When are you supposed to close doors?

Posted by FailFastandDieYoung@reddit | AskAnAmerican | View on Reddit | 32 comments

I was always taught when I open a door, to close it after I pass through it. I've just moved into a new apartment and most of the residents don't close the doors. There's an iron gate securing the building, but a set of interior doors immediately behind them leading to each unit. I don't mean unlocked, I mean literally open. Even their unit doors are open, similar to a college dorm. It's this normal? More than just for safety's sake I don't want the heat (that we pay for) to escape the building.

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32 Comments

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Suppafly@reddit

It's normal in college dorms and apartments that are full of college students. If that's not the situation, it's probably just to get some fresh air through the apartments.

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Carrotcake1988@reddit

This was so triggering for me. My room mate in college never closed doors. She didn’t close the closet, the bathroom, the shower, etc. She did close our room door. But, she also didn’t close drawers or oven the window.

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Arkyguy13@reddit

If I lived somewhere with nice weather like California I'd probably leave my door open if I was home. I don't get why people are saying this is weird. Especially if there's an outer gate to keep people out.

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ColossusOfChoads@reddit

The OP is in San Francisco. The guys selling hoodies on the sidewalk to unprepared summer tourists are sending their kids to college, no problem. Even much of L.A. County can dip down to the 40s in the winter. And if you're not on the coastal plain that gets the ocean air, it gets pretty toasty. Not swampy like in the South, but hot enough.

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Arkyguy13@reddit

Yeah that's a fair point. I did check the weather and 40 to 50 is a little chilly for having the door open but still pretty nice for the winter.

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seatownquilt-N-plant@reddit

My gram lived in an old folks apartment building. Some people would leave their doors open for socializing dorm style. When my grandma collapsed from heart failure this is how she was seen.

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xyzd95@reddit

I can understand leaving downstairs lobby doors open. People do that all the time here if they’re going in and out with shopping carts, strollers, a dolly etc. As for their actual apartment door that’s just an invitation for robbery. I don’t think I’ve ever been outside my apartment without the door being locked unless I was literally just walking down the lobby hallway to throw something in the building trash compactor. Even when I go to check my mail I lock the door behind me

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BoydCrowders_Smile@reddit

Its not normal from my experience without a screen door, except dorm halls a lot of students would prop open their door the the hallway. I'd assume heating/cooling issues with the apartment complex is the main reason and people just got tired of dealing with the landlord. That said I've lived in some shady places but I've never seen apartment doors propped open like the dorms

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WhatARedditDay@reddit

Always close the door behind you unless someone else is behind you, then leave it open for them (or hold it open and go in after them).

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MonsterHunterBanjo@reddit

they must have been raised in a barn

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BigGammaEnergy@reddit

well in a barn, you always close the door or gate lest the livestock get out.

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JesusStarbox@reddit

Nah, in the day you leave it open so the animals can come and go. You close it once they are in for the night.

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SenorVajay@reddit

^this guy was born in a barn!

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TokyoDrifblim@reddit

That is really unusual. I think we're trained to leave doors as we found them, like if they were open we leave them open and if they were closed we close them after using them. Especially doors to the outside. Very strange

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Fireberg@reddit

Not normal. The last few apartment complexes I've lived in the doors close themselves unless you prop them open.

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squidwardsdicksucker@reddit

That’s definitely very unusual, I live in a studio apartment complex and I’ve never seen a door open, other than other residents going in and out of their units. When I lived in the residential halls during school, this was also never a thing besides welcome week when we were in our first year as a way to try and get to know other students.

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Wildcat_twister12@reddit

We left our dorm rooms open if we were just hanging out watching tv, playing video games, or something and someone wanted to stop by. We were big on playing volleyball or basketball right outside the building so if your door was open someone would just pop their head in and ask if you wanted to join, same thing for going to eat at the dining hall.

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New_Stats@reddit

You close your door whenever you damn well feel like it. And maybe start looking for a new place because that's pretty weird

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processwindow13@reddit

I've never rented an apartment but if I did there'd be no way in hell I'd leave my door open, I'd feel so exposed.

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kippersforbreakfast@reddit

I was taught to "put it back the way you found it". If I've got people coming over soon, but at an unspecified time, I'll leave the door cracked open.

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TheManWhoWasNotShort@reddit

I’ve lived in like a billion apartments and never have I seen anything like that

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JesusStarbox@reddit

Yeah, we think that's weird, too.

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stellalunawitchbaby@reddit

In my complex, we always close the front gate, always leave the pool gate open (it’s loud), and people *mostly* have their doors closed (they all open to the outside, not like an indoor hallways). But if it’s nice out, usually a few people will have their front doors open, with or without a little netting screen thing they’ll hang. We have like no bugs but I assume it’s for bugs.

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fasterthanfood@reddit

The netting screen might be to keep pets inside, too.

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stellalunawitchbaby@reddit

Maybe - none of the people have pets except me and one other apartment. I wouldn’t trust them to keep my cats inside tbh, they’re just loose at the bottom - a dog or cat could just walk out of it.

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DOMSdeluise@reddit

I would close an exterior gate into the unit and I would close the front door to my apartment but otherwise I probably would just leave doors, like in the hallway, open. wtf at not closing your front door though that's insane

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Zultan27@reddit

I was taught that closed doors save lives from a fire safety perspective. When not home, all doors, gates, and windows should be closed and locked from a security perspective.

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Bluemonogi@reddit

That seems odd to me. If the door was closed when I opened it I would probably close it again unless I had a reason to leave it open like I was carrying items in and would be coming and going. I would not just leave my door open all the time.

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Lugbor@reddit

What kind of carefree fantasyland are they living in where you can leave your door wide open? If you’re not trying to keep people out, you’re trying to keep the heat and a/c in, you’re trying to keep the noise down, or you’re trying to keep random critters from wandering in if you’re in a more rural area (pigeons will suffice for urban environments).

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CupBeEmpty@reddit

That’s strange to me. I always close “external” doors even when I lived in an apartment. Internal ones I only close for privacy like if I’m changing or something. But also you mentioned college dorms, we totally left doors open most of the time.

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fasterthanfood@reddit

I was taught to leave a door or gate as I found it. If I opened it to come in, I close it after passing through. If it was open, I leave it open. But in your case, it definitely seems like those doors should be shut. As you mentioned, a dorm setting is the only time I wouldn’t find it weird to have the unit doors open. Very weird that multiple people aren’t doing that.

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NormanQuacks345@reddit

Like, they don't close the doors to their apartment? You could just walk in? That's bizarre.