Neil Ashdown MAFDI

Hi Tom, Current UK building regulations require that fire resisting doors either have a self-closing device (Fire Door Keep Shut) or a suitable lock (Fire Door Keep Locked). Most fire resisting doors are also required to restrict the spread of cold smoke and therefore cold smoke seals are fitted to the top edge and vertical edges of the door leaf or to the door frame. The threshold gap is limited to 3mm for the same reason. It is likely that cold smoke protection would be a requirement at residential premises especially if the door is located on an escape corridor or staircase. This being the case a smoke damper would be preferable to an air transfer grille so as to restrict spread of cold smoke in a fire.

You must check that the door leaf is suitable before attempting any upgrading works. Contact your local certificated fire door inspector for advice at www.fdis.co.uk/inspector

You should ensure that: a) The door leaf self closes (from any angle) all the way onto the rebate stop of the door frame, overcoming resistance from seals and latch bolts. Procure a suitable self-closing device to minimum power-size 3 BS EN 1154. b) The smoke seals must fill the gap between the door leaf and door frame. c) The gap at the threshold should be no more than 3mm. Otherwise gaps up to 10mm require sealing with a threshold seal. The above is a guide and is not exhaustive. If in doubt refer to your local fire door inspector at www.fdis.co.uk/inspector

Hi Mary B, There is indeed a requirement to take measures to restrict the amount of smoke that can pass under or around a fire door. Failure to do so is a breach of the Regulatory Reform (Fire Safety) Order 2005. If the fire door leaf has been trimmed at its bottom edge so that the gap between the bottom of the door leaf and the threshold is more than 3mm then the threshold strip on the floor will have to be increased in height accordingly. Alternatively a maximum gap of 10mm is allowed but a smoke seal must be fitted to the bottom of the door leaf to fill the gap. The fire door should also, of course, have effective cold-smoke seals to seal the gap between the door leaf and the door frame at the top edge and both vertical edges. Guidance is available in BS 9991 Fire safety in the design, management and use of residential buildings Code of practice and BS8214 Timber-based fire door assemblies. Code of practice. Also more information can be found at www.ifsa.org.uk You should inform the House Manager without delay.

The correct door edge to door frame gap depends on the fire performance test evidence for that particular fire door. So the gap could be more than 4mm for some fire doors and still be compliant with the fire performance test. However for most timber-based fire doors the gap should be between 2mm and 4mm. If gaps are too large it may affect the door's fire performance and importantly would allow cold smoke to spread past the brush/blade edge seal and thus compromise safe escape. Therefore action should be taken to correct gap issues and cold smoke restriction issues as obligated by Article 17 of the Regulatory Reform (Fire Safety) Order 2005 for England & Wales. Many people are killed by the effects of smoke spread rather than the fire itself.

The reason entrance doors to individual flats are required to be fire resisting and cold smoke restricting is to protect the common area (outside the door) from the effects of fire and smoke. This is so that other people can use that part of the common area to escape safely. You say that your door opens onto a path. Is the path outside in the open or inside part of the building and who would benefit by being able to use the area outside your flat entrance door in the event of a fire? By providing this information to your management company they should be able to tell you if the door needs to be a fire resisting door, and if so why.

You should be aware that, in a fire situation, heat transfer from this large amount of metal to the timber door leaf could cause premature fire separation failure. The top edge and the upper part of the closing edge is more vulnerable to fire (than the lower parts of the door leaf) and therefore it would be sensible to risk assess the effects of a premature failure for the timber based doors that are fitted with magnetic locks. With regard to removal of stops, it is always better to add a timber fillet to the door frame reveal instead so as to support the hardware securely. I realise this may not be very practical, but fitting such a device to the door-frame closing jamb doesn't seem very practical anyway! You should also bear in mind that mag-locks tend to distort the timber door leaf where they pull the leaf towards to magnet. During installation, care should be taken to ensure the leaf remains in plane in its closed position.

