Retrofitting or Replacing Fire Door Seals

Tuesday 20th March 2012

Fire doors play a critical role in preventing the spread of smoke and fire, protecting lives and also properties. However, the effectiveness of fire doors depends heavily on their maintenance, including having well-maintained fire door seals. Over time, fire door seals can deteriorate, become damaged or no longer meet safety standards, which leads to a key question; should you retrofit or replace them?

Can you modify a fire-rated door?

Any modifications to your fire door, including structural changes, should be carried out strictly in accordance with the manufacturer’s instructions and only by an accredited and competent individual. Any modifications to your fire door could affect its certification. Regular maintenance on fire doors is essential to ensure the doors are up to specification and still effective. BSI recommend that fire door inspections should be caried out every 6 months, but this guidance may need to be adapted depending on the location of the door, the fire risks that exist and the amount of use it has. In residential high rise blocks, Fire Safety (England) Regulations 2022 states fire doors should be checked more regularly; our help guide provides further information on this. Intumescent strips should be inspected within this check to ensure they effectively seal against fire and smoke, forming a secure barrier.

Safelincs offer fire door seals for fire and smoke protection. Both use intumescent material that expands in a fire to seal the gap. Smoke protection seals also have a brush to block smoke before the intumescent material is activated. Smoke seals are rarely omitted, one occasion is when doors lead to areas without smoke detectors, triggering alarms in circulation areas.

Fire door seals are fitted on three sides of a fire door, leaving the bottom gap uncovered. There are products available to prevent smoke from escaping under doors if necessary.

Drop down smoke seals offer a fast and convenient solution. They function with a graduated scissor action, dropping to the floor to prevent smoke passing through. For retrofitting, surface mounted drop down smoke seals are an alternative option, as they require no routing or rebating.

How to replace fire door seals and can you retrofit intumescent seals?

Fire door seals can be replaced or retrofitted with intumescent seals depending on the condition of the door. Rebated intumescent fire door seals can be fitted where a rebate exists or the current seal is damaged. The seals are fitted into the existing rebates either in the door leaf or frame. However, modifying rebates requires a certified professional, as it may impact the fire door’s certification.

To avoid having to cut a rebate in either the door or the frame, surface mounted fire door seals can be fitted. These are applied easily by sticking to the frame or door with their self-adhesive backing.

If you are unsure on the condition of your fire doors, a fire door inspectio n allows a qualified inspector to assess your fire doors, ensuring they are fit for purpose and will provide adequate protection against fires. A clear report is provided indicating in detail which doors are compliant and where further action is required.

Can you retrofit intumescent seals?

Yes, you can retrofit intumescent seals; following a fire risk assessment, doors are sometimes re-designated as fire doors if the door and frame are substantial enough to be justifiably counted as a nominal fire door. The same applies to older fire doors which do not follow the latest specifications. In these cases, fire door seals can be retrofitted.

Do fire door seals need to be replaced?

Fire door seals do not need to be replaced unless they are damaged, missing, or ineffective. Intumescent seals do not degrade with age in day-to-day circumstances. Regular inspections can identify issues, and replacements must follow manufacturer guidelines or be done by a certified professional to ensure compliance with fire safety standards.

Intumescent Pipe Collars – A Guide

Monday 17th October 2011

We recently introduced a new range of Astroflame pipe collars. As we receive many questions about the use of pipe collars we felt that a write-up about these collars might be helpful.

What are pipe collars?

Where plastic soil and water pipes pass through fire compartment walls and floors, fire could spread between these building compartments as the pipes melt. Pipe collars are used in these situations to stop the spread of fire. They are fitted around the pipe and on exposure to heat from a fire they rapidly expand inwards to squeeze the collapsing plastic pipe until the aperture is completely sealed. Astroflame pipe collars can be used on UPVC, ABS, MDPE, HDPE and PP pipes up to 225mm diameter. They are rated at 4 hours fire resistance and are tested to BS476: Part 20: 1987 and EN1366-3. They also come with NHBC Type Approval.

What are pipe collars made of?

Intumescent pipe collars are made from intumescent material (based on heat reactive graphite ) bonded to the inside of a steel sleeve. The steel sleeve is powder coated and can be opened and fitted around the pipe. They are closed with a toggle clasp.

How are pipe collars fitted?

Our collars are designed for surface mounting, with the option to fully or semi-cast into masonry floors or walls. The fixing brackets provided can be used for securing the sleeve with non-combustible screws or bolts, or to assist ‘keying-in’ if collars are for recessed installations.

