Fire Protection & External Fire Doors

Fire doors have three main purposes. They must:

• Limit the spread of a fire and its smoke, protecting the structure and integrity of a building as well as its contents;

• Protect a building’s escape routes so that people inside can get out safely;

• Allow entry to fire-fighters.

External fire doors place a barrier between the inside and outside of a building, aimed at containing a fire in as limited an area as possible to allow people within the premises to safely escape. When flames and smoke are contained in a small area of a building, the damage they can cause to both human life and the property and its contents is kept at a minimum. External fire doors also need to provide the degree of security that you would expect from any other kind of external door, against intruders, the weather, and wear and tear.

Because they are facing the elements as well as providing fire protection, external doors must be durable and able to withstand wind, rain, hail, sunshine and snow. The quality of their design, manufacture and fitting are so important if they are to fulfil all of these criteria, so custom made, expertly fitted doors are a must.

There are strict legal requirements that all external fire doors must meet, and the precise stipulations vary depending on their location, use and setting. At a minimum, most fire doors must be able to withhold burning and the escape of smoke for 30 minutes, but we also sell doors that can keep flames and smoke contained for an hour, 90 minutes and two hours. Stringent standards also apply to the material the doors are made from, the door frame, the door seal and the door closure, as well as maintenance and repair procedures on an ongoing basis.

It is particularly important that external fire doors are not propped open, as their automatic closing mechanism will be prevented from working in the event of an emergency. Ensuring that the door and its seal do not undergo any accidental damage is also vital, because any compromise to the integrity of these features can seriously limit their effectiveness in case of a fire.

All of our fire doors fulfil or exceed the British Fire Resisting Standards. These regulations insist upon minimum standards which must be met in the case of certain legally-required fire doors. External fire doors are most often legally mandated in the case of doors which lead to an escape route, and doors on or near a property boundary, and although the legal and industry regulations can be complex, we are happy to provide you with advice about the kinds of external doors will need, dependent upon your situation.

Because we manufacture as well as install these types of doors, we have expertise in every aspect of the process of their design, build and fitting. If you are looking for the best quality external fire doors at highly affordable prices, with an unbeatable degree of specialist knowledge, get in touch with us and we would be happy to help.