Security Cage Doors: Hinged, Sliding, Tunnel & Automated

Security Cage Door Types

Six stock door families cover almost every opening. Custom sizes and finishes are available on all of them.

Single Hinged DoorsStandard 3′ or 4′ wide by 7′ 3-1/4″ high opening. Universal construction works left or right hand, inside or outside swing, on three 4″ × 4″ 10-gauge tight-pin hinges. Supplied with two door posts, a transom panel sized to match partition height, padlock lug and all hardware. The most common choice for tool cribs and storage cages.

Double Hinged Doors6′ or 8′ wide by 7′ 3-1/4″ high openings for pallets, carts and oversized equipment. The inactive leaf is secured by a cane bolt at the base and a chain bolt at the top, so the opening can be run as a single 3′/4′ leaf day to day and opened wide when you need it. Padlock lugs standard, cylinder locks available.

Sliding DoorsStock widths of 3′, 4′, 5′, 6′, 8′ and 10′ with full-height openings of 8′ and 10′. Each door ships with two door posts, two 4-wheel trolley trucks, 16-gauge track and hardware, and uses a patented tamper-resistant sliding-door receiver (U.S. Patent 6,196,034 B1). Ideal where a swinging leaf would block an aisle.

Sliding Tunnel DoorsFor openings with no overhead structure to hang a track from. The leading edge rolls on floor casters instead of hanging from an overhead track, so the door works under crane bays and low headroom. Common in manufacturing cells and high forklift-traffic aisles.

Universal Hinged DoorsPremium door contained in a 14-gauge steel box frame, hinged left or right and swinging in or out. Stock 3′ and 4′ widths with ADA-compliant lever handles, optional push-bar exit and alarm push bar. The usual specification for DEA controlled-substance cages and any enclosure that needs code-compliant egress.

Automated Door SystemsElectric openers for sliding doors run on a standard 110V single-phase motor and are supplied with radio-frequency remotes, a self-closing timer, anti-crush safety switch, photo-eye safety switch and a stationary push-button control. Recommended for sliding doors over 80 sq ft. Electro-magnetic locks optional; hydraulic closers are available for self-closing hinged doors.

Locks & Access Control Options

The door body rarely changes; the hardware does. These are the options we specify most often, and all of them can be quoted on a stock door.

Service Windows Keep Doors Closed

On tool cribs, parts rooms and pharmacy cages, most traffic through the door is a hand-off, not a person. A padlockable, sash-balanced slide-up service window solves that: a 24″ wide × 21″ high opening with a 24″ × 16″ 11-gauge shelf at 42-1/4″ off the floor, built into a 3′-10″ wide panel.

Parts go out and paperwork comes back without unlocking the enclosure, which is both faster and easier to audit. Learn more about security cage service windows.

Security Cage Door Engineering & Selection

Frame and mesh construction

Stock doors are built from 10-gauge steel wire woven into 2″ × 1″ rectangular mesh, welded to a 1-1/4″ × 1-1/4″ × 1/8″ steel angle frame, with two horizontal and one vertical 1/4″ × 3/4″ steel flat stiffeners welded behind the mesh. That stiffening is why a 10′ sliding leaf does not rack or sag in service — and it is the first thing to compare when someone quotes you a cheaper door.

Hinges, tracks and trolleys

Hinged doors ride on three 4″ × 4″ 10-gauge tight-pin hinges. Sliding doors hang from 16-gauge track on two 4-wheel trolley trucks and latch into a patented tamper-resistant receiver (U.S. Patent 6,196,034 B1) whose overlapping tubular guards close off the gap a bolt cutter would normally reach through. Tunnel doors trade the overhead track for floor casters, which is the only practical answer under a crane rail.

Egress and code review

Any enclosure people work inside needs an egress plan, not just a lock. IBC Chapter 10 generally requires egress doors to be side-hinged swinging doors, with narrow exceptions for storage and factory areas with an occupant load of 10 or fewer and for horizontal sliding doors that meet the code’s breakout and operating-force provisions. In practice we specify a hinged door with push-bar exit hardware wherever staff are inside the cage, keep the swing out of the egress path, and confirm the layout with your local authority having jurisdiction before release.

Maintenance and adjustment

Doors are the only moving part of a partition, so they are the only part with a maintenance interval. Check hinge and trolley fasteners, latch alignment and floor-caster wear each quarter; on powered doors, test the photo eye and the anti-crush switch on the same schedule. Most “the door will not latch” calls we get are a door post pushed out of plumb by a forklift, which is why we recommend guarding every opening that sees powered traffic.

• Confirm the clear opening you actually need — not the panel spacing you have
• Decide whether a leaf can swing into the aisle or into the cage
• Match the lock to how access is managed today (padlock program, keys, badges)
• Specify push-bar egress on any enclosure staff work inside
• Add an electric opener on sliding doors over 80 sq ft or in constant use
• Guard the opening against forklift impact before it knocks the posts out of plumb

Related Security Cage Solutions

Security CagesWelded and woven wire mesh partitions, tool cribs and storage cages built to your layout.

DEA Drug Storage CagesSelf-closing, self-locking cages configured for Schedule III–V controlled substances.

Security Cage Service WindowsSlide-up, sash-balanced windows with a shelf so parts move without opening the door.