Each fire rated door sold on the market must include a permanent label showing the following information.
Fire door propped open.
These doors protect stairs labs etc.
In the event of a fire it is quite possible that an insurer would be unwilling to pay for damages when a door has been wedged or propped open.
Occupants may be tempted to prop open fire doors to preclude the need to touch handles.
The answer to your question unfortunately is it depends though i can tell you as a general rule of thumb there are no regulatory surveyors who are going to give you a big thumbs.
Propped open fire doors.
Holding your fire door open.
Despite this they re still regularly found propped open preventing them from working as they should.
However fire doors have a very important purpose preventing the spread of fire so wedging one open is dangerous and illegal.
To contain fire and smoke.
Wedged or propped open fire doors are a common problem.
The majority of fire doors will hold a fire in a room for 30 minutes by which time the fire rescue service will be on site.
All doors in hazardous areas are required to be self closing regardless if the door is fire rated or just smoke resistant.
This short post seeks to explain why they shouldn t be propped open whilst it also covers a range of other frequently asked questions on the subject.
Section 3 3 238 of the 2012 lsc defines self closing as a door equipped with an approved device that ensures closing after opening.
That makes sense however if you leave the door propped open in sleeping accommodation overnight where fire can spred through compartments and cause fatalities or even a workplace that is not occupied overnight but a fire can travel through the compartment leading to more serious fire damage.
The length of time that the door is intended to resist fire.
Aside from possibly rendering the fire door inoperable due to physical damage propping open fire doors will allow products of combustion to migrate into other areas and contribute to the spread and severity of the fire.
If propped open occupants can be in danger using stairs to evacuate and lab research can be threatened by fire spread.
If we have doors to staff offices and staff kitchen that have an auto closure device but are not fire doors is it allowed to prop them open with a wedge.
Don t prop open the door with wedges or by bending the closing mechanism.
Fire doors form an integral part of the fire strategy for shared or multi storey accommodations.
A smoke barrier door that is wedged open will not close by itself.