For horizontal installations the collar may be surface mounted or recessed and should be located on one or both sides according to the direction of risk.

Fitting to Masonry/Block Walls

1) Attach the Astro Collar to the pipe so that the integral mounting lugs are pressed tight to the surface of the wall.

2) Mark the position of the bolt slots in the mounting lugs onto the surface of the wall with a marker pen.

3) Rotate the collar slightly (or if access is restricted remove from pipe) and drill holes at the pre-marked positions to suit the anchor bolts being used.

4) If the surface of the wall is very uneven, it is recommended to bed the collar onto a bead of Astroflame Intumescent Mastic to improve the smoke seal efficiency.

5) Insert the anchor bolts and tap home. Relocate the collar in position ensuring that the toggle clasp is snapped closed and that the bolt heads are protruding through the slots in the mounting lugs. Tighten the nuts onto the bolts.

6) NOTE Where there is a fire risk on both sides of the wall, or the direction of fire risk has not been determined, then an Astro Collar should be fitted to both sides of the wall.

7) The collar can also be semi or fully cast into the masonry wall using Astro FM Compound fire resistant mortar.

Fitting under concrete floor slabs

1) Attach the Astro collar to the pipe so that the integral mounting lugs are pressed tight to the soffit (underside) of the concrete floor.

2) Mark the position of the bolt slots in the mounting lugs onto the concrete surface with a marker pen.

3) Drill the bolt holes at the pre-marked positions to suit the anchor bolts being used, (the minimum recommended size of non-combustible anchor bolt is 6mm dia. x 25mm long).

4) If the soffit (underside) of the concrete is very uneven, it is recommended to bed the collar onto a bead of Astroflame Intumescent Mastic to improve the smoke seal efficiency.

6) The collar can also be semi or fully cast into the soffit using Astro FM Compound fire resistant mortar.

Fitting to metal stud partition walls

Fit to both sides of the wall!

1) Attach the Astro Collar to the pipe so that the integral mounting lugs are pressed tight to the surface of the partition wall.

2) Mark the position of the bolt slots in the mounting lugs onto the surface of the wall with a marker pen.

3) Rotate the collar slightly (or if access is restricted remove from pipe) and drill holes at the pre-marked positions to suit the fixings used.

4) If the surface of the wall is very uneven, it is recommended to bed the collar onto a bead of Astroflame Intumescent Mastic to improve the smoke seal efficiency.

5) Insert the non-combustible fixings. Relocate the collar in position ensuring that the toggle clasp is snapped closed and that the bolt heads are protruding through the slots in the mounting lugs. Tighten the nuts onto the fixings.

Should you have further queries you can contact us and we are happy to help.

Reviewing domestic fire safety in the light of the recent riots

Friday 12th August 2011

Now that the rioting seems to have come to an end it is worth considering how to be prepared for similar occurrences in the future. Most of the physical damage, excluding the massive damage to lives and communities, was caused by arson attacks and many people were put at risk by being trapped in their houses by fire.
There are a few precautions one can take to avoid being trapped by fire and to reduce the risk from arson.

Make arson attacks more difficult

It is easy for rioters to pour petrol through a letterbox and to throw a match after it. The impact is devastating. The fire races through the house and the main exit is blocked by fire. However, you can protect yourself by installing an anti-arson letterbox. These fire protection bags sit behind the letter slot and normally just catch your mail. However, they also will contain any flammable liquid poured through the letter opening and automatically extinguish any fire in the letterbox with a small automatic extinguisher or intumescent materials built into the anti-arson letterbox.

Stop your soft furnishing catching fire

You can reduce the flammability of curtains, carpets and soft furnishing in entrance areas by treating them with fire retardant spray. These sprays make fabrics less flammable and thus reduce the impact of a fire bomb thrown into a building.

Protect your most valuable documents from fire

Place your most valuable and personal items in a fireproof box. These

fireproof boxes are ideal for valuable

photos, passports, certificates etc. Special fireproof boxes for electronic data protection will protect your familiy videos and electronically stored data/photos. Some of the boxes are also water tight, which is important in case the fire brigade have to douse the flames with water and foam.

Ensure you have a second route of escape

Do you have a second escape route if the hallway is in flames? Make sure you can open upstairs windows to escape. If they do not open, keep a hammer or a dedicated emergency escape hammer near the windows. If the fire brigade cannot easily reach an upstairs window, consider a fire escape ladder which can be hooked over a window sill in an emergency.

