Fire doors: keeping you safe
Fire doors stop fire and smoke spreading for at least 30 minutes. Any apartment that opens onto a communal area must have a fire-rated front door. This means if a fire breaks in your apartment, the entrance door will stop fire and smoke from spreading into your communal areas, letting you safely leave the building if required.
To make sure they stop any smoke or fire spreading, they need to be closed. They’ll be fixed with self-closing devices so it’s important you don’t wedge it open.
Fire doors won’t work unless properly installed and kept in good condition and working order.
Our responsibilities
Sage Homes will:
- Make sure all fire doors and frames are installed correctly (according to legal requirements) by good installers and using the manufacturer’s instructions
- Inspect fire doors fitted, as part of our regular fire risk assessment process
- Carry out individual fire door checks at least annually. The frequency will depend upon whether you live in an apartment block and the number of stories there are
- Inspect all communal fire doors during estate inspections as well as scheduled maintenance and reactive checks
- Keep records of all fire doors fitted and make any necessary repairs to ensure they remain compliant.
Your responsibilities
We’ll need you to keep an eye on your front door to make sure it continues protecting you properly. If you spot any of the below issues, please get in touch with us immediately:
- Damage to the door or frame
- Damage to the self-closing device (the door should shut completely without you needing to push it)
- Broken or cracked glass (if there is glass)
- Damaged or missing letter plate
- Loose hinges, missing or damaged screws (there should be at least three hinges)
- Loose or faulty handles
- Damaged, covered or missing seals around the door (these stop smoke spreading)
- A gap around the edges bigger than 4mm (a £1 coin is 3mm thick)
- A gap at the bottom bigger than 8mm.
Shared Ownership customers
You’re responsible for repairing or replacing your fire door as needed. Please use a good installer to do this and check their technical competence.
If there’s any issues with your communal fire doors, please let us know by contacting the Customer Care Team on 020 8168 0500.