Fire Rated Door Inspections

Fire Rated Door Inspections 

Fire safety is a key concern for building owners, residents, facility managers and engineers and there are a lot of ways to mitigate the risk of fires. Fire doors play a vital part in fire prevention. Sprinkler Fire Safety Awareness & Welfare Foundation (SFSAWF) in India create awareness about fire safety. A 2022 study from the Fire Door Inspection Scheme revealed that a shocking 86% of fire doors were not fit for purpose in the INDIA (either because they were installed incorrectly or poorly maintained). This also suggests that increased education about fire door safety could reduce fire risks and save lives.

What is a fire door?

A fire door is a special kind of door that is designed to withstand fires. They come with features that can slow down the spread of fires while buying occupants more time to escape.

Fire doors are made from a combination of solid timber, aluminium, steel and gypsum. They usually come with a silicone-based sealant that is fire resistant, and an intumescent strip on the base of the door which will expand when exposed to heat (and prevent the spread of smoke). Some fire doors have windows made from special kinds of glass which have a higher level of heat resistance.

Designers should locate fire doors in key locations around buildings to prevent the spread of fire. There are several grades of fire doors that are designed to be resistant for longer. For example, FD30 doors offer 30 minutes of resistance, FD60 doors offer 60 minutes resistance, and so on.

What is a fire door inspection?

A fire door inspection involves a series of checks to each door to ensure that it meets standards and is installed correctly. As designers and contractors often install fire doors in busy areas such as communal spaces or corridors, they are prone to damage through overuse or incorrect use (such as wedging them open).

A fire door inspector will check for the following kinds of things:

Certification: Is the door actually a fire door and does it meet national standards?

Incorrect use: Have tenants or building users wedged the door open?

Visible damage: Has frequent use or bumping led to damages in the door frame, handle or lock mechanism?

Closing: Does the door close correctly, or does the lock mechanism rattle?

Gaps: How wide are the gaps between the door and the door frame (max 4mm at top and sides, max 10mm from the floor)

Sealant: If the door design includes sealant, is it in good condition?

Who is responsible for inspecting fire doors?

This depends on who the responsible person in a building is. A responsible person is:

In residential properties, it may be the owner, property developer or a housing association.

For commercial properties, it could be the employer, the owner, or a property management company.

In schools, hospitals or care homes it could be the Management Company, facility manager, or owner.

First, you must choose a responsible person to take responsibility for a variety of health and safety issues, including fire door inspection. This is an especially important role – if this person fails in their duties, they are likely to face prosecution.

Who Can Inspect 

It is not necessary to use a certified door inspector to perform the annual testing and inspections. Section 3.3.96 of NFPA 80 defines a qualified person for performing the tests and inspections as, “A person who, by possession of a recognized degree, certificate, professional standing, or skill, and who, by knowledge, training, and experience, has demonstrated the ability to deal with the subject matter, the work, or the project.”   

According to the NFPA definition, no certification is required. This gives managers two options: in-house performance of the testing and inspections and outsourcing. For in-house inspections, the department might already have qualified personnel to perform the tasks. If not, managers can have personnel attend a training session that specifically targets fire door inspections. If a number of personnel need to be trained, managers can have a qualified outside person conduct the training on-site. The key is to make certain the in-house personnel performing the inspections are knowledgeable concerning doors and have been trained as to the requirements of the regulation. Sprinkler Fire Safety Awareness & Welfare Foundation (SFSAWF) in India is a NGO, Zero inspection charges any one can contact with them.

How often must you do fire door inspections?

It may seem surprising but there are currently no minimum legal requirements for the frequency of fire door inspections. However, the law makes it clear that fire-resistant doors must be adequately maintained. In general, it is best practice to:

Inspect automatic release doors weekly (these doors close whenever the fire alarm activates)

Examine regularly used doors in key communal areas every three months

Inspect all other fire doors every six months

In new builds, more frequent checks are advisable in the first year of use due to structural changes that may occur as the building settles

NFPA’s Fire Doors and Windows technical committee completed its task of updating and expanding NFPA 80 in early 2006. Changes and additions have been incorporated into the 2007 edition of NFPA 80, the “Standard for Fire Rated Doors and Other Opening Protectives.”

