Whether you are in a commercial setting or a domestic property, choosing between a fire door and a normal door is not just about design or preference, but the ability of the building to protect the people within it in the event of a fire.
It is therefore important to understand the essential differences between a fire door and a normal door, so here, Fire Door Specialists have put together an essential guide to help you make the right choice between the two.
What is a fire door?
A fire door is a specialist door which has been designed to prevent the spread of fire and smoke in an emergency. By using fire resistant materials and seals, it can contain a fire in one place and prevent it from spreading.
Typically, a fire door will be made from a combination of steel, wood, glass and gypsum as they are capable of withstanding high temperatures and have slow burning rates. Intumescent seals will also be fitted as these will expand when exposed to heat to help block any smoke or flames from passing through.
Fire door standards
As fire doors are such an important part of a fire safety strategy, they must adhere to some strict regulatory standards. These ensure that the door is capable of withstanding a fire for a period of 30, 60, 90 or 120 minutes. As these doors will contain a fire in one place, they should create a safe pathway out of the building during an evacuation.
The choice of which door you need will be dependent on how long it will take to evacuate your premises. It is essential that all fire doors are compliant with these standards and have been through a rigorous testing and certification process.
What is a normal door?
A normal door could feature in any setting and tend to be dominated by functionality or aesthetics. They can be made from a variety of different materials depending on how they will be used, the way you want them to look, and your budget, although most typically they are made from wood, metal or glass.
These can provide durable and secure options that can fit in with either a modern or traditional setting and still provide the right balance of natural light and privacy.
A normal door could come in a wide range of styles, colours and finishes and is unlikely to include the specialised components found in fire doors. This means that they are decorative or functional tools, but they should not be relied upon to protect you from a fire.
The differences between fire doors and normal doors
These doors are constructed differently as fire doors will use materials and technologies to withstand extreme temperatures whilst normal doors do not provide a barrier against fire or smoke.
All fire doors are subject to a number of regulations and safety standards that affect the way they are made, installed and maintained whilst normal doors are only governed by general building codes. This means there is a more rigorous programme for maintaining and inspecting fire doors in order to check that they are compliant with safety standards and capable of performing their role.
It is important to remember that normal doors and fire doors perform very different roles and so they are designed, installed and maintained in very different ways, whilst normal doors offer a much wider range of choices both in the way they work and look.
Fire doors must be compliant with strict rules to ensure they are able to provide the highest levels of fire protection and safety and come with a lot fewer aesthetic options.
Craig Priest is the Marketing Manager at Fire Door Specialists, who provide comprehensive fire door services including installation, inspections, maintenance, and supply, aiming to ensure building…
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