Fire doors save lives and protect homes, is the advice from our Fire Safety team
21/09/2022
Keeping you safe in your home is our number one priority, but do you know how a fire door keeps you safe? Is it ever OK to wedge or prop open a fire door or remove the self-closer on a fire door? Do you know how to report a faulty fire door if you spot one, and why it’s so important?
These questions and more are answered by our Fire Safety team this week, to highlight how crucial fire doors are in keeping you safe and to let you how they form a key part of our fire safety investment programme.
Steve Mather FCHO Director of Assets and Sustainability said “Fire doors play a vital role in preventing the spread of fire and smoke around a building and all our homes have fires doors fitted where required. They should to resist smoke and fire for a specified time, they must be to the correct standard for the potential risk and be properly installed and maintained.
“As part of our ongoing work to continually improve our customers’ homes and provide high quality, safe places, in 2021/22 we invested £1.5m in brand new communal fire doors.
"We’re also carrying out additional fire safety improvement work to contain any fire should it occur in our customers homes, and to improve fire detection.”
Steve added: “Our specialist team also inspect fire doors as part of our regular checks to keep you and your families’ safe in your home. If you’re contacted by us to arrange an inspection, please allow us access to your home – it will help us identify any issues that we need to address and it will help to keep you and your neighbours safe.
"It’s also important that you are aware of the critical role that you play by following our fire safety advice which is available here on our website”
Fire doors Frequently Asked Questions
How does a fire door keep you safe?
A fire door ensures that should a fire break out, it can be contained in a “compartment”. This keeps the fire and smoke trapped for a defined period, allowing time for people to follow the correct fire procedures for their building, which could be to evacuate or to stay put, and can help make the fire easier to tackle.
A fire door will be not work effectively if it’s damaged or propped open.
Where are fire doors installed?
In a block of flats fire doors should be on stairwells and in corridors, and flat front doors are fire doors. You will also find fire doors in places where there is a risk of fire, such as bin storage or mains electricity service cupboard. You may find fire doors inside some flats.
How can you identify a fire door?
Fire doors in communal and public areas will have a sign on to say it’s a fire door. Flat-front doors and doors inside the flat do not have to have fire door signs on them but you should be informed if they are.
Spotted an issue with a fire safety door in your building?
Please report it to us – you could save a life. Get in touch with our Contact Centre on 0161 393 7117 or email servicecentre@fcho.co.uk.
Who inspects and maintains fire doors in your building?
We are legally responsible for fire doors in all our blocks of flats.
Fire door safety mythbusting
There are some common misconceptions about fire doors. Check out the info below where we set the record straight and show how fire doors
Myth 1: Painting a door with fire retardant paint makes it a fire door.
The truth: A lick of paint will not turn a standard door into a fire door. A fire door is made up of many compatible and fire tested materials and components, all listed on the fire door certificate.
Myth 2: It’s OK to wedge or prop open a fire door, depending on the situation.
The truth: It’s never OK. Under any circumstance, don’t wedge fire doors open. If the fire door is wedged open, in the event of a fire it will not serve its intended purpose to hold back fire and smoke.
Myth 3: It’s fine to remove the self-closer on a fire door.
The truth: No, it isn’t. The self-closer is essential for the fire door to close and work properly. If it’s removed the fire door will not serve its intended purpose to hold back fire and smoke in the event of a fire.
