Door from kitchen to garage-fire door or not?

diesel100

Need to change a door on my next house from the kitchen which leads to the garage. Currently it is a very old thick heavy door with lined with a steel sheet.


Was hoping to change this to an exterior classed door with a small window pane. As the garage is unlikely to be used for parking a car - as it used for utility room etc...does it still need to be a fire door?




(also does the internal door of the kitchen to rest of house need to be an internal fire door?)

bridgedino

I would reckon you can hang whatever you like but be sure to have a fire door stashed somewhere ready to hang should you ever wish to sell / rent the property

HappyMJ

bridgedino wrote: »

I would reckon you can hang whatever you like but be sure to have a fire door stashed somewhere ready to hang should you ever wish to sell / rent the property

I would reckon that any insurance claim would be reduced if a door put in meeting buildings reg's was removed and a fire spread causing more damage than it otherwise would have done.

Smoke damage is much cheaper to fix than fire damage.

System

I would think an exterior class door would be constructed as a fire door anyway.

phill99

!!!!!! wrote: »

I would think an exterior class door would be constructed as a fire door anyway.

This is where a humans ability to think shows that we are not the advanced species as we believe.

OP you will need a fire door. And a fire has to be specified as such, not a random external door.

You can have a window in it but the glass needs to be fire rated.

What yiu use the garage for us irrelevant. It can still be used to store a car and hence a source of flammable materials.

leveller2911

phill99 wrote: »

This is where a humans ability to think shows that we are not the advanced species as we believe.

OP you will need a fire door. And a fire has to be specified as such, not a random external door.

You can have a window in it but the glass needs to be fire rated.

What yiu use the garage for us irrelevant. It can still be used to store a car and hence a source of flammable materials.

Agree with Phil.........I would also mention the door should be a "certificated Fire door" which means you cannot adapt it in any way apart from planing down the sides,top and bottom to a specified amount. You can't buy a firecheck door ,cut a hole in it and fit Pyro glass or Georgian wired glass. IIRC you would need fire rated hinges,hinge pads, fire rated door closure,locks and handles. You will also need intumescent strips and smoke seals routered into the lining or the door.

Any insurance claim will be void in the event of a fire. If an old door and frame complied with old regs then this is ok but the minute you make any changes to the door or frame it falls within the current regulations. One last thing ,if you do change the door/frame make sure the certification sticker on the top of the door is retained on the door, if removed then the certification is void. This is a pain as many doors require the top planing to shape. In the old days fire check doors had a plastic,colour coded round bung set into door edge which showed its classification.This was a far better system than a sticker stuck on the top.

diesel100

no plans to change the frame just the door.
eh I don't understand how Building regs would still apply if the garage is clearly not used to hold a car again. so you saying insurance could be void in the event of a fire if the door is not fire rated?

I seen a few houses where doors don't appear to be fire rated, with rated hinges seals etc....

phill99

You're not getting this are you.

Your intentions are academic. It is still a garage and can still be used to store a car. Cars have petrol in them.

System

phill99 wrote: »

This is where a humans ability to think shows that we are not the advanced species as we believe.

What a strange thing to say. A veiled (or maybe not so veiled) put-down.

Wouldn't it have been better to say I was incorrect?

leveller2911

diesel100 wrote: »

no plans to change the frame just the door.
eh I don't understand how Building regs would still apply if the garage is clearly not used to hold a car again. so you saying insurance could be void in the event of a fire if the door is not fire rated?

I seen a few houses where doors don't appear to be fire rated, with rated hinges seals etc....

It depends on the date they were fitted and the regulations at the time so they may have been compliant years ago. As I said if you leave it as it is then thats ok but the moment you change the door you have to comply with current regulations. If you don't, your insurance will be void.

It makes no difference if you use it as a garage or not, if it has garage doors (up and over or side hung) its classed as a garage.It can be your gym but if it has garage doors then its classed a garage.In a couple of years time you may use it to store a car or sell it to someone who wants to use it as a garage.

Just a note but it is a simple job to replace the frame as well so it should cost a huge amount to replace both.

phill99

!!!!!! wrote: »

What a strange thing to say. A veiled (or maybe not so veiled) put-down.

Wouldn't it have been better to say I was incorrect?

I much prefer sarcasm.