Tom Sutton

Because the fire doors may set due to the weight on the hinges and when they are required, the door could jamb, preventing them closing. Allowing them to close during the night ,at a time when the the facility is unlikely to be used, is a fair solution, a better idea is to have the self closer adjusted.

I cannot see any problems with a rim lock but barrel bolts are a no no because any person could open them and leave them open defeating the purpose of a fire resisting enclosure.

I think most people on this forum are involved in English and Welsh fire law, with the Scottish/Northern Ireland fire laws so different, to get involved in more than one would need a lot of research, which would be outside to scope of many of us. However I did find this which may be of use https://www.gov.scot/publications/fire-safety-risk-assessment-forms-and-guidance/.

The Responsible Person in each unit is the employer as detailed in The Regulatory Reform (Fire Safety) Order 2005 article 3 which requires them to conduct a Fire Risk Assessment and fit a fire alarm if necessary. If you choose to take over any of these duties you would be considered responsible as the Person Having Control. (article 5.3)

The normal lighting is used daily and any defects or low standards will be known quickly and under the Health and Safety at Work Act they will be required to correct the situation. The emergency lighting will only operate if the normal lighting fails, so there is no way of knowing if it is defective until it is tested or maintenance and is subject to The Regulatory Reform (Fire Safety) Order 2005. This forum is a fire safety forum not a health and safety forum so we tend to concentrate on emergency lighting.

I am not aware of such a document but I would imagine the are other similar situations. It is now all about fire risk assessment so if you are experience enough simply apply fire safety principles and active fire safety devices.

In a single domestic property all the rooms off the escape route has a FD 20 fire doors with no self closes and the front door has no fire resistance because once through the front door you are unlikely to put your neighbours to any risk. In a flat all the rooms off the escape route has a FD 20 fire doors with no self closes and the front door, also any risk rooms are FD30s fire doors to prevent a fire in your flat putting you fellow tenants to any risk. In an HMO the front door to your bed/sit and any risk rooms have FD30s, c/w s/c, fire door to prevent a fire in your bed/sit putting your fellow tenants to any risk, it is all about the degree of risk.

The Responsible Person defined in The Regulatory Reform (Fire Safety) Order 2005 is required to conduct a fire risk assessment and this document will instruct you which doors are required to be fire doors. If you need to know which doors need to be upgraded or repaired, you need the services of a fire door inspector check out Fire Door Inspection service or similar organisation.

It is a fire drill, so knowing how people react is important so there should be a number of people not involved in the drill (wearing a high viz coat) but checking what is happening so they can give a good report at the debrief, every body else should act if it was for real. Remember this is not a legal requirement so anybody who chooses not to take part you have no legal powers.

Originally panic bars were only used in places of public assemble and where not used for normal access/exit, the main doors were used instead. As the main doors had to cope with the total occupancy, there was an extra amount of exit width and it was considered the chance of a panic was low because of the choice of the number of exits available. In an emergency most would be exiting via the emergency exits where it was considered a panic might happen, so emergency exits were fitted with panic bars and not the main doors, but not always. Over the years they started to be used in many buildings, usually on emergency fire exit doors which were only used for emergencies, now days it is all about risk assessment and as a rule of thumb AB,s used by 60 or more is reasonable.

You can, but the old one has to be removed and the new fitted in accordance with the manufactures fire test certificate. (global risk assessment)

I am not aware of any guidance to assist you but you could use the purpose built guide which has this problem highlighted and apply it with your fire risk head fixed on.

It could be argued that it is a two storey, flat on ground floor and a maisonette on the first/second floor requiring grade D (interlinked) in the common area with a heat fire alarm in each occupancy, with a grade D in each tenancy not interlinked. But it is all about risk assessment and the guides could be ignored, it depends how concerned you are about the situation.

Yes the doors across escape corridors are smoke stop doors to ensure you do not have to travel more than 18 m in smoke conditions, check out ARCHITECTURAL AND SPECIALIST DOOR MANUFACTURERS ASSOCIATION BEST PRACTICE GUIDE TO TIMBER FIRE DOORS section 14 Smoke control door seals.

I think so because people on the third floor do not have a window escape available (too high) therefore an enhanced fire alarm is required. I think it would depend on the separation (60 mins) between the basement flat and the rest and if I was in the basement flat I would want to know if the rest of building was involved in fire.