All Activity

Building Regulations mandate that flat entrance doors must self-close from all door-open positions. The issue with spring hinges is that they often fail to do this completely and reliably. https://assets.publishing.service.gov.uk/media/67d2bb074702aacd2251cb94/Approved_Document_B_volume_1_Dwellings_2019_edition_incorporating_2020_2022_and_2025_amendments_collated_with_2026_and_2029_amendments.pdf This is why guidance at the Code of Practice: Hardware for Fire Doors & Escape Doors requires self-closing devices that meet BS EN 1154 power size 3, as a minimum requirement. https://www.firecode.org.uk/Code_of_Practice_hardware_for_fire_and_escape_doors_issue_5.pdf

In theory you could do the three hour in house, if you are competent to test briefly each month then the main difference is duration which shouldn't affect ability to test for the longer period

A sprinkler system is one of the slowest systems to react, slower than heat and smoke detectors, and so there would be considerable production of hazardous fire effluent before activation, which would be a risk to life. Fire doors are still required and the only relaxation was the fitting of self closers to bedrooms, however this approach has been proven to be flawed and as part of Building Regulation changes requiring mandatory sprinkler protection to new or altered care homes this relaxation has been removed.

You would need to refer to BS7273-4 but they don't have the required failsafe's of a Category A/Critical rated hold open as if there are faults on the fire alarm they won't release and are only rated to Category B/Standard actuation at best, Category C/Indirect at worst, meaning critical locations (such as doors onto stairways) would be vulnerable.

In theory if these are the original correct hinges fitted as part of the fire doorset at the time of installation and are in good order and shut the door flush in frame then they remain acceptable. If truly adjustable they are an improvement on single chain door closers (which aren't) and aren't explicitly forbidden like a traditional rising butt hinge would be. However they are deprecated in some industry guidance so the fire risk assessor should set the acceptable benchmark. If any are worn beyond adjustment then they could be replaced like for like as still sold and do have test evidence although replacement with standard fire door hinges and a separate EN1154 closer may be preferred. https://www.ironmongerydirect.co.uk/product/adjustable-self-closing-fire-door-spring-hinge-102-x-76-x-3mm-polished-chrome-pack-of-3-692924?vat=1&GSP=true&gad_source=1&gclid=CjwKCAjwwLO_BhB2EiwAx2e-3xZjdaWmx_G4CPBW-VTNHS1EbwQua2O8OZedFbdegbS8FR5xUh4vaBoCvCAQAvD_BwE

Get a new fire risk assessor that has access to and reads current standards. Grade D & Grade F smoke & heat alarms require no formal maintenance beyond user monthly checks unless linked to a telecare system (e.g. warden call or Tunstall) as there is actually nothing to service and the test smoke poles used on commercial detection are actually cautioned against by several manufacturers of domestic detection as they can damage them. The current edition of the standard BS 5839-6:2019+A1:2020 "Fire detection and fire alarm systems for buildings - Code of practice for the design, installation, commissioning and maintenance of fire detection and fire alarm systems in domestic premises" details this

How do you get in and out normally then? If you have a door to the street from your bottom stair landing in a terrace you don't require usually a rear garden fire exit route.

That's the current (albeit outdated and under revision) version. Under the current edition of BS5839-6 a Grade D system requires no maintenance beyond user monthly tests unless part of a telecare enabled system (e.g. linked to a warden call or Tunstall system) as there isn't actually anything to service and several manufacturers caution against smoke pole testing as it can damage a smoke alarm.

Thanks AnthonyB, that helped a lot. I started to worry that we may ultimately have to request the person to leave if we could not find a suitable solution (as all guidance i was finding says that they need to be able to get out of the building entirely) and then would find ourselves potentially facing issues with regards to discrimination. I have added the PEEP to our emergency grab-bag/safety information box.

I rent a house in a row of houses 2nd from the end with only one door. If there is a fire in the 3rd and 4th houses, I will not be able to escape as there is a padlock on the gate of the 1st house. Is this legal?

Good morning Harry the post you refer to above is nearly 10 years old and the document linked has expired. This seems to be the new version. @AnthonyB please feel free to correct me, if I'm wrong. thanks Rahel

There are different devices used to provide protection against spread of fire and smoke. Sprinklers and doors are two of them and these devices should be used towards a holistic approach to dealing with fire risk. Clearly, a building with a sprinkler system and fire doors should provide a higher level of protection than a building with fire doors alone. The Responsible Person should carry out a suitable and sufficient fire risk assessment to include the risk to relevant persons at the building and factor in the protection where it is provided by the sprinklers, the fire doors and other devices appropriately. No doubt, using this holistic approach, both sprinklers and fire doors together will form a large part of the fire protections at the building. Both should then be checked and maintained in good condition as appropriate to the fire strategy to provide safety in a fire at the building. It should be clear from the fire risk assessment to what extent the devices provide protection and therefore what is required from the maintenance regime.

