Fire doors are one of the most important parts of a building’s fire safety. They’re imperative to maintaining the safety of a building’s occupants and must be checked regularly to ensure they’re in full working order. Not sure about your fire door inspection responsibilities? Continue reading our helpful guide to discover more about fire door safety checks.
Fire door safety checks
Fire doors that work properly can give the occupants of a building the precious extra moments of protection they require to get out of a fire safely. Fire door safety checks are imperative to ensuring that they do the job they’re meant to. Failure to perform these vital safety checks could result in catastrophic results.
The Regulatory Reform (Fire Safety) Order 2005 states that it is the law that “all fire escapes and resisting doors are installed properly and are also regularly maintained so they are fit for the purpose of fire safety”.
The owner of a building, whether that’s a homeowner, business owner, landlord or property management agent, is responsible for ensuring that fire door safety checks are completed.
Fire door inspection requirements
According to gov.uk, the minimum fire door inspection requirement is to check any obvious damage or issues. A professional inspector is not required to perform fire door safety checks as the responsible person for the premises should be able to carry out the check themselves. However, professionals can be hired if the person responsible is unable to perform the checks.
The fire door inspection requirements include checking for the below:
- If there has been any alterations or damage to a door’s glazing apertures or air transfer grille.
- If there are any gaps around the door frame, and seals and hinges are fitted correctly.\
- That the door closer shuts the door.
- The door closes correctly around the whole frame.
- There is no visible damage (either deliberate or from wear and tear) to the door, door closer, or door frame.
After the fire door safety checks have been performed, if any issues are identified then it is a good idea to have more detailed checks completed.
Every step taken to ensure the safety of fire doors within a building helps to provide more protection to occupants in case of a fire.
5 things to check for fire door safety
- Certification – Involves checking for a label, plug or similar marking to show that the fire door is certified.
- Apertures – Any alterations to the door for glazing will void the certification.
- Gaps and seals – Check the gap around the door frame is constant and around 3mm to 4mm.
- Closers – Check that the closer is fully working and closes the door like it should.
- Operation – Ensure the door closes properly in all areas, and opens as it should too.
How often should fire door safety checks be completed?
Fire doors can lose their integrity over time, either through damage or mistreatment. Once the integrity is lost, any third-party certification or accreditation for that door is no longer valid. As a result, that fire door cannot be relied upon to work as it was meant to in the event of a fire.
So, how often should fire doors be inspected? Fire door safety checks should be undertaken at least once every six months. However, this number could change based on how new the building is and how often the door is used. For example, the fire door could be the main door in and out of a heavily populated apartment building or a busy factory.
Fire door safety checks by NW Fire Solutions
At NW Fire Solutions, we understand that when you’re tasked with finding an inspection company for your building’s fire safety, you’ll want to ensure you hire a company with the required experience. This is to ensure that everything is done according to regulations.
NW Fire Solutions can offer you the peace of mind of hiring a fully experienced and trained company to handle your fire door safety checks.
As well as fire door surveys, we can also perform fire risk assessments, property inspections, fire safety training and much more.
If you’d like to speak to NW Fire Solutions about your fire doors, or anything else related to your building’s fire safety, don’t hesitate to contact us on 0151 665 0124 or email us info@nwfiresolutions.co.uk.