Fire Prevention

Hi All I wonder if you can assist. On the top floor in a care home the ceiling is 12.5mm plasterboard fixed to roof trusses not less than 38mm thick. The plasterboard is skimmed and there is about 150mm of rockwool above. This arrangement covers the top floor bedrooms, escape corridor and elec room, sluice room, clinic room and lounge etc. The roof void above the protected area of 10 beds has cavity barriers and is free of storage. The concern is the escape corridor and risk rooms may not give 30 mins fire resistance at ceiling level. The plasterboard is not fire rated and a fire ie in the elec room, or a bedroom could pass through the ceiling and spread i…

Concierge desks with parcels & lots of paper etc which are often not enclosed or even if they are the window hatch that opens up is normally flimsy & not considered a Fire resistant hatch - What would the recommendation be for these areas as they are almost always directly on the path to the main entrance / exit by their very nature... Same again for waiting areas close to the concierge sites, often with magazines, pamphlets etc right alongside to the main entrance/escape routes what recomendations should be given in these situations ? TIA

Hi I understood the common practise of opening in the direction of the exit, but heard that on a flat, with few occupants, opening inwards is fine. Is this generally not a problem? thanks

I have been asked to fit an intumescent seal to an existing front door which is deemed to be FD30. As it is a tight fitting door I want to router a channel in the door and fit a flush seal. However there will be a gap where the seal meets the door furniture of a lock and catch - probably 180mm long on the opening side of the door. Is this acceptable as there will be no seal over this length of the door?Thanks

Hi! Which guidance/ documentation would be best for a fire strategy plan for a hotel building? Is approved doc B Vol 1/2 appropriate? Many thanks in advance. Julian

Re converted house over 3 floors with communal hallway 3 flats we are installing smoke alarms hard wired behind all flat doors should they be interlinked? also installing Heat Detectors in 3 kitchens = Not interlinked is this correct please It is quite daunting the varying advice given thank you Gillian

Hi. Working in an ageing retail environment there are a number of fire doors we are checking monthly/quarterly & maintaining where possible. A large number we have to assume are nominal as there is no certification. Gaps in the doors vary massively and I understand betweeen 2-4mm is only accepted, a large proportion haven been in situ for years and must of fitted within the regs way back when. Is it acceptable to test the doors as per the schedule and note where gaps are larger and await the fire risk assessment (4yearly) to advise if the door needs replacement. The RA company have advised that’s ok. Where can I get all useful and relevant information rela…

Recently brought a flat that has a lowered ceiling(image 1) part of way down window. Wondering if this would of been done for fire regs, and whether I could put new full length windows in and raise the ceiling on an angle around them. This is a ground floor flat in a converted property. Thanks.

Are photo luminescent signs a legal requirement or can I just use rigid plastic signs,

We are looking to extend an existing 3rd floor bedroom on an old 1860 terrace house. The house has always been 3 storey since construction with no fire doors. If we extended the bedroom would a fire door or doors have to be retrospectively fitted? This particular room was remade 6 years ago due to water damage and at that time there was no mention of needing a fire door by building control. Your help would be greatly appreciated.

Hi there, Currently renting out 3 flats within the same building (Each flat is classed as a residential unit not commercial) via short term lets (Airbnb etc). Every room in a flat (aside from bathroom) has a fire door and self closer installed. Been recommended to install Fire door keep shut signs on all the fire doors and the flat entrance doors however is this a legal requirement? As I think this is a bit ott. Thanks

Hi all. Been advised by a fire safety officer to install intumescent pipe collars on the cellar side of 2 4inch plastic air vent pipes that lead from a lower ground flat through a brick wall into the lower ground cellar. Trouble is the pipes tee off on a right angle so tight to the wall on the cellar side there is no way to get the collars on a straight section of pipe (see pic). Do I drill out the wall round the pipes to allow space to fit the collars then patch up with sand and cement or is there any easier solutions as I am loathe to do that and definitely do not want to replace the whole vent system it all as it was newly installed albeit before I got t…

Hi Hopefully a simple question, I have an odd size aperture for air transfer in a fire door without intumescent block's. The new blocks I can order are all square, Can I cut and fit a block to make up the hole? Regards

Good morning, I am new on here so have been lurking and learning over the last few days, I am a chartered safety consultant just about to start further education on fire and ameliorating the risks etc. I wondered if there was another way of purchasing BS 9999 I realise it is essential but I also note it is £400 + Is there a way of purchasing this as a group or whatever that makes this cheaper in any way. I know there is a handbook but that only seems to be for the 2008 version. Any help would be greatly appreciated. Malcolm

