Fire Damper Compliance

All fire safely systems must be in good working order.

Fire dampers are crucial fire protection assets designed to save lives, and a faulty ill-maintained fire damper will not prevent the spread of fire.

Under the Regulatory Reform (fire safety) Order 2005 a responsibility is placed on the building owner and/or employer to professionally maintain their fire safety systems.

At Essential our team of operatives are trained to carry out fire and smoke damper testing to comply with BS 9999:2017 Code of Practice for Fire Safety in the Design, Management & Use of Buildings. BS 9999:2017 are the standards used as guidance to ensure compliance with the Regulatory Reform (Fire Safety) Order 2005.

What is a fire damper?

Fire dampers are fire protection assets, designed to prevent the passage of fire through a compartment wall or floor. Fire dampers form part of a building ventilation system and are installed where air handling ducts pass through fire-separating elements such as compartment walls or enclosures protecting escape routes.

Typically, a fire damper is a metal curtain within a duct held up by a thermal element (referred to as a fusible link) and released in the event of a rise in temperature. The thermal element will melt at a set temperature releasing a spring-operated metal curtain, which is pulled down to fill the opening the duct passes through, preventing the passage of fire.

Smoke dampers are automatically operated once triggered by smoke detectors. The smoke damper will open or close to prevent or allow the passage of smoke.

Fire and smoke dampers are key to the control and containment of fire in the event of an emergency. By providing a barrier which fire and smoke cannot pass, these assets play a critical lifesaving role in the fire safety within any building.

Why do fire dampers need to be tested?

Routine inspection, testing and maintenance is required in accordance with BS 9999 Annex W.1. It is critical to confirm that a fire and smoke dampers still open or close effectively when required to do so.

Fire and smoke dampers are passive fire protection assets subjected to constant air flow through the building ventilation systems.

What are the legal requirements for damper maintenance?

The Regulatory Reform (fire safety) Order 2005 is statutory legislation which states that all fire safety systems are maintained in good working order.

The fire safety systems that must be kept in order include all active and passive fire protection systems. Included in the list of items in the passive fire protection systems are the maintenance of fire and smoke dampers.

The Regulatory Reform (fire safety) Order 2005 is the statutory legislation which makes the maintenance of fire safety systems a legal requirement.

BS 9999:2017 Code of Practice for Fire Safety in the Design, Management & Use of Buildings is the non-statutory standards used as guidance to ensure compliance with the Regulatory Reform (Fire Safety) Order 2005.

List of relevant laws and standards apply to the installation and maintenance of fire dampers:

Who is responsible?

The Regulatory Reform (fire safety) Order 2005 came into effect in October 2006 and had a major impact on responsibility for fire safety, shifting the responsibility for a facility’s fire safety system to the organization’s “responsible person”. Typically, that responsible person is the employer, or the owner of the facility.

If you are a building manager or owner, you have a duty of care to staff, employees and visitors to provide a safe environment.

How often should dampers be tested?

In most cases routine inspection, testing and maintenance is required every 12 months. However, in certain environments more frequent testing is required.

BS 9999:2017 states that:

Arrangements should be made for all fire dampers to be tested by a competent person on completion of the installation and at least annually, and to be repaired or replaced immediately if found to be faulty. Spring-operated fire dampers should be tested annually, and fire dampers situated in dust-laden and similar atmospheres should be tested much more frequently, at periods suited to the degree of pollution”.

How should a fire damper operate?

Fire dampers form part of a building ventilation system and are installed where air handling ducts pass through a fire compartment.

When released a fire damper should close fully, closing the opening within the compartment to prevent to passage of fire.

Typically, a fire damper is a metal curtain within a duct held up by a thermal element (referred to as a fusible link) and released in the event of a rise in temperature. The thermal element will melt at a set temperature releasing a spring-operated metal curtain, which is pulled down to fill the opening the duct passes through, preventing the passage of fire.

Fire and smoke dampers can also be integrated with the building’s fire safety systems, and automatically operated when the fire suppression system is activated.

Once all visual checks are complete, a drop test will be carried out as follows:

As there is currently no standard procedure for the maintenance of fire and smoke dampers in the UK. For guidance and process we refer to the manufacturer service and operating manual and TB/001 Building Engineering Services Association (BESA) – Technical Bulletin provides a summary of standards for fire and smoke damper testing.

What are the common problems found with fire dampers?

There are many problems that can impact the performance of a fire damper, and there are an alarming number of these issues found day-by-day.

Commons problems found include:

What should be included in a fire damper testing report?

The purpose of a testing report is to provide appropriate evidence that the fire precautions and safety systems are being maintained as required under the Regulatory Reform (fire safety) Order 2005. Should an enforcement authority request you provide records and evidence of your fire and smoke damper maintenance, the servicing report will the document you can provide. Essential provides one of the most comprehensive reports available on the market.

All testing reports will include: