The Importance Of 30 Minute Fire Doors
Anybody occupying a building either for work, or in our homes, should expect that all possible steps have been taken to protect us from any fire outbreak that may occur. This is not, tragically, always proven to be the case – but there are stringent legislation and guidelines in place to help prevent any fire outbreaks and ensure people’s safety if one should occur – here is some information about fire doors and their importance in the role they play:
Important Fire Doors Functions
Fire doors form an important part of a building’s passive fire safety and protection system – the main function of fire doors is one of containment and compartmentation. Fire doors are manufactured to different safety timeframes – a 30-minute fire door (Fd30) will, in the event of a fire outbreak in a building, contain all the harmful elements of the fire such as flame, heat, and the dangerous smoke, in the room where the ignition has taken place, for a minimum of 30 minutes. Likewise, an Fd60 fire door will perform the same function for a minimum of 60 minutes, an Fd90 fire door for 90 minutes, and so on. These fire doors will contain the fire for these periods, enabling people to safely evacuate the building, thus protecting lives, and preventing further, more extensive damage to the building itself until the emergency services arrive to safely extinguish the fire.
Differences From Standard Doors
Fire doors are constructed from different materials than standard building doors – they are manufactured to withstand the heat and spread of fire for the stated periods of time. They are of solid construction with a special core – often wood composite material – that is slow to burn. All fire doors should be fitted with intumescent smoke seals filling any gaps around the door between the frame and door itself, which expand on exposure to excess heat and prevents the spread of flame and potentially fatal smoke to any adjoining areas or rooms.
Where You Need Fire Doors
Many buildings have a mandatory legal requirement to have fire doors installed, all public and commercial buildings for example, and some domestic residences such as buildings of multiple occupation like blocks of flats or apartment buildings. Whilst most fire doors are designed for internal use, there are some instances where external fire doors will also need to be installed. Most internal doors will be 30-minute fire doors, but certain environments, such as schools and hospitals, may require fire doors offering protection for a longer period. All buildings will have fire safety recommendations stipulated by set building regulations.
Different Fire Door Styles
Many people consider fire doors to be ‘industrial’ looking and bland, but 30-minute fire doors used for homes can be produced with aesthetically pleasing finishes to suit and enhance any room. There is a vast choice of door finishes and styles including different glazing options (all with fire tested glazed panels) available – they are mainly produced as complete ‘sets’ including the frame and all the specially tested door furniture and accessories.
Installation
It is important that all fire doors are installed safely and correctly and this should be done by an appropriately trained person fully conversant with the fire doors construction and fitting. An ‘ill-fitting’ or incorrectly installed fire door will NOT be fit for purpose in the event of a fire outbreak.
Testing
All fire doors are tested to the most rigorous level before being available for installation – these are potentially life-saving products and fire door manufacturers must be able to prove their suitability for their intended environment. This is achieved through nominated independent ‘third-party’ testing units – they are subjected to a real fire test to confirm the period of resistance. Once fully tested, the fire doors are accordingly labelled and certificated with proof of manufacture, testing, and fire rating.
Legal Requirements
As stated, there are legal requirements for installation of fire doors in certain environments and these are stipulated in the Fire Safety (England) regulations 2022 act.
Enfield Doors – for bespoke and commercial fire doors
Enfield Doors, are an established bespoke door manufacturers in the UK trading for many years and manufacturing doors of all types to every environment across industry and the home. Their knowledgeable and experienced staff can advise you on all aspects of soundproof doors including manufacture, installation, maintenance and security. If you would like further information on our company, please contact us and we will respond as quickly as possible. We look forward to helping you.