Hi I'm a carpenter and have recently won a contract up grading fire doors and I have also been asked to do small bits of fire stopping.. mainly in riser cupboards... do I need a qualification to do this? A fire inspector has gone in first and pointed out the bits that need doing with a photo and brief explanation. So am I ok just to go ahead? Thanks chudy

Hi During recent investigation in roof voids above flats it has become apparent the roof void compartmentation does not mirror the flats and corridors below. Instead there are shared open roof voids covering 3 - 4 flats. This is a relatively new build and have been advised that this is accepted construction practice, assuming there is managed access to the roof void, detection in place and the ceilings are double boarded. I understand that new build housing schemes are now been constructed with completely open roof voids if the measures mentioned are in place. This does seem a bit conflicting with the guidance documents I have reviewed. Any advice would be welco…

I’m after some legal advice please. If anyone can help, I would be very grateful.... My Father has an antique Settee that had been re-upholstered probably in late 80s early 90s. It still looks great but as he has downsized it’s no longer required. I’ve had a look at the Legislation and have become confused as to whether he can legal sell this item? The frame is pre-1950 but the upholstery is not. Thank you in advance for your kind assistance.

Hello, I work for a commercial retail group. One of the project is to re-design and re-fit an area. I understand the carpet and fabrics need to be retarden. However, how about the MDF panel? plaster board? Do they need to be fire retardan? If yes, can you please tell me under which legislation (they won't do anything unless it is a legal requirement)? thank you

Hi,Thanks all for reading this post.We've just had a loft extension completed in our house along with some internal renovation work which has opened up the ground floor. The building control officer who visited this week wasn't sure whether the fire rated pocket door we have (identified by the large red arrow on the attached plan) separating the kitchen and living room from the rest of the house will suffice to meet the Approved Document B regulations, with regard to the escape route from the 1st floor and loft. He said he'd look into it and let us know next week. I've read through other posts on the forum, along with the AD B and I'm still not clear. I therefore hoped to…

We were served with a prohibition and asked to install new fire doors L2 alarm emergency lighting we completed all but they are refusing to lift the prohibition. I understand we can appeal within 21 days but what’s the process of appealing after that. The issue is we feel we have completed the required work.

Hi I live in and own a ground floor flat in an old converted house. My flat is accessed via a communal door and then immediately by my fire door main private entrance. Now behind that door is a very small area consisting of 2walls and a further fire door which leads to my hall. This area between the 2 doors must only be a meter square of floor space. One of the two walls is just a stud wall as is the second door the other wall is a brick wall that forms part of the 1st bedroom wall on the opposite side. With this space being so small and pointless it makes getting large items in and out tricky. My question is can I remove the second door and stud wall to make the main fi…

Hi, My daughter and her partner are about to rent a flat above a cafe. The only entrance/exit is via a staircase that runs along side the cafe kitchen but is divided by a full brick wall and a doorway at the bottom of the stairs which leads into the cafe kitchen, and a separate doorway that leads to an outside area. There is a door at the top of the stairway which is the entrance to the flat - I have yet to ascertain if this is a fire door. There are plenty of smoke detectors and a CO2 detector present in the flat. My concern is that, there is no apparent escape route in case of a fire below in the cafe. There are windows that open wide enough for a person to climb t…

Hi all. Been advised by a fire safety officer to install intumescent pipe collars on the cellar side of 2 4inch plastic air vent pipes that lead from a lower ground flat through a brick wall into a lower ground cellar, then out. Trouble is the pipes tee off so tight to the wall on the cellar side there is no way to get the collars on a straight section of pipe. Do I drill out the wall round the pipes to allow space to fit the collars then patch up with sand and cement or is there any easier solutions as I am loathe to do that and definitely do not want to replace the whole vent system it all as it was newly installed albeit before I came onboard as. Th…

Hi, I am in need of some advice please. I have a client who has asked me to make some curtains for her property. It is her family home, however, she also hires it out via agents as a location house for photographic, commercial and film shoots. Do I need to ensure that the fabric used is FR treated? I am struggling to fine a clear answer. Thanks, Claire

Hi, we had a fire in our block of flats last night and are now confused as to the regulations that are/are not being followed. Would anyone be able to help guide us? Our flat (and three others) is in a corridor with fire doors either side. There are no fire alarms within this corridor. On either side is another corridor with more flats, and fire alarms and automatic windows that are supposed to open when these alarms go off. Everyone has a fire detector inside their flat. Yesterday a fire started in our part of the hallway. The only alarm that went off was the flat whose door was right next to the fire. I heard this alarm but it wasn't loud, more like the sound the …