatar
notahomer
Hall of Famer
Posts: 6258
Joined: Sat Nov 16, 2002 12:09 pm
Location: Vancouver

I clipped this article (about banning doorknobs) out of the newspaper for my father. He used to work for the City of Vancouver and collected old doorknobs for decades. Something for those 'Pickers' to go nuts over........
South Pender
Legend
Posts: 2779
Joined: Mon Aug 06, 2012 9:24 am
Location: Vancouver weekdays; Gulf Islands on weekends

KnowItAll wrote:My only objection is that it would make it easier for some animals to open doors you don't want them to.
Absolutely right. My daughter has a cat that jumps up and pulls the lever on the front door when she wants to go out, leaving the door open, of course.
User avatar
Toppy Vann
Hall of Famer
Posts: 9789
Joined: Sat Jul 23, 2005 12:56 pm

“I can understand if you have a public building where everybody wants to have free access and that is a problem,” he said. “But to say that when I build my private home and nobody is disabled that I have to put levers on, strikes me as overreach.”
I'm sort of with this person however I'm very sympathetic to universal design short of every private dwelling having to have a wheel ramp.

As to animals - we had a young German shepherd for years who was booted from the police department as they had no handler for him and when he'd take the suspect down in training he'd not grab the padding but go for the shoulder. He was friendly and bit no one nor got into dog fights and he was a good pet I took reluctantly. My police bro-in-law took him or the dog would have to be put down and as I was formerly with this department they accepted him moving him to us. I hoped the dept would have said no as I was no fan of this move by the wife. But in the end it was fine.

BUT on arrival to a house we had not long before moved into we had not put in dead bolts.

One night as we were turning into the driveway we saw our front door open and found the dog gone! Just then the teen age girl from around the corner is bringing him home and we're in shock. She told us that she not had a chance to tell us but she had to put him back just yesterday!

After the deadbolts went in his teeth crushed the door knobs despite us putting obnoxious stuff on them. Shortly after he settled down and it was no longer an issue.

A lever would be great for a cat but I suspect most have better locking today and it won't open the doors as they did back in the 80s.
"Ability without character will lose." - Marv Levy
TheLionKing
Hall of Famer
Posts: 25103
Joined: Sat Feb 19, 2005 10:13 pm
Location: Vancouver

German Shepherds are the 3rd smartest dogs after the Border Collie and Poodle. They are extremely loyal and protective dogs.
South Pender
Legend
Posts: 2779
Joined: Mon Aug 06, 2012 9:24 am
Location: Vancouver weekdays; Gulf Islands on weekends

TheLionKing wrote:German Shepherds are the 3rd smartest dogs after the Border Collie and Poodle. They are extremely loyal and protective dogs.
This is really off-topic, but I couldn't resist. I'm a friend of the author of the book you've taken that information from, listing the dog breeds from brightest to dumbest. I remember how much mail he got, after the book's publication, from owners of the breeds ranked near or at the bottom of his list--really vile hate-mail, and, IIRC, at least one death threat!
South Pender
Legend
Posts: 2779
Joined: Mon Aug 06, 2012 9:24 am
Location: Vancouver weekdays; Gulf Islands on weekends

Toppy Vann wrote: A lever would be great for a cat....
To use to open the door! As I noted above. Today's levers are no better than earlier ones in that respect.
Post Reply