Hello Tom I could not open your link "HOUSING - FIRE SAFETY............. Can you please check and send me the link again. Thanks Harry

Hi, I basically have the same question as Gary. I know the responsible person is permitted to do the monthly emergency lighting tests and will be fine as long as they log it, but can I do the annual discharge test or do I have to engage a fire safety trained company just to do this? Again if there's a fault I understand someone needs to come in, but if everything tests okay after the responsible person is done, does it really need to be outsourced? Especially curious as our Fire Risk Assessment company refuses to flick test them during their assessment, so wondering how it's supposed to be done. This is for a 3 storey conversion, domestic, under 11m. Thanks

Hi, I live in a 3-storey leasehold property with five flats (two on ground floor, two on first floor and one on second). The only fire detection system in place is a couple of linked Fireangel WST630 smoke detectors in the communal corridors. We've recently had fire risk assessment that says the responsible person needs to test the fire alarm system once a month but must have it serviced once every six months by a "competent professional". As far as I'm aware there's no other duties that need to be done for fire compliance in this property every 6 months, and as the smoke alarms are battery operated as opposed to wired (10 year battery on its 3rd year), so do we really need to get a fire safety company to come out and perform a 5 minute 'service' on it? What would that even involve, opening it up and testing the wires inside the smoke detector? If it's tested regularly and clean of dust and dirt, and the battery still has power is there a need to service every 6 months? I've tried looking but can't see anything in regs anywhere saying that for domestic premises under 11m in height you have to do this. Can anyone help? Thanks

Why are dorguards not suitable in some situations?

Hi, I am a director of a Residents Management Company. We manage seven four-storey blocks of flats, built during 2010 to 2012. The flat entrance doors are fitted with three Eclipse adjustable self-closing hinges marked “BS EN 1634 1 HOUR” (image attached). We commissioned a Fire Door Inspection Report which stated for each door “Replace Door Closer With Fire Rated Type to Current Regulations (Comment: Install an overhead closer compliant with BS EN 1154)”. I’d be grateful if you could advise whether it would instead be acceptable to (a) adjust the tension on the hinges to ensure they fully close (b) if this is not possible, replace them with “like for like” hinges. It appears that these hinges can still be obtained from Screwfix. My concerns with installing new overhead closers are (1) it would more expensive (2) there would then be both overhead closers and self-closing hinges on each door (3) it would appear to go against the following advice from the Fire Protection Association: “… It is essential that the door closer chosen for any specific application or use has been tested in combination with the full fire doorset to ensure that the entire ensemble works effectively as a whole and offers the required level of fire resistance” Many thanks.

Many thanks Anthony, very helpful

Absolutely - they are accepted by the fire service (& indeed get specific mention in London Fire Brigades guidance) and fully comply with the extinguisher manufacturing, performance & safety standard BS EN3. Because they reduce the number and type of extinguishers required, thus simplifying training and saving money as well as be inspected in house, saving money, the fire extinguisher industry has written it's voluntary guidance (BS5306) to try and stop them and will spin all sorts of yarns to ty to stop you using them - just remember you must carry out the annual user inspection to comply with Article 17 of the Fire Safety Order - they aren't fit and forget.

1 lux to the centre line (BS5266). When designing the lighting for an emergency escape route it is advised that achieving even distribution of illuminance throughout the escape route with 1 lux as a minimum level on the centre of line.

Only to the extent of what parts of the premises are a workplace for the staff. However the Fire Safety Order is not the only legislation that requires an assessment of risk (including fire) depending on the status of the care given - it's not clear cut and is better explained in this https://nfcc.org.uk/wp-content/uploads/2023/08/NFCC_Specialised_Housing_Guidance_-_Copy.pdf

As far as I am aware, there were no standard scheme markings, such as BM TRADA Q Mark or BWF-Certifire. But the manufacturer may have marked the door for identification purposes. They were called fire-check doors in those days. This may have applied at the time? https://www.scribd.com/document/449684907/BS-476-1-pdf

Were fire doors marked pre 1972? Doors in question 1966

Hi the short answer is yes, P50 extinguishers fulfil all legal requirements. For a bit more information please feel free to read this article. Rahel

Hi, are these extinguishers legal and meet all standards for commercial use please?