Fire Regulation Considerations

Three-story Houses

Provided every room opens onto a hallway or corridor, a two storey house is not going to have any problems meeting fire safety regulations. But there is a critical safety level, defined as having a floor 4.5m above ground level, when it becomes necessary to beef up your escape procedures. One of the principal requirements relates to how your main staircase runs through the house. Ideally the staircase should lead directly to the front entrance door within an enclosed hallway: what is frowned upon are open-plan arrangements, particularly when the staircase exits via the kitchen (reckoned to be the highest risk area).

You also need to consider how to protect the stairwell from encroaching fire. There are two options. The first is to make the entire stairwell what is called a fully protected enclosure; this means that the walls around the landing and stairwell must be rated at 30 minutes fire resistance and the doors opening onto the landing must be rated at 20 minutes. The second option doesn't insist on fire doors but instead requires that you design at least one window in the top floor as an escape window allowing the fire brigade to get a ladder safely under it. You also need to consider the floor construction which also needs to meet the 30 minute fire rating.

If you are undertaking a new build or a major renovation, it's not difficult to meet these standards; in fact in terms of walls and floors it's quite difficult not to meet them. The only place where you are likely to come unstuck is on the doors. Not only do you need a thicker door - most fire doors are 44mm thick, the same as external doors, but you will also be required to fit them with door-closers. The least obtrusive solution here is the Perko door-closer which is fitted into the hinge side of each door and connects to a plate fixed to the door frame. They are cheap to buy (around £7 each) and a pain to fit and adjust - at least I find them painful - but they do the job. Fire doors are also much more expensive than regular doors: Premdor Crosby are a good source for fire check doors. If you are converting an existing house, there are fireproof (or intumescent) paints that you can apply to doors to upgrade them; check out Environmental Seals.