Fire Doors for Commercial Premises
Fire doors are the most common element of passive fire protection in any commercial building, and the one most likely to be found in a deficient condition. Industry data from the Fire Door Inspection Scheme consistently shows that the majority of fire doors inspected across UK commercial and residential buildings fail to meet the required safety standards. The defects are rarely dramatic - a missing intumescent strip, a closer that does not pull the door fully shut, a gap that has widened to 4mm, a seal that has been painted over. But each one reduces the door's ability to resist fire and smoke, and in a real fire, the cumulative effect of multiple small defects across multiple doors can be the difference between a contained incident and a catastrophic one.
The regulatory focus on fire doors has intensified significantly since the Grenfell Tower Inquiry. The Fire Safety (England) Regulations 2022 introduced mandatory inspection frequencies. The Building Safety Act 2022 created the golden thread of building safety information and clear accountability for duty holders. And as of 31 March 2026, BS 8214:2026 has replaced the 2016 edition as the benchmark standard for fire door selection, installation, inspection and maintenance - expanding its scope to cover timber, steel, glazed metal and composite fire doors as complete coordinated systems.
Electrifire arranges fire door inspection, maintenance and replacement for commercial premises across London, Kent and the M25 corridor through specialist passive fire partners within the New Path Fire and Security Group. Whether you need a full building survey, a rolling inspection programme, or targeted remedial works to address fire risk assessment findings, we manage the process as part of your wider fire safety contract.
-
Fire door condition surveys and rolling inspection programmes
-
FD30 and FD60 fire door supply and installation
-
Remedial works - intumescent strips, smoke seals, closers, hinges, signage
-
Hold-open device installation interfaced with fire alarm systems
-
BS 8214:2026 compliant inspection and reporting
-
Building Safety Act 2022 and FSER 2022 compliance support
-
Multi-site programmes for FM and property management portfolios
Discuss fire door inspection or remediation >>
Fire Door Inspection and Condition Surveys
A fire door inspection checks the physical condition and functional performance of every component that contributes to the door's fire resistance. This includes the door leaf, frame, intumescent strips, cold smoke seals, glazing and glazing beads, hinges (minimum three on an FD30 door), self-closing device, signage, and the gaps between the door and frame. BS 8214:2026 requires that gaps do not exceed 3mm on the top and sides when the door is closed, with a maximum of 8mm at the threshold.
A comprehensive fire door condition survey documents the condition of every fire door in the building, typically with each door individually tagged and photographed. The output is a prioritised schedule of remedial works, identifying which doors require immediate attention, which need repairs within a defined timescale, and which are compliant. This document is essential for demonstrating due diligence to fire risk assessors, enforcement authorities and insurers.
BS 8214:2026 was published on 31 March 2026, replacing the 2016 edition. The key changes are significant for anyone responsible for fire door compliance in commercial buildings. The standard now explicitly covers fire doors as complete coordinated systems - not just timber door assemblies but also steel, glazed metal and composite fire doors. It introduces clear accountability for every party in the fire door supply chain, reflecting the Building Safety Act 2022's emphasis on the golden thread of building safety information. It also moves away from prescriptive construction rules toward an evidence-based approach, requiring that appropriate supporting documentation exists for any fire door construction.
If your maintenance programme or inspection procedures still reference BS 8214:2016, they should be reviewed. Any new fire door specification or replacement should reference the 2026 edition.
BS 8214:2026 recommends professional fire door inspections at least every six months. The Fire Safety (England) Regulations 2022 mandate quarterly checks for fire doors in common parts of residential buildings over 11 metres, and annual checks for flat entrance doors. For commercial premises, best practice is quarterly inspection of high-traffic doors and six-monthly inspection of all other fire doors. Weekly visual checks by site staff should supplement professional inspections.
For FM and property management companies, Electrifire can establish a rolling inspection programme across your portfolio, with each door tagged and its condition recorded digitally. This provides the documented evidence of controlled corrective action that auditors and enforcement authorities expect to see.