Don’t suffocate from the smoke

Smoke from house fires is extremely toxic. A few breaths will overwhelm you and render you unconscious. If the house is filled with smoke, crawl along the floor towards the nearest exit. Wrap a wet cloth over your face if you have to run through smoke or fire, however, you must not breathe in the smoke due to the extreme tocicity! Consider having a fire escape hood in the house. These hoods cover your head and filter the fumes of the fire. This gives you valuable time to escape through smoke.

Make sure you can extinguish small fires yourself

During the riot the fire brigades were stretched by the number of fires. As a result their response time will not have

been as fast as usual. Make sure you can tackle small fires yourself by having buckets of water at the ready or equip yourself with fire extinguishers

Make sure you can extinguish a person on fire

Keep a non-flammable blanket or large fire blanket at the ready to wrap around a person or roll the person on the floor to extinguish the flames. Have a bucket of water placed in a suitable place or ensure that you have a water fire extinguisher.

Fire Drill

Ensure that you know how you will escape from your home if a fire blocked the main exit. If you have children talk to them in a calm manner about what to do if there is a fire. If the child is particularly clingy to one parent, get that parent to lead the way out of the building. The child will be more willing to leave the building that way.

Ensure that you have working smoke alarms fitted to alert you to a fire, and a carbon monoxide alarm in every room where you burn solid fuel, such as a gas boiler, gas or open fire, gas cooker. Make sure you check that they are working on a regular basis and that they are never left without a battery in them.

For help and advice call 0800 612 6537 or email support@safelincs.co.uk

False Fire Alarms Waking You Up?

Friday 17th June 2011

This post was written in 2011. Please read our new guide to troubleshooting beeping smoke alarms.

A common complaint we hear about are smoke alarms that go off in the middle of the night. There are a number of reasons and steps you can take to minimise the possibility of nuisance alarms waking you up.

Smoke alarms with low batteries will emit a beeping sound to indicate that the batteries require replacement. Batteries are at their weakest at night when it is cooler and you can therefore get low battery warnings which can wake you up. If it is a low battery warning sound (every few minutes or so), change your batteries. Make sure you use good quality batteries, as cheap batteries may not be strong enough to power the alarm and again cause the alarm to bleep during the night .

The issue of low batteries may also apply if you have mains powered smoke alarms, as most mains powered alarms contain a backup battery to power the alarm in case of power failure.

If a mains powered smoke alarm gives an irregular warning sound, it might also indicate that the mains power supply is interrupted. Some smoke alarms have a green LED light on the outer case to show that the smoke alarm is connected to the mains power. If the green LED is not lit it can be an indication that there has been an interruption in the mains power supply and that the alarm will be using the back up battery as the power source.

Should the alarm emit a continuous sound, check first of all that there are no signs of a fire. False alarms can be caused by condensation or insects finding their way into the alarm. To eradicate this type of false alarm try to vacuum out the inside of the smoke alarm as thoroughly as possible and ventilate the room to reduce the condensation present.

When a smoke alarm has reached the end of its life it might also start to sound an intermittent beep as and when the alarm starts to become faulty. Check the manufacturing date of the smoke alarm. Smoke alarms need replacing after ten years.

In all cases of nuisance beeping or false alarms do not disconnect your alarm or leave the alarm without batteries fitted. This would leave you unprotected in the event of a fire and you would not receive any warning to evacuate the building.

To ensure that you have done everything possible to minimise the chances of false alarms and nuisance beeping take advantage of our free reminder service to alert you to replace batteries or replace the smoke alarm unit.

Which fire safety products are dangerous goods in transit?

Thursday 26th May 2011

Some fire safety products, such as fire extinguishers, smoke detector tester aerosols and batteries, are classed as dangerous goods. Here at Safelincs, we consider all aspects of storage, packaging, declaration and transportation of dangerous goods so that you have peace of mind that your shipments are correctly packaged and transported.

We have designated formally trained staff who are our in-house specialists to

Warehouse operative sticking a dangerous goods sticker on a shipment. — Safelincs have detailed procedures in place to ensure ADR and IMDG requirements are met

assess, prepare and pack shipments according to current guidelines and declare shipments in the appropriate manner.

To adhere to the strict regulations outlined through ADR (road service) and IMDG (sea freight), Safelincs produced a thorough dangerous goods procedure for each product classed as hazardous, ensuring that all the requirements for dangerous goods regulations are adhered to. Within this procedure, each product type is described, and our trained staff are aware of all the classifications, which mode of transport can be used, and if Dangerous Goods Notes are required for the movement of goods.