The model building codes reference NFPA 80 as the standard for the installation and maintenance of fire-rated door assemblies. Additional codes of equal importance are the ICC’s International Fire Code (IFC), NFPA’s Uniform Fire Code (NFPA 1) and NFPA 101, The Life Safety Code. The code language is very specific. For example, the IFC, section 703.2 specifies that “Opening Protectives” shall be maintained in an operative condition in accordance with NFPA 80.

Why is Annual Inspection of Fire-Rated Door Assemblies Required?

NFPA 80 has required the frequent inspection of fire-rated doors, and their immediate repair, for many years. The challenge has been that it is nearly impossible to define what “frequent” means. NFPA 80 has helped to define the frequency of inspections as annually – once a year.

What is Inspected on Fire-Rated Openings?

Former editions of NFPA 80 have established guidelines for the installation and maintenance of fire-rated doors. There are certain baseline elements, which are common to all swinging doors with builders hardware no matter when they were installed. The 2007 edition of NFPA 80 simply requires these baseline elements to be inspected on an annual basis (yearly).

Inspection Steps

Chapter 5, Section 5-2 Inspections, Paragraph 5-2.4 Swinging Doors with Builders Hardware lists the elements that are required to be inspected. It requires, “fire door assemblies to be visually inspected from both sides to assess the condition of the assembly.” Swinging doors with builders hardware will be inspected to verify the following:

• No open holes or breaks exist in surfaces of either the door or frame.

• Glazing, vision light frames, and glazing beads are intact and securely fastened in place, if so equipped.

• The door, frame, hinges, hardware and noncombustible threshold are secured, aligned, and in working order with no visible signs of damage.

• No parts are missing or broken.

• Door clearances at the door edge to the frame, on the pull side of the door, do not exceed clearances listed in 4.8.4 and 6.3.1.

• The self-closing device is operating by verifying that the active door will completely close when operated from the full open position.

• If a coordinator is installed, the inactive leaf closes before the active leaf.

• Latching hardware operates and secures the door when it is in the closed position.

• Auxiliary hardware items, which interfere or prohibit operation, are not installed on the door and frame.

• No field modifications to the door assembly have been performed that void the label.

• Gasketing and edge seals, where required, are inspected to verify their presence and integrity.

Individually, these items seem like small problems, but in the context of a fire emergency their importance becomes readily apparent. If the door assembly doesn’t function as designed at the time of the fire, it simply cannot protect the occupants as intended. In multi-family residential construction, this is important as residents are expecting the fire resistance of the door and wall to protect them in the corridors as they egress in an emergency.

Performance-Based Inspection Cycle for Large Buildings

The NFPA 80 committee was concerned with how large buildings, institutions and campuses would be able to inspect each fire-rated door assembly every year.

These situations are provided for in the language of paragraph 5-2.2 Performance-Based Option. Under the Performance-Based Option, a facility may have an extended inspection cycle provided it is approved by the AHJ. The full description of the Performance-Based Option is described in Annex J, NFPA 80.

The foundation, partnering with members of the Door and Hardware Institute, continues to offer halfday training sessions for AHJs. These half-day sessions provide fire and building code officials with a better understanding of what to approve when they are asked to verify the inspection of a fire-rated opening. The Door and Hardware Institute offers instructional classes with several prerequisites to educate inspectors of fire resistance rated doors and builders hardware.

Not Sure What a Fire Door Looks Like?

This may sound unusual, but it is very common for employees and building occupants to have no idea which doors are fire doors. Look for these key indicators that a door is a fire door.

1. Self-closing
2. Ball-bearing hinges
3. Wire-mesh glass
4. A label on the edge of the door between the top and center hinges

Please feel free to ask any questions you may not be sure of, but I’d also enjoy hearing what you liked about the article. 

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