3 Interesting Facts About Fire Doors

1. All fire doors are fitted with a ‘keep shut’ sign for a reason. After all, it is illegal to prop open a fire door at any time. In fact, you can actually be subjected to criminal prosecution if severe fire damage or loss of life could have been directly prevented by a fire door that should have been closed but was open for some reason or another.

2. Fire doors are designed into order to withstand incredibly intense temperatures for up to 230 minutes. This provides vital time for people who may be trapped inside a building to evacuate to safety. In fact, aluminium, which has a melting point of 660°C and steel, which has a critical point of 530°C, are two major components that are used within the design of a fire door.

3. Fire safety laws were not always so strict, especially during the Elizabethan period. Interestingly, it was the Great Fire of London in 1666 that caused the first fire safety building regulations to be imposed. As a result, brick and stone houses were required to include fire-resistant wall separations in order to reduce the risk of a fire spreading.