Aside from the important issue of checking that the doors are suitable as FD30s doors you can find information in the Glass & Glazing Federation 'Fire Resistant Glazing Best Practice Guide' at http://www.ggf.org.uk/groups/fire-resistant-glazing-group/fire_resistant_glazing_best_practice_guide Also check out latest guidance from the Ministry of Housing, Communities & Local Government at https://assets.publishing.service.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/707440/Advice_for_building_owners_on_assurance_and_replacing_of_flat_entrance_fire_doors.pdf and from the National Fire Chiefs Council at https://www.nationalfirechiefs.org.uk/High--Rise-Safety-for-Residents

Will the intumescent air transfer grille restrict the spread of cold smoke?

Hi timbo, To achieve compliance the self-closer you install must be to minimum power-size 3 to BS EN 1154. Select a self-closer that has power adjustment up to size 4 or 5 with adjustment for both closing speed from fully open to almost closed as well separate adjustment for the latching action. This type of self-closer, correctly adjusted, will close the door correctly overcoming any latch bolt resistance and close quickly enough to satisfy your requirements.

Hi Silvia, Find your nearest Certificated Fire Door Inspector at www.fdis.co.uk/inspector They will be able to help.

Hi MHO, You don't say if the building has had any work done regarding the fire doors that would be subject to current building regulations. So assuming the answer is no and the fire doors were installed 18 years ago when the building was built, the question is: Do you need to upgrade to three hinges per fire door? A fire door inspector should check several points (depending on the fire door rating) regarding the hinges: a) That they are suitable for the fire door and in good serviceable condition, b) That all correct size fixing screws are present and that the hinges are securely fixed to the door and frame and c) That there are three or more hinges fitted at the correct positions either because its a requirement to comply with the evidence of performance for the fire door or to comply with BS 8214 the Code of Practice for Timber Based Fire Doors. Timber based fire doors (unless very small cupboard doors) should have three or more hinges to meet the required fire separation performance by helping to prevent or limit distortion of the door at mid-height in a fire situation. The fire performance of the door can only be as good as the hinge fixings used to secure it to its door frame. So if there are three hinges rather than two then the fire performance will that much better! Fire doors are covered by the Regulatory Reform (Fire Safety) Order 2005 and Article 17 of the Order requires that 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. http://www.legislation.gov.uk/uksi/2005/1541/article/17/made

From a fire separation perspective the door frame or lining needs to be in accordance with the door manufacturer's certification data sheet, installation instructions or technical manual. Usually an external type door frame with a flush cill would be used for that application but the framing sectional size must be in accordance with the requirements for the particular fire door you are installing and of course correctly sized intumescent fire and cold smoke seals will be necessary. If you install a lot of fire doors its worth purchasing a copy of BS 8214 : 2016 Code of practice for timber-based fire door assemblies.

Hi Fouted, No need to be sorry, competence is most important. Speak with two or three because although all FDIS qualified they work independently on their own account and will have varying industry backgrounds from fire safety generally to joinery or ironmongery specifically, and that knowledge and experience will be a factor too in engaging the best person for the particular task at hand. Tell the inspector exactly what you are looking for and ask him how he can help.

Thanks Gordon. What you have described above is not uncommon. Often fire doors are not correctly installed and the installers do not possess the necessary knowledge to carry out the works competently. Keep on contacting the owners of the flats or the management company and if that doesn't work try the local Fire & Rescue Service.

Hi Manuela, You are correct to take this up with the housing association. Cross-corridor Fire Doors are commonly held-open by magnets to save wear and tear and allow residents to move around and move items around the building without hindrance of having to open a self-closing fire door. From what you say above I would suspect that these doors are fire resisting doors that release to self-close automatically when the alarm sounds. In which case they are fire safety devices and are subject to a suitable maintenance regime under Article 17 of the Fire safety Order. If so, they are required to have conspicuous blue/white circular signs on both faces of each leaf that say "AUTOMATIC FIRE DOOR KEEP CLEAR" and should be checked for correct releasing and self-closing at the same time as the weekly fire alarm check. Keep up the pressure on the housing association to advise whether these doors are Fire Doors. Let us know when you get the answer.

