Fire doors
Fire doors
Doors, especially front doors, are important for the fire safety of your building. Fire doors create a barrier that slows the spread of heat and smoke, giving you and your neighbours more time to escape in an emergency. They must be kept in good working condition to keep you and everyone in your building safe.
Watch our video: how fire doors keep you safe.
How to identify fire doors
Fire doors are usually found in communal areas such as corridors, stairwells, and hallways. They can also be the front door to your home.
Most fire doors are made of wood or metal, close automatically and are designed to stop flames and smoke for at least half an hour.
Fire doors use an automatic closure mechanism at the top of the frame to ensure they close properly. You must keep fire doors closed. If they're blocked, left open, or damaged, they won’t protect you or your neighbours in the event of a fire.
How you can help
Every part of a fire door and its frame is there for a specific reason to keep people safe. You can help by:
- never fitting security doors or grilles as this could stop you or your neighbours getting out if there's a fire
- never removing the self-closer at the top of the frame
- not replacing or changing your front door in your council home in any way
- never propping open fire doors with furniture or other items
- checking your door for any damage to the hinges, latches or closing mechanism
- making sure there are no gaps around the door seals
- letting our staff and contractors in to inspect fire doors if you live in a council property
If you notice any damage to a fire door, it does not close properly, or there are gaps around the door, you must contact housing repairs by calling 020 7974 4444. We'll send a staff member to check the door and repair it if needed.
If you want to change the locks on a fire door, contact the Fire Advisor team by email fireadvisers@camden.gov.uk or by calling 020 7974 1964. They can advise on how to do this without affecting the doors' fire resistance.
We also advise you not to fit a lock on your door that needs a key to open it from the inside. You may not be able to find it in an emergency.
Newly installed fire doors in council properties
Fire doors are now required for all residential buildings over 11 metres, or 5 floors in height. We’ve been installing certified “FD30s” fire doors in properties where they’re required. To keep them certified for fire safety, you must not:
- cut or drill into the door or doorframe
- paint either side of the door or doorframe
- remove the door from the frame or rehang it
- install cat flaps, door handles, door knockers or hard-wired doorbells - wireless stick-on doorbells are okay as they do not damage doors
If you do any of these things, your front door may not stop fire from spreading around the building.
Translations
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Fire door inspections
Find out more about quarterly inspections of fire doors in council homes.
If you have a fire safety concern
If you have any concerns about fire safety in your council home or building, contact our Fire Safety Advisers. You can reach them by email at fireadvisers@camden.gov.uk or by calling 020 7974 1964. We’ll respond to you as quickly as possible.