Dorgard Fire Door Retainer

The Dorgard does not detect smoke or the fire; it works by reacting to the fire alarm that goes off on detection of a fire. The unit will lift the plunger on the sound of the alarm, and a warning tone is emitted when the door is closing.

The Dorgard has several fail safe and safety features that ensure that the fire door it is attached to is still compliant when required.

The Dorgard’s main fail-safe feature is its low battery function. The Dorgard will emit a visual and audible warning that the batteries are failing. In addition to this, it will not activate the plunger so that the door cannot remain open. The batteries must be changed to be able to use the plunger function of the Dorgard.

Yes, the Dorgard can be installed on a double door set. It would be the door closers that would be in control of the closing sequence of the doors. To ensure that the doors close in the correct order, the leaf that needs to close first must be set to close at a faster speed than the other.

Safelincs is the only retailer that offer this exclusive 5-year warranty on the Dorgard. The exclusive warranty is not outlined in the generic manual of the product, as this only refers to the standard manufacturer warranty of two years.

Safelincs covers the additional warranty of the Dorgard, while the statement on our website is proof of our warranty.

You can print out our Dorgard pages if you want proof of the 5-year warranty; however, proof of purchase from us is enough for any warranty claims.

Dorgard can be fitted where there is a need to hold open a fire door legally, to enable the movement of people and air circulation around a building. Dorgard is intended for use on fire doors fitted with a self-closing device such as an overhead door closer. However, they can be fitted to any door as an alternative to a door wedge. 

Please note that the building must have a fire alarm, and a full risk assessment carried out by the employer to check the suitability of using a Dorgard; some high-risk areas such as kitchens, boiler rooms, and doors protecting a single staircase mean that a Dorgard may not be appropriate.

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 release the fire door to close in the evening. In a building where people live or sleep, you can set the Dorgard to automatically close at night.

No, the Dorgard activates to sound levels above 65 dB. All sounds in excess of 65 dB, continuing for at least 14 seconds will trigger the Dorgard to close the door and ensure compartmentalisation. This complies with BS 5839 which gives 65 dB as the minimum sound level for fire alarms.

Due to the way that the Dorgard is activated, by fire alarm sound, it is listening for the sound of the alarm system every 4 seconds. When the alarm sounds for a continuous 14 seconds, to ensure that it is an alarm rather than a short one off sound, the plunger is released and allows the door to close.

In the building's risk assessment, it is important to include a guideline stating that if the fire alarm system fails, all door hold-open devices should be deactivated. However, such situations should be infrequent since most systems are equipped with emergency backup power supplies, ensuring they remain operational during a power failure.

No, given that the sound level stated in BS5839 must be adhered to throughout the building, a Dorgard’s ability to ‘hear’ the fire alarm should not be affected. Dorgards can be adjusted if the sound level does drop slightly within performance limits.

Unfortunately, in areas where the ambient noise volume is consistently 65 dB or over, the unit will close automatically to all noise, and is therefore not suitable. Alternatively, the Dorgard Pro, which takes its release signal from the central fire alarm panel, can be used in noisy environments.

Dorgard complies with the standard for low voltage hold open devices, BS EN 1155. It also conforms to British Standards EN 1634, covering fire resistance and smoke control tests for door assemblies, and BS 7273-4 for the actuation of release mechanisms for doors.

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 detect the alarm, it is likely that the alarm is not sounding at the minimum 65 dB level required by BS 5839, which should alert the user to a problem with the alarm system that will require remedial action.

Employees should be informed about Dorgard and instructed on its use and operation and include it in the workplace fire routine.

Yes, if set to do so. There are three timed setting options for night time release which the installer can select prior to installation. Batteries to activate the internal clock in the Dorgard must be inserted at 12.00hrs (midday) and the night time settings can then be selected and set accordingly. The Dorgard will then release each night at the pre-determined time.

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 continuous warning alarm if a fault is detected.

Regular testing of the building’s fire alarm system is a legal requirement, and can be utilised to manually test Dorgards around any premises. Ask staff to engage all hold-open devices before starting the alarm test, and have them report any units that don’t release. This is the tried and tested method that we use in our offices at Safelincs!