The type and design of decal strips raise some confusion with regard to the code and interpretation of AS1428.1 requirements.
Straight off the bat, AS1428.1 notes that all fully glazed doors and surrounding glazing, including glazed walls with no transom or similar, are clearly marked with 75mm min wide, solid, non-transparent, contrasting lines across their full width. The lower edge of the line must be between 900mm and 1000mm FFL and have 30% luminance contrast when viewed against the floor or a background surface within 2m of glazing.
Our team reinforces the use of opaque strips. In general, we find that vinyl strips are the ideal choice of strip type, as frosted/translucent strips will still allow a level of filtered light, which goes against the intent and purpose of the decal strip.
It is important to understand that decal strips on the ground floor are installed correctly, as there is a background surface against which to measure. However, apart from glazed office partitions, glazed decal strips along the building façade (above the ground floor) are viewed as ‘best practice/safety in design’, as there is no flooring to measure the 30% contrast level.