By working closely with our shipping companies and keeping up to date with dangerous goods regulations through yearly re-training we ensure the protection of our customers and all carriers/freight companies used.

New FAQ Compilation for Dorgard Fire Door Retainer

Wednesday 25th May 2011

The Dorgard is one of our most popular products. It helps our customers to stay legally compliant and at the same time keeps fire doors open when there are periods of high footfall or when the temperature gets stifling during the summer. The Dorgard comes with a very handy and thorough manual. Nevertheless, we do get asked a few questions and to help our customers, we now have compiled an overview of all the questions asked and the answers to them.

1.) Can the Dorgard operate at only one decibel level?

Our Dorgard reacts to a sound level adjustable between 65 dB and 85 dB, so all sounds in excess of 65 dB will activate the Dorgard. This complies with BS 5839 which gives 65 dB as the minimum sound level for fire alarms.

In situations where the ambient noise level is above 80 dB, Dorgard has a safety feature that allows it to release automatically to all sounds above 65 dB as you would probably not hear a 65 dB fire alarm over the noise level in this situation.

The Dorgard is also capable of being adjusted to operate to the sound level of an individual fire alarm making it adaptable to any particular environment.

2.) When a fire alarm sounds why does Dorgard not close the door immediately?

Dorgard only listens for a sound every 4 seconds and the sound has to be continuous for 10 seconds for it to operate. This helps to preserve the battery life of the unit and means the operation should not be delayed by any more than 14 seconds.

This compares with other similar retainers that are wired into the fire alarm system and have a built-in delay.

3.) Is the Dorgard a fail-safe product?

In the event that the batteries reach a low voltage or the battery compartment is tampered with or opened, Dorgard will automatically release its plunger, closing the door, thus making the design fail->safe. The plunger cannot be used to keep the door open if there are no batteries in the unit or the batteries have no voltage left.

When the batteries are running low, an audible warning will be sounded every 17 minutes in the form of a series of beeps and a red LED will flash to warn of the depleting batteries until they are fully exhausted, removed or replaced.

As part of your yearly regular fire alarm checks the Dorgard batteries should be renewed as required.

The Dorgard will perform its’ built in self-test by releasing the open door every 7 days.

4.) Is there a formal standard that the Dorgard complies with?

Dorgard complies with the new standard for low voltage hold open devices, BS EN 1155.

5.) Will the closing of a fire door by a Dorgard affect other units by restricting the sound through the closed door?

The operation of the Dorgard, or the ability to hear the fire alarm, should not be affected provided the sound level stated in BS 5839 is adhered to throughout the building.

Dorgards can be adjusted if the sound level does drop slightly within performance limits.

6.) Where to fit Dorgard?

Where there is a need to hold open a fire door to enable the movement and circulation of people around a building, Dorgard can be fitted to self-closing fire doors. The building must have a fire alarm and a risk assessment carried out by the employer to check the suitability of using a Dorgard as some high risk areas e.g. kitchens, boiler rooms and doors protecting a single staircase building may not be appropriate.

7.) If the fire alarm system fails how can Dorgard fail-safe?

Within the risk assessment for the building there should be an instruction that in the event of a failure in the fire alarm system all door hold-open devices should be deactivated, though this should be a rare event as the majority of systems have to have emergency backup power supplies which means they should continue to work in the event of a fault. A Do Not Use warning label should be placed over the unit when deactivated and can be removed once the fire alarm system is restored.

8.) Where a door is fitted with a Dorgard, does there need to be a smoke detector sited on each side?

For the earliest detection of fire and sounding the alarm, it is better to have smoke detectors in adjacent rooms, as the Dorgard is triggered by the sound of the alarm.

9.) Is the Dorgard suitable in sleeping risk premises?

Yes. The Dorgard can hold a fire door open to maintain the functionality of the building by allowing an uninterrupted flow of people through the building during the day and releasing the fire door to close in the evening. You can also adjust the Dorgard to automatically close at night.

10.) Can door warping be prevented by using Dorgard?

To prevent warping, Dorgard self-tests every seven days which helps to ensure reliability and alleviate stress to the door, which on doors that are wedged open for long periods of time, would cause warping. This self-testing also helps to prevent seizure of the overhead door closer by allowing it to cycle itself.

11.) Can the Dorgard test itself?

A self-test routine is run every seven days by the Dorgard. The plunger is released, closing the door and the unit will emit a warning alarm if a fault is detected.

12.) Does a fire alarm audibility test need to be carried out before fitting Dorgard?

