The Most Common Flaws in Swinging Fire Door Assemblies

We have discussed before how the fire doors of a building are critical to the safety and security of any building. Because of this fact, an annual inspection of those fire doors and the accompanying hardware are equally critical to your building’s policies and procedures.

A fire door inspector typically pays a visit under a couple different circumstances – either by request of a building owner as a matter of policy, or after the State Fire Marshal issues an order for the building owner to call one. Either way, there are some deficiencies that are all too common when an inspector is checking out your fire doors.

1)      The label is painted or missing. The Fire Door’s label shows the purpose of the door (essentially, that it is a certified Fire Door), and bears the Warnock Hersey seal, along with the door’s rating (anywhere from 20 minutes to three hours). This label is almost always on the hinge edge of the door, just below the top hinge, although some assemblies have the label along the top edge. Making sure that label is there is extremely important. If you have to look twice because that label happens to be painted over, that is just as bad as not having a label at all; both are violations.

2)      Lack of clearance when the door is closed. A facility’s Fire Door must have clearance, whether it is opening into a room or hallway, the door’s function cannot be obstructed by furniture, equipment, or any kinds of items or clutter.


3)      Blockage that keeps a fire door open. Just as above, any sort of equipment or obstacle used to hold a fire door open is a code violation. Even something as simple as a kick-down door holder on a Fire Door goes against code.

4)      Broken, defective or missing hardware items. A Fire Door’s function in the event of a fire is extremely important. The door itself must withstand intense pressure from fire and heat, and the hardware involved has to serve its purpose as well. If there are bolts or plates that are missing or damaged, that is a violation that has to be addressed.

5)      Fire exit hardware on doors that are not labeled for use with that hardware. A fire door is not a fire door unless it is labeled as such. Because of the function that door is expected to perform, there is no room for compromise when it comes to the material and components of the door itself. Fire exit hardware does not make any door a Fire Door.

For more information on Fire Door Inspections and labeling, or to schedule an appointment with a Warnock Hersey Certified Door Inspector, call DCI at (614) 634-1976.

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