Fire Door Q&A - LSS Life Safety Services®

Written by LSS | Apr 24, 2015 2:00:00 PM

What is a Fire Door?
- A fire door, like a fire damper, is a method of passive fire protection used to prevent the spread of fire and smoke between fire barriers.

What are the main purposes of a fire door?
- Serve as a regular door;
- Provide ready egress during a fire;
- Keep fire from spreading throughout a building;
- Protect life and property

What determines a fire doors rating?
- The fire rating of the wall that the door is installed determines the fire rating of the door.

Wall Rating	Door Rating	Description and Use
4 Hour	3 Hour	These opening are in walls that separate building or divide a single building into designated fire areas.
2 Hour	1-1/2 Hour	Openings of this type are used in enclosures of vertical communication or egress through buildings. Examples of these types include stairwells and elevator shafts
1 Hour	1 Hour	These door assemblies divide occupancies in a building.
1 Hour	1/4 Hour	For use where there are openings in corridors or room partitions.
2 Hour	1-1/2 Hour	This openings is in a wall where there is the potential for severe fire exposure from the exterior of the building.
1 Hour	1/4 Hour	This opening is in an exterior wall that has the potential to be exposed to moderate to light fire from the exterior of the building.
1 Hour	1/3 Hour	These openings are in corridors where smoke and draft control is required. The minimum opening is 1 Hour.

When are fire doors needed?
- Where a door leads to exit stairwells and horizontal exits.
- Where a door leads to a hazardous area.
- Where a door has an Exit sign around it.
- Generally, where a door leads to a hallway or from one fully enclosed room to another.

NFPA 80 Section 5.2.4.2 States – As a minimum the following items shall be verified
- 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, or the pull side of the door, do not exceed clearance listed (undercut ¾”, between door and frame 1/8” +/- 1/16” for steel doors, between door and frame 1/8” for wood doors, clearance for meeting edges of pairs of doors 1/8” for steel +/- 1/16”, and 1/8” for pairs of wood doors);
- The self-closing device is operational, that is, the active door completely closes when operated from the full open position;
- Auxiliary hardware items that interfere or prohibit operation are not installed on the door or frame;
- No field modifications to the door assembly have been performed that void the label;
- Gasketing and edge seals, where equipped, where required, are inspected to verify their presence and integrity.

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