Fire Door Closers – How to Improve Ease of Movement Within Care Homes

Wednesday 12th November 2014

For those confined to care homes, moving freely within the immediate environment is essential for their well-being and self-esteem. However, fire regulations require that fire doors, such as those installed in gangways and often in bedrooms, are kept closed to prevent the spread of smoke and flames in the event of a fire. The hydraulic door closers, usually installed for this purpose, make the fire doors difficult to open for the elderly and those who require walking aids. Installing a normal fire door retainer to hold the fire door open against the pressure of a traditional door closer does not fully address this problem, as it still requires the fire door to be opened in the first place before it can be retained in the open position.

This is where Free-Swing Fire Door Closers would be more suitable. They allow the user to open and close the fire door like any other door – without any resistance. The door can also be left open in any desired position. If the fire alarm goes off the fire door will, of course, close and the occupants of the building are protected against the spread of fire and smoke.

Some of Safelincs’ Free-Swing Door Closers require wiring into the fire alarm panel to send a signal to the closer to ensure the door is closed when a fire is detected. Our Freedor Free-Swing Door Closer on the other hand, does not require any wiring at all. Similar to the well known Dorgard, manufactured by the same UK company, the Freedor ‘listens’ for the sound of an alarm system and will close the fire door as soon as the acoustic signal is received. The Freedor unit is battery powered and is also suitable for retro-fitting on existing fire doors.

Harry Dewick-Eisele, Managing Director at Safelincs, explains “The Freedor overcomes the need to install a door closer as well as a retainer. It is fitted in the same position as a traditional fire door closer and deals with the entire issue of the safe opening and closing of fire doors. It is a huge improvement for care homes but also children centres and other public spaces where traditional door closers can lead to difficulties for users.”

If you require any further information call 0800 433 4289 where our Customer Service Team are available to answer any questions you may have.

Keeping a fire door open legally… and safely

Thursday 6th November 2014

Dorgard Fire Door Retainers Fire safety company Safelincs operates a website called firescout that invites visitors to submit photographs of any potentially dangerous situations they have spotted. All entries are anonymous, the idea being to educate rather than ‘name and shame’. Safelincs then offers advice as to whether the situation could incur a fine and how much, if anything, it would cost to remedy the situation.
A common misdemeanour is to prop open a fire door, sometimes with a fire extinguisher – a double transgression!

Fire doors are an essential part of the fabric of a building and have two important functions in the event of a fire; when closed they form a barrier to stop the spread of fire or smoke and when opened they provide a means of escape. They are designed to be kept closed except when people are passing through them. In some businesses, and in places such as care homes or schools, closed fire doors can act as a hindrance to general mobility and moving around to perform essential tasks. However, there is a way in which the situation can be overcome without compromising safety or breaking the law.

Safelincs provide a number of products manufactured by specialist manufacturer Fireco which allow fire doors to be kept open legally and safely. Each of these products works by responding to the sound (anything above 65 decibels) of a fire alarm; the mechanism holding the door open is released and the door closer on the fire door closes it to prevent the spread of fire and smoke spreading around the building.

Dorgard, the first innovative product from Fireco, is a wireless appliance that can be screwed to the base of a door in less than five minutes. The standalone device will then hold the door open at any angle allowing freedom of access throughout the building. Utilising acoustic technology, Dorgard ‘listens’ for a continuous alarm of 65dBA or higher which, once heard, will automatically release the door. Dorgard is available in a variety of colours and finishes which will blend in with any décor.

Fireco also produces the Dorgard Pro System which extends the versatility of Dorgard by linking several different devices and overcomes the issue of noisy workplaces. A transmitter is wirelessly installed next to a fire alarm sounder or hardwired into the fire alarm system. In the event of a fire, Dorgard Pro will wirelessly transmit simultaneously to multiple Dorgard Pro units within a 100 metre range. Safelincs will visit an organisation’s premises and undertake a free survey and make recommendations for siting an effective system.

Another product from Fireco is Freedor, a unique wire free solution that allows a door to free-swing just like a normal door and to be held open at any angle – automatically closing the door in a controlled manner when a fire alarm sounds. It utilises the same technology that is employed in Dorgard but is fixed unobtrusively to the top of the door. Using Freedor allows freedom of access throughout the building for disabled people and people less able to operate the doors, and assists businesses complying with the Equality Act 2010.

All these products have applications in a wide variety of environments and allow easy movement through a building without compromising safety or contravening fire safety regulations.

To find out more about the Fireco range go to www.safelincs.co.uk and follow the link to Fire Door and Exit Equipment or call 0800 433 4289 where there are friendly experts on hand to offer advice.

Why are Fire Door Closers Important?

Thursday 3rd May 2012

In order for fire doors to function properly, they should remain closed when the door is not in use. As obvious as this sounds, in a busy office building it can be difficult to ensure that fire doors are being closed. Therefore automatic fire door closers are installed to ensure that, after a door is opened, it naturally returns to a closed position where it can offer the maximum fire safety.

Fire door closers are a legal requirement in most settings

How do fire doors closers work?

Door closers work by using the energy built-up when opening the door, to close it. Fire door closers have different closing strengths depending on the weight of the fire door. The closing strength is otherwise known as the EN power size. Smaller and lighter fire doors do not need as much strength in the fire door closer to shut the door. Many door closer models have an adjustable power size. The configuration of the door closers will also depend on the design of the door (inward/outward closing).

How do I check my door closer is working?

This fire door maintenance checker is a useful guide for checking all parts of your fire door to make sure they are compliant and operational. An unlatched or non-operational door closer will not shut the fire door if a fire breaks out. This could have disastrous consequences.

Which fire door closer do I need?

There are a number of different types of fire door closer available including closers that are even concealed within the doors themselves. Free-swing closers enable the doors to be held safely in an open position or to swing freely on the hinges. This can help to improve accessibility, particularly for anyone with mobility difficulties or in busy areas. In the case of a fire, the fire alarm will trigger these hold-open devices and allow the door closer to close the door.

If you are not sure which fire door closer you need, compare features and prices in this overview of fire door closers. Alternatively, contact our customer support team on 0800 612 6537.

Retrofitting or Replacing Fire Door Seals

Tuesday 20th March 2012

Following a fire risk assessment, doors are sometimes re-designated as fire doors if the door and frame are substantial enough to be justifiably counted as a nominal fire door. The same applies to older fire doors which do not follow the latest specifications. In these cases, fire door seals are retrofitted, and to avoid having to cut a rebate in either the door or the frame, surface mounted fire door seals can be fitted. These are stuck to the frame or door with their self-adhesive backing and sometimes nailed as well to give them increased longevity.

Where a fire door rebate already exists, or the existing rebated fire door seal has been damaged, rebated intumescent fire door seals can be fitted.

We offer a range of fire door seals: fire only, or combined fire and smoke. Both variants contain intumescent material that swells if a fire breaks out to seal the gap around the fire door. Seals that cover smoke also contain a brush-type smoke seal to stop smoke travelling through the gap before the intumescent material expands. There are some applications where a gap should not have smoke seals: e.g. if the fire door has been installed on the exit of a room which has no smoke detectors on its own. In this case, the fire alarm system can only be triggered if smoke can leak out around the fire door and set off the fire alarm system in the circulation spaces, but these cases are quite rare.

Fire door seals are fitted on three sides of a fire door with the gap underneath the door not being covered, though there are products available to prevent smoke from escaping under doors if necessary.

If new fire door seals are fitted for the first time, make sure that fire door hinges, fire door closers and, where necessary, intumescent door lock protection are fitted as well.