Key Differences Between Fire-Rated Doors and Traditional Doors

Peter Lawson, Vice President of Door Services Corporation, has gained substantial experience in the field of door installation and fire safety over the last decade."If there is one lesson I’ve learned, it’s that the doors in your building can have a profound impact on its safety. While they might seem like simple, functional elements, there is a significant difference between fire-rated doors and traditional doors that every facility manager should understand."
Below, Peter goes through the key differences and explains why fire-rated doors are essential for ensuring safety and compliance in every facility.

What Is a Fire-Rated Door?

To put it simply, a fire-rated door is designed to contain the spread of fire and smoke for a specific period—typically 30, 60, or 90 minutes.  This gives occupants valuable time to evacuate safely.

While these doors may appear no different from traditional doors, the difference lies in their internal structure. Unlike a standard door, a fire-rated door is constructed with fire-resistant materials that can endure intense heat and flames.

It’s all about the materials you don’t see. The core of the door, filled with fire-resistant materials, is where its strength lies. This core ensures that the door can hold up under extreme conditions, providing critical protection during an emergency.

Key Features of Fire-Rated Doors

One of the primary differences between fire-rated doors and traditional doors is how they handle smoke.  In a fire, smoke often causes more fatalities than the flames themselves. Smoke behaves like water, finding the smallest cracks to seep through. Fire-rated doors are equipped with seals that prevent smoke from passing through the gaps around the door, minimizing the spread of toxic fumes. These seals are just as important as the fire-resistant materials in the door’s core.

To ensure these doors are up to the task, they undergo rigorous testing. In fact, fire-rated doors are subjected to live flames on one side, testing their ability to withstand heat and flames for the specified time period. The rating —whether 30 minutes, 60 minutes, or more—represents the time the door can hold back fire, allowing occupants time to escape. 

Performance in a Fire

This brings us to the critical question: What happens when a fire-rated door is exposed to a real fire? For example, a 60-minute fire-rated door is expected to hold up for at least 60 minutes under fire conditions. It is important to note that this doesn’t mean the door will immediately fail the moment it reaches the 60-minute mark. Instead, it ensures that the door will last at least that long, providing a vital window of opportunity for safe evacuation.

On the other hand, traditional doors are simply not built for this kind of performance. I’ve seen standard doors give way in just a few minutes under the heat of a fire. Without the fire-resistant materials and seals found in fire-rated doors, a traditional door can quickly become a liability, allowing fire and smoke to spread much faster.

Legal and Insurance Considerations

Facility Managers are undoubtedly aware of the importance of compliance with fire safety regulations. Building codes require the installation of fire-rated doors in specific areas, such as stairwells, hallways, and exit routes. These regulations are in place to protect the building’s occupants, and failure to comply can lead to fines for non-compliance as well as potential exposure in the event the non-compliance leads to a catastrophic incident in the event of a fire.

Long-Term Costs vs. Safety Benefits

It is true that fire-rated doors tend to be more expensive than traditional doors. This is largely due to the high-quality, fire-resistant materials used in their construction, as well as the need for regular inspections to ensure compliance. 

When you consider the potential costs of a fire in terms of lives, property, and legal liabilities, the price of fire-rated doors is a small investment in long-term safety and peace of mind. 

Choosing the Right Door for Your Facility

Fire-rated doors are essential for ensuring the safety of your building’s occupants, complying with legal requirements, and protecting yourself from potential liabilities. It is the responsibility of a facilities manager and/or business owner to ensure that their building is equipped with the right doors in the right places. Fire-rated doors may come with a higher price tag, but their ability to contain fire and smoke is invaluable.

In my years of experience, I’ve seen how fire-rated doors can save lives and protect property. If you have any questions or need guidance on the installation and maintenance of fire-rated doors, our team of certified technicians and inspectors will be happy to assist. After all, safety is something that cannot be compromised.