Fire exits are not given much attention during our day-to-day activities, and we often do not realize how critical they are for our safety in any building. They require the right hardware installation that will eventually lead to your emergency exit door being a solid barrier between your safety and unfathomable fire and smoke. Here are a few hardware elements that you can look for when choosing fire doors for your property.
Official Certifications for Fire Prevention
This is the most important part of your selection process as you need to go for an emergency exit door that can be relied on. Proper fire safety certifications come in extremely handy in terms of providing a good product. Each location needs unique doors escape to cater to different levels of fire hazard.
For example, a fire door installed in a residential building would not be capable of withstanding the potential damage that could be caused by a professional kitchen or a fuel reservoir. Each location has different requirements and certifications are an easy way of selecting the right product.
Door Closing Devices
One key property of the doors escape in any installation is that it closes by itself. This is necessary to prevent the fire from spreading to safe areas in case of an emergency. In fact, this hardware is so critical that many places require certifications for the door closer that you are using on your exit door. There is a wide range of options to choose from and you can also opt for different designs depending on your installation style.
One thing that all these door closers need to comply with, though, is fire safety ratings. They need to have a high threshold of resistance against fire and should survive for at least an hour of being in a fire area. There is usually a magnetic lock that comes with these devices to hold them open if needed. Some devices are also smart and can automatically release the door even if it is locked in place when the fire alarm starts to go off.
Door Sealing
A key part of the emergency exit door hardware is the sealing properties of the door which is important to prevent fire and smoke from escaping into other areas. Typically, an exit door would have intumescent strips around it that expand at high temperatures to seal the door gaps completely. These need to be regularly checked for quality as well. The gaps around the door frame should also be minimal. Furthermore, the hinges must be strong enough to hold the weight of doors escape for a long time.
Summing Up
Fire exit doors are certainly a key part of fire safety in any building. The hardware defined above plays a critical role in making them functional and effective. Whether you are choosing new doors or maintaining old ones, these properties can make it easier to ensure that you are using the right equipment.
