Reasons to choose a fire-rated pocket door kit
A commercial business is duty bound to manage various different health and safety regulations, but fire safety is one of the most important. Many of the safety controls we would put in place to manage fire safety are preventive measures which are designed to reduce the likelihood of a fire occurring. However, fire doors are one measure we must put in place to control the spread of fire in the event that a fire breaks out. Along with items such as fire alarms, fire extinguishers and emergency escape plans, fire doors are one of the most important features of a health and safety system.
What is the legal requirement for fire doors?
Fire doors are a passive means of fire protection and are designed to withstand the spread of fire in a building. Fire doors are required in all non-domestic properties, including commercial businesses and public buildings, and also in blocks of flats and houses of multiple occupation (HMOs).
A commercial business must install FD30-rated fire doors in areas where there is a risk of fire spreading. FD30 means that the specific fire door being installed has been tested to withstand the spread of fire for up to 30 minutes, and it should be supplied with a test certificate to indicate this. Under standard circumstances 30 minutes would be sufficient time to enable people to escape a burning building safely. If a building was more hazardous in terms of the risk of fire or the complexity of escape, it may be required to install higher-rated fire doors, such as FD60, for example, which withstands the spread of fire for up to 60 minutes.
Although there is no fixed stipulation for what rooms definitely need a fire door, a commercial business should comply with the requirements of the Regulatory Reform (Fire Safety) Order 2005 and appoint a responsible person to manage fire safety. They should carry out a fire risk assessment to determine which rooms require a fire door, based on location, size and the nature of activities, although ordinarily this will include:
- All rooms that are normally occupied
- All rooms that are leading to an escape route
- All rooms where there is a higher than normal risk of fire (such as IT server rooms, boiler rooms, hot work/maintenance rooms and flammable liquid storage rooms)
In most commercial businesses it is accepted that it is safer to install fire doors for every door, to ensure full compliance, rather than leave the situation open to interpretation and risk non-compliance. It is also important to remember that pocket doors are often used for small spaces in a commercial building, such as storage rooms, IT server rooms, boiler rooms and small offices, so it is particularly important that these are fire doors.
Fire-rated pocket doors
Pocket doors are a great benefit to commercial businesses, due to their modern appearance, but also their practical, space-saving qualities. The Pocket Door Shop can supply FD-30 rated pocket door systems, with doors (supplied separately) that need to comply with BS476: Part 22 1987 (the British Standard) and BS EN 1634-1 2000 (the UK adoption of European standards). The doors need to be certified for use with our kits, further details on these doors can be viewed here.
Our fire-rated pocket door kits include the track and runners for the door, along with the bolts, jambs and integrated architrave required. The fire-rated pocket door systems can be supplied for single fire-rated pocket doors and double fire-rated pocket doors, and will fit doors for a 100mm wall thickness. They are also suitable for a door size range of 626mm to 926mm (width) and up to 2040mm height.
The fire-rated pocket door kits are easily installed and can also be retro-fitted with pocket door accessories to make the operation of the pocket door much easier and more practical. These accessorises include an anti-slam/soft close feature, a self-closing feature and flush finger pull door furniture.
Our range of fire-rated pocket door systems
When installed, fire-rated pocket doors have exactly the same appearance as a standard pocket door. However, fire-rated pocket doors are much heavier than standard doors, due to the denser wood used, which of course is essential in being able to withstand the spread of fire for the requisite time.
FD-30-rated fire doors are generally accepted as the standard for most commercial buildings, so your responsible person should carry out a thorough and comprehensive fire risk assessment to identify which rooms in your commercial building require a fire door. Then you can start the process of ordering and installing your fire-rated pocket door systems by ordering online today.
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