For FM and property management companies managing fire door compliance across multiple buildings, a portfolio-wide survey programme provides a consistent approach and centralised reporting. We coordinate surveys across your sites, provide consolidated defect reports, and prioritise remedial works by risk level. Your account manager coordinates everything as part of your wider planned maintenance contract. See our planned maintenance page.
Fire Door Remedial Works and Replacement
Where a fire door inspection identifies defects, remedial works must be carried out by a competent contractor as soon as reasonably practicable. The most common defects found during inspection are straightforward to remedy if addressed promptly, but become more serious and more expensive the longer they are left.
- Gaps exceeding 3mm between door leaf and frame (top and sides)
- Missing, damaged or painted-over intumescent strips
- Missing or deteriorated cold smoke seals
- Defective self-closing devices that do not pull the door fully into the frame
- Insufficient or incorrect hinges (minimum three CE-marked hinges for FD30)
- Damage to the door leaf - splits, holes, impact damage, delamination
- Damage to the door frame - distortion, shrinkage, gaps between frame and wall
- Missing or incorrect fire door signage
- Glazing that does not match the door's fire rating or has damaged beads
- Doors propped open without compliant hold-open devices
Electrifire arranges remedial works through our specialist passive fire partners in the New Path Group who can repair or replace intumescent strips, smoke seals, closers, hinges and signage on existing doors. Where a door is beyond economical repair - typically where the door leaf is structurally damaged, warped, or has been extensively modified - replacement with a correctly rated doorset is the appropriate action.
FD30 doors provide 30 minutes of fire resistance. They are the most commonly specified rating for commercial premises and are typically used on escape routes, corridor separations and room doors.
FD60 doors provide 60 minutes of fire resistance. They are specified for higher-risk separations, stairwell enclosures in taller buildings, and locations where the fire strategy requires a longer period of compartmentation.
The required rating is specified by the fire risk assessment and the building's fire strategy. Replacement doors must match or exceed the original specified rating and must be installed with the correct combination of ironmongery, intumescent products and seals to maintain the fire performance of the complete doorset. See our fire risk assessments page.
Fire Door Hold-Open Devices and Fire Alarm Integration
Fire doors on escape routes and in high-traffic areas are frequently propped open - with wedges, fire extinguishers, chairs, or anything else to hand. This is one of the most common and most dangerous fire safety violations in commercial buildings. A fire door that is propped open provides zero fire resistance. It is not a fire door at all.
The compliant solution is an electromagnetic hold-open device. The device holds the door open during normal operation using an electromagnet powered by the fire alarm system. When the fire alarm activates, the power to the magnet is cut and the door self-closes under the force of its closer. This means the door can remain open for day-to-day convenience but will close automatically in a fire without any human intervention.
For buildings with Honeywell Gent Vigilon fire alarm systems, door hold-open device release is managed through the Vigilon cause-and-effect programming. The correct doors release for the correct alarm zones, with full event logging. This means if a fire is detected on the second floor, the fire doors on that floor and the adjacent floors close automatically, while doors in unaffected areas can remain open. The release event is recorded in the fire alarm log and is available through the CLSS cloud reporting platform. See our fire alarms page.
Because Electrifire manages both the fire alarm system and the fire door hold-open devices, the interface between the two is tested during every fire alarm maintenance visit. The cause-and-effect logic is verified, the electromagnets are tested, and the door closure is confirmed. This eliminates the gap that occurs when different contractors are responsible for different elements of the fire safety scope.
For premises managed in accordance with SFG20 building maintenance standards, fire door hold-open device testing aligns with the fire alarm maintenance tasks specified in that framework.
Frequently Asked Questions
Related Reading
Planned Maintenance
Planned Maintenance for Fire and Security Systems Every fire and security system in a building needs regular,…
Fire Risk Assessments
Fire Risk Assessments for Commercial Premises A fire risk assessment is the document that everything else depends…
FM Companies
Fire and Security Maintenance for FM Companies Since 2009, Electrifire has supported facilities management companies across London…