Fire Doors are a really important part of any building, as depending on their Fire Rating – they’ll protect people and property from fire for up to thirty minutes or longer in the event of an emergency.
What you need to know about fire doors
You can find a fire door, sometimes referred to as a fire rated door, in all types of buildings both residential and commercial with varying regulations and fire door requirements.
Commonly, most people will think of fire doors as big ugly metallic looking things – the truth is a fire rated door can be many to fit any design or appearance so long as they are functional in protection from fire.
Fire doors act as a barrier and help slow down the spread of fires, allow time for people to evacuate a building and for emergency services to respond. They’re made from a variety of materials such as:
- Timber
- Glass
- Steel
- Composites
Fire doors are fitted with intumescent seals around the edges which if a fire breaks out, will expand and seal the door to prevent fire and smoke spreading.
Where are fire doors required?
Common sense says “anywhere where there is a risk of a fire outbreak” which is true, for example a Kitchen area for instance would carry a higher risk of fire than a restroom – but fire can be caused by several things such as electrical devices, fire doesn’t have rules – it can break out at any time in any place!
Fire doors are a legal requirement in all non-domestic properties as well as some residential properties, depending on the fire door requirements set out by building regulations.
Homes
New build homes with 3 or more floors, homes with loft conversions or homes with integral garages are required to have fire doors installed. These fire door requirements ensure that any higher-risk areas in your home are protected. You can read more about fire doors for your homes here.
Commercial premises & public buildings
All non-domestic properties such as offices, shops, schools, hospitals, etc. are required to have fire doors. Fire doors can often be found in stairwells, hallways, and on fire escape routes. Ensuring compliance with fire door requirements is crucial to maintaining a safe environment.
Just as important as knowing where Fire Doors are required is the importance of maintaining them, ensuring that if the worst case scenario happens, your doors would do what they’re supposed to do. Fire Door Specialists also offer a maintenance service with clients all across the UK.
So, if you own a shop or are the landlord for a block of flats – you need fire doors. If you are the responsible person for a School, Hospital, or public building such as a library – you need fire doors! Exactly where there are required within that particular space then becomes more complex – and that’s where we come in.
How often do fire doors require maintenance inspections?
A fire door requires regular inspections to ensure that it functions correctly, every day use can result in slight alterations which could affect the doors performance and be the difference between life or death. How often fire doors require maintenance inspections will depend on the building and door.
Fire doors are required to be checked at least every six months, on some occasions such as in newly occupied building or where the fire door is in high use, more frequent checks may be required.
Fire doors in common areas in multi-occupied residential buildings are required to be checked quarterly, with flat entrance doors being required annually.
It is a legal requirement to ensure that fire doors are correctly installed and maintained, failure to do so can result in fines and legal consequences.
Contact Us
Our team are on hand to offer a free consultation, we know all there is to know about rules, regulation and compliance, so stop reading and start connecting with us either via email, phone, or filling out our enquiry form – and let us take it from there.