As Dorgard is an audio sensing device that can be adjusted within certain limits, it is not necessary to carry out a test before the installation. If the Dorgard cannot “hear” the alarm to respond to it, the likelihood is that the alarm is not sounding at the minimum level required by BS 5839 which should alert the user to a problem with the alarm system that will require remedial action. The Dorgard should be removed until the alarm has been rectified to meet the minimum sound level required by the Standard.

13.) When Dorgards have been fitted should employees be made aware of them?

Employees should be informed about Dorgard and instructed on its use and operation. It should also be included in the workplace fire routine.

14.) Will the Dorgard release automatically at night?

Yes, if set to do so. There are three timed setting options for night time release which the installer can select prior to installation. The unit’s internal clock must be powered up at midday 12:00hrs to inform the unit what time it is. The installer then selects the setting required by activating a switch on the unit and Dorgard will then release each night at the pre-determined time. The unit will not be operational as a door retainer until it automatically resets itself the following morning.

How to provide a fire escape from a roof top window

Wednesday 25th May 2011

Our customers regularly buy fire escape ladders from us for their loft extensions. We can offer them a broad selection of fire escape ladders suited for the task.

When escaping from a gable end you can choose the same fire escape ladders as for ordinary fire escape windows.

However, when escaping over an angled roof not every fire escape ladder is suitable. One of our fire escape ladders for angled roofs is the Rollo Roll-out ladder. The ladder is hooked over the window sill of a Velux style roof window. As the ladder is stored rolled up ready for deployment there is no risk of tangling. Once hooked over the sill, a toggle is pulled and the ladder rolls over the roof without the possibility of getting stock somewhere on the roof or snagging on the guttering. The backsheet of the ladder ensures a smooth deployment. You can adjust the hooks to the thickness of the chosen window sill on receipt of the ladder. The ladder can be deployed and rolled up again and again to practise your escape procedure with your family, although we do not recommend that you climb down the ladder during the fire drill. You can always climb up a few steps after deployment to test the strength and to get used to the ‘feel’ of the ladder.

Another option is the EasyScape fire escape ladder. The chain ladder has no hook but clips into two permanently fitted eyebolts in an emergency. As it has no hooks it is easier to lift than the Rollo ladder. The EasyScape ladders are rolled up with a backing sheet just as the Rollo to avoid snagging on the roof. To prepare the ladder for your roof window you will need to fit the eyebolts (included with the ladder) to a wall of solid construction i.e. masonry, under the window you have elected as an escape window.

Safelincs is happy to answer any queries with regards to your fire escape window. You can also send us some photos of your application and we will find the best solution for you.

Hotel Fires, Your guests, your responsibility

Wednesday 7th October 2009

August and September have seen two major fire incidents in two hotels, ‘The Swan and Royal Hotel’, Clitheroe and the ‘Grand Burstin Hotel’, Folkestone. In both cases all residents at the hotels and staff were evacuated without any serious consequences.

If you are a hotel or bed and breakfast owner it is your responsibility to ensure that your premises have adequate fire detection and protection. In the case of the Grand Burstin Hotel the alarm was raised by a passerby. Had the member of public not noticed the fire, the outcome could have been very different and casualties could have resulted.

Here are some important questions you need to ask yourself:

Do I have adequate fire detection and do my smoke alarms conform to the correct standard?
Do I have adequate fire extinguisher cover and are they up to date on service?
Have I got adequate means of escape or do I need to install fire escape ladders?
Are my guests aware of the evacuation procedure should the alarm be raised and do I have guests who would require assistance?

By asking yourself these few simple questions and acting on the outcome of the answers, you could be preventing a disaster. The hotel fire at the Grand Burstin was caused due to a guest leaving a tea light lit on top of the TV set unattended. Not something that you can prevent, but had the alarm been raised sooner, the damage due to smoke and flames could have been restricted.

Remember, it is not only the lives of yourself and your guests you are protecting but also your livelihood and home. Unfortunately, the 18th century Swan and Royal Hotel was left wrecked by the fire that occurred there.

Your guests are YOUR responsibility. Safelincs Ltd are here to help you ensure that you have adequate protection. Please call FREEPHONE 0800 612 2946 for assistance.

Ref:

www.lancashiretelegraph.co.uk/news/ribblevalley/clitheroe/4583227.Huge_fire_guts_Clitheroe_inn/?ref=rss

www.kentonline.co.uk/kentonline/news/2009/august/17/hotel_fire.aspx