Neil ashdown

If the installer says the door is non-compliant due to the thickness being 42mm or 43mm (rather than 44mm) and requires replacement, they should back that up with the relevant documentation (guidance/certification/product data sheet etc). If they can't, then what basis do they have for making that recommendation?

So, has the Installer said why the door needs to be replaced? At residential blocks below 11m in height, there's no statutory requirement to inspect fire doors to a particular schedule but there is (under Article 17 of the Regulatory Reform Fire Safety Order 2005) a legal obligation, as you would expect, to ensure fire doors "are subject to a suitable system of maintenance and are maintained in an efficient state, in efficient working order and in good repair". See https://www.legislation.gov.uk/uksi/2005/1541/article/17

End to end butt jointing of intumescent seals is acceptable if done tightly and well fitted. But don't mix different types. This website is worth visiting https://www.ifsa.org.uk/

The thickness of the door depends on the relevant certification / evidence of fire performance for the door. Also see Also see https://www.howdens.com/joinery/doors/howdens-spey-35mm-plywood-flush-fd30-fire-door-obj-sku-family-25409973 Refer to the relevant UK Gov fire safety guidance for the type of resirential block inn question eg: https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/fire-safety-in-purpose-built-blocks-of-flats https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/making-your-small-block-of-flats-safe-from-fire

You could consult https://wilkinsoncc.co.uk/ for certainty about your responsibilites.

You could try https://www.ironout.co.uk/

Sorry I don't, you could try third party certificated companies for example https://www.blueskycert.com/installation-maintenance-and-inspection/

Based on my experience it might be from this company? https://www.komfort.com/products/timber-doors-frames/?portfolioCats=173

Does the door security viewer (spy-hole) have an intumescent gasket between the viewer and the core of the door. If it has, that's a good sign that its compliant. If the door is on an escape route, the lock should be a keyless egress (thumb-turn etc). Removal of the viewer and gasket will enable you to inspect the core of the door too.

42mm minimum Check out Certifire certificates of approval for intumescent edge seals.

"As I have mentioned before we have Windsor Type doors with 10 panels per door, 5 at the bottom, up to 80cm x 10 cm wide." Difficult to see a safety issue with clear wired glazing in a door when the glazed panels are only 100mm wide.

Generally speaking, product performnace certification for fire doors does not cover repairs to the fabric of the door. There are certification schemes for repairs and they have limited scope for the extent of a repair. If you are unsure about whether a repair is appropriate, consult a specialist. They can issue a report stating whether the repair is fit for purpose..............or not.

Hi Stu, These are quite common for Flat Entrance Doors but in practice are often locked when the resisdent is at home to avoid an uninvited visitor. From a fire resistance perspective, only doors with evidence of fire performance in an unlatched configuration are suitable. Flat Entrance Doors of course are also held shut with a self-closing device. My understanding in terms of CPR, is that such night latches are outside the scope of CE & UKCA marking. https://www.legislation.gov.uk/uksi/2013/1387/contents However, many fire door manufacturers require that locks fitted to their fire doors are CE or UKCA marked. Therefore, product performance certificate would, in these cases, be invalid.

A BS 8300 compliant door self-closer should provide much easier operation that a standard one.

Assuming the doors are made from timber? You don't say the fire rating for the doors, assuming FD30? You don't say if the self-closers were removed from the top edge or vertical edge of the door? In my opinion: Foams and mastic are unsuitable for filling large holes and voids in fire doors. Use hardwood timber (min density min 640 kg/m3) tightly fitted without any gaps or voids after the repairs have been completed. The very smallest of gaps can be filled with intumescent mastic or fire rated woodfiller. Quality of work should be the same as expected from a skilled joiner, so that once painted the repairs are undetectable without close examination. I wouldn't recommend repairs to the top edge of the door, if its in a life-safety critical location. Replace instead. Keep records of the work carried out and details & certification for the products used.

Refer to the earlier post in this thread. In such circumstances, there is no requirement to replace hinges for the sole reason that they do not carry a CE / UKCA mark.

More worrying that the 'inspector' failed to comment about the disconnected self-closer!!! That's far more serious than an excessive door to frame gap. The gap issue can usually be best rectified by adjustment of the door frame jamb. But subject to survey, lipping replacement might be possible.

In terms of "permissable", the potential references would be 1) The product data sheet or technical manual for the door or 2) The third party certification repair techniques. In both cases the answer would be NO because the aim is to maintain a standard of condition at which the door could be successfully tested in a furnace to the relevant test standard. However, in terms of risk assessment of the performance of the door in its built environment - you may decide the repair could be adequate?

https://www.linkedin.com/search/results/all/?keywords=fire door regulations wilkinson&origin=TYPEAHEAD_ESCAPE_HATCH&sid=Tm9

If the joint between the timber door frame and blockwork wall is so intimate that there's no gap, then there is no linear gap to be sealed. Where there is such a gap it should be sealed using BS 8214 guidance. Intumescent sealant should be present level with the edge of the door frame and face of the wall.

No options for smoke seals on the pull-side so check the rebates to see if the batwing will fit. When these are fitted the door must self-close completely and reliably. There may already be intumescent seals integral to the door leaf behind lipping at the vertical and top edges? Check this before making a groove in the door. If you are fitting intumescent seals though, the smoke seal could be incorporated into those.

I am unaware of any sealing product tested for such a large linear gap. Is the surrounding wall masonry / timber stud / metal stud?

Please send image of door in the closed position from inside the server room. Looking for somewhere suitable to locate a smoke seal as unsure there's room for a compression/batwing seal within the existing rebate?

Fixing door to frame perimeter gaps can be tricky. In the case you describe the gap is 6mm at the top corner of the closing edge and the best way to resolve would be to adjust the door frame hanging jamb by removing architraves, loosening the frame and using timber packers/wedges to adjust the jamb from the back. But if the jamb joint is morticed or let-in to the head in some way this will be time consuming and the joint may have to be widened and done again. It may be possible to pack behind the top hinge with non-combustible material but the risk is that doing so would open up a larger gap and the hinge side. Before you begin, check with your Fire Risk Assessment that the door is critical to fire safety and that this work needs to be done.

The point about a certificated fire door is that the label on the top edge of the door leaf enables you to find the certificate of approval at https://www.warringtonfire.com/certified-companies/check-a-certificate Read the certificate to find out the requirements for the smoke seals. In this way the door retains it's certification and becomes FD30(s).