As the person responsible for an industrial, commercial or multi-residential building, it’s crucial that your building meets all health and safety requirements. Fire safety is one incredibly important aspect of this.
One huge element of fire safety is ensuring that the correct fire doors and fire exit doors are installed.
But what’s the difference between fire doors and fire exit doors? Aren’t they the same thing?
While both fire doors and fire exit doors are there to protect human life in the event of a fire, they serve surprisingly different purposes – and are entirely different in the way that they are constructed and installed.
Read on to find out more…
What Is A Fire Door?
Fire doors, like the ones produced here at Vigor Doors, are fire-resistant doors designed to prevent the spread of fire and smoke from one room to another, giving anyone inside a building the chance to evacuate safely.
Fire doors are rated according to the amount of time they can resist the effects of a fire. The most common type of fire door is an FD30 fire door, which can resist deadly smoke and fire for at least 30 minutes.
This rating is given after the completion of a testing process which sees the door exposed to a fire, with those overseeing the test monitoring how long it takes for the door to succumb to fire and smoke.
It’s incredibly important that any industrial, commercial or multi-residential building has FD30 fire doors installed, as the 30 minutes of protection could be the difference between life and death.
What Is A Fire Exit Door?
Fire exit doors are easily recognisable, as they tend to look very different from the other doors inside a building. Fire exit doors are installed in easily accessible parts of a building to provide an easy point of evacuation.
They are most commonly located at the rear of a building, where there may be more room for those vacating to move away from immediate danger.
You’d think that this position at the back of a building could make fire exit doors an attractive prospect to intruders, but they can actually only be opened from the inside, usually by means of a single horizontal push-bar.
Push-bars are the most common way to open these doors as they are the simplest and quickest way to get the door open when attempting to leave the building swiftly.
What’s The Difference Between A Fire Exit Door And An FD30 Fire Door?
While both fire exit doors and fire doors are designed to protect life in the event of a fire, there are several differences between the two.
Firstly, their purpose.
A fire exit door is designed to provide a means to exit a building quickly.
Meanwhile, FD30 fire doors are generally internal doors, designed to act as a barrier between different areas of the building. Their purpose is to contain fire and smoke, slow the spread of the fire and give those inside the building plenty of time to evacuate the premises.
Secondly, the two different types of doors vary in the way they are manufactured.
FD30 Fire doors must be built to be incredibly strong and durable in order to resist fire and smoke – and, for this reason, they are generally constructed using a combination of solid timber, fire-proof glass and tough metal.
Meanwhile, fire exit doors must be easy to open and, while still strong, are generally made with lighter materials. This is so that they can be easily pushed open by those trying to quickly exit a building, and so that the doors will not slam shut behind them.
Differences aside, however, one thing that the two certainly have in common is that they are crucial additions to all commercial, industrial and multi-occupancy buildings – and can save lives.
So, if you are yet to have fire exit doors and FD30 fire doors installed, it’s incredibly important that you do so straightaway.
Get In Touch
Vigor Doors are high-quality fire door manufacturers – we believe our FD30 fire doors are a class above anything else on the market.
We’re totally committed to delivering FD30s and other products and projects on time, to the highest standards and on budget.
That’s why our focus is front-heavy – we always make sure we get a total understanding at the start of the project, so that we’re all on the same page.
Once we receive a customer’s FD30 requirements and specifications, we make sure we fully map out the potential order and understand every aspect, so that we can provide a fair and accurate quote for the work.
Above all, we’re incredibly passionate about keeping people as safe as possible in the event of a fire, which is why you’ll get the best product, installation and service you could ask for.
Get your FD30 fire doors right the first time. Speak to a member of our Vigor Doors team on 01642 265 034, or alternatively drop us a line at info@vigordoors.com – we’ll be more than happy to help.