Hi KarlW, You don't say if its a timber door or metal door? Generally speaking, handles do not need to be fire rated and subject to fixing methods and size of handles they should not affect the fire performance of the door. Again generally speaking, where a door handle 'bolts through' a timber-based door leaf the fixing holes must be tight (hole to be max 1mm greater diameter than that of the through-fixings) and suitable intumescent mastic or intumescent gasket material should be applied around the bolt-through fixings. Handles should be fitted only at the lock-block and at about mid-height. If you are at all unsure about this task on a fire door you should seek help from a competent person.

The council has a legal duty to ensure fire safety devices are subject to a suitable maintenance regime and kept in efficient working order. However, the fire doors would usually be the flat entrance door and the doors in the common areas (not usually the doors inside the flat). Guidance regarding fire doors at purpose built blocks of flats is available at https://www.local.gov.uk/sites/default/files/documents/fire-safety-purpose-built-04b.pdf

Hi Barbara, Contact a certificated fire door inspector. These are listed at www.fdis.co.uk/inspector The inspector should be able to inspect the fire door and issue a report either confirming compliance or detailing remedial works required in order for the door to be compliant. Speak with two or three to make sure they can provide what you are looking for.

Doors often fail to self-close correctly because of a rise in air pressure caused by having two doors with seals close to each other.

You don't say if the work you refer to is subject to building regulations or whether the client has stated any requirement for the materials or installation to be third party certificated. The Building Regulations in Scotland 'Technical Handbook: Fire' can be found at http://www.gov.scot/Resource/0052/00521763.pdf The regulations describe third party certification schemes but do not make it a mandatory requirement. However, the client may specify that the work must be carried out using a third party certificated glazing system or installed by an installer belonging to a third party certification scheme. Whatever, the requirements in terms of products and installation, the work must be carried out competently and helpful guidance is available from the Glass & Glazing Federation at http://www.ggf.org.uk/groups/fire-resistant-glazing-group/fire_resistant_glazing_best_practice_guide

Hi Bernie, Any modifications and repairs made to fire doors should be done competently and I would advise careful investigation of the modification/repair work to evaluate its suitability.

Hi Teekay, You have clearly given this matter some thought and consideration..............more thought then many building owners/managers have. You are right to do so, I have encountered similar situations where doors older than the 1980's have been found to be suitable fire doors. From what you say there is a good possibility that the fire doors at the building are suitable but may require some degree of upgrading works. As Tom says contacting a certificated fire door inspector CertFDI would help you evaluate the situation. These are listed at www.fdis.co.uk/inspector and my advice is to speak to two or three to see what their thoughts are before engaging the one that seems most suited to the task.

The point about fire doors is that if you can identify the fire door to it's manufacturer and relevant evidence of performance, then any components fitted or replaced to make up the fire door assembly should be 'as tested'. That means the fire door should be installed and maintained so that all components and installation data replicates the fire door assembly as it was 'fire performance tested'. For example if the BWF-Certifire label on the door leaf top edge shows the 'CF number' you are then able to download the certificate and data sheet from the Warrington Certification website and therefore install or maintain the fire door in accordance with the data sheet to ensure compliance. BUT many existing fire doors cannot be identified to a manufacturer and evidence of performance. So in this scenario there is no data to tell us what type of fire seals are necessary. In this scenario a self-adhesive fire seal is better than none. Because fire door core construction types vary so greatly, so do the requirements regarding installation and components. If in doubt seek expert advice.

Self adhesive fire and smoke seals are available https://www.safelincs.co.uk/fire-door-seals-surface-mounted-intumescent-fire-and-smoke-seal-kit-product-1/?fGB=true&gclid=CjwKCAiAoNTUBRBUEiwAWje2lqpip9-5-BwL6n6Ikh2T8e9TFx9FgEfKJhrc-ZPElkVMQ_i0EBKjXRoCf5sQAvD_BwE