Fire hatch: design, GOST, dimensions, installation

The fire hatch is a highly reliable metal structure made of high-quality steel. Fire-resistant metal products are used to closely fit the overlapping of exits to the attic or basement, electrical board and utilities, ventilation chambers and elevator shafts.

The fire hatch, which has high protection against the spread of smoke, is necessary in public places such as:

• Hospitals, polyclinics and other medical institutions.
• Administrative buildings.
• Office buildings and shopping centers.
• Motels and hotels.
• Cinemas.
• Preschool and school institutions.

How to properly mount the structure, and who has access to it

Installation of fire protection hatches is made exclusively by organizations or IPs, having a corresponding license issued by the Ministry of Emergency Situations. By type of assembly assembly products are wall, ceiling and floor. Because of the lack of a constant load on the wall hatches, the thickness of the door leaf and the box they have less.

Ceiling hatches are equipped with ladders: vertical or inclined. With regard to floor types of structures leading to the basement and subject to considerable stress, these products are manufactured with reinforced box and steel sheet with a thickness of up to 2 mm. Walking on the floor hatches is perfectly safe, because of their strength they are very reliable. Mount products according to the project documentation, indicating the type, fire resistance limit and interaction with other fire fighting equipment.

Design and manufacture of PPL

Fire resistant hatches made of bent metal profile and cold-rolled steel plates are manufactured. The very design of the fire hatch has two main components - a box and a door that is hung and fixed to the frame by means of adjustable loops. In this case, the web can be made of one or two steel plates.

In the frame there is a cavity, which is filled with heat-insulating material. It is also located between the sheets of the canvas, where the very content and order of laying its layers play an important role, because this ensures the necessary degree of fire resistance.

On the perimeter of the hatch frame is equipped with a thermal sealing tape, which is designed to enhance protection against smoke penetration. When exposed to high temperatures, it swells and expands, making it even more reliable to prevent the spread of hot smoke. Today, on an individual order, manufacturers can produce a fire hatch:

• With or without ventilation grilles ;
• With one or two valves;
• Lockable or just a latch.

Different sizes of fire hatches

Actually, inherently steel fire resistant hatches are the same as metal doors, but with a smaller area. Their sizes vary, starting from 500 × 700 mm and reaching up to 900 × 1100 mm, which, in fact, depends on the size
Building aperture. The fire hatch is installed in all cases where it is not possible to mount the door, as well as in the presence of a basement and an attic.

In buildings of classes such as F1, F2, F3 and F4, it is permitted to mount a second type fire protection device for exits to the roof or an attic from staircases. This means that the size of the fire hatch in the attic must match the parameters of 0.6 x 0.8 m, while it must be equipped with folding metal stepladder. Installation is mandatory for buildings with increased requirements for fire safety regulations or with any threat of fire.

By law, these types of structures are mandatory for installations in massively visited premises. A standard fire hatch is made of two profiles with an open cross-section, with the thickness of the steel sheet must be strictly 2 mm. At purchase this indicator should be checked by means of the marking confirming conformity of the got product to the current criteria.

Fire protection hatches, GOST and criteria

It is worth noting that there is no separate regulation relating specifically to fire hatches. The GOST refers to the methods for conducting the necessary tests of metal products for fire resistance according to existing regulations and standards.

As provided by the technical specifications, the highest threshold of fire resistance of the hatch is 60 minutes. As for the ones applied for the opening of the effort, about 30 kgs can be considered as the norm. Installation of both ceiling and floor hatches is allowed only by loops outwards, since the structure should open exactly upwards. Minimum fire resistance of the product is 6 minutes.

In what cases does the fire fighting equipment

Most organizations and enterprises, according to the requirements of the law, store huge volumes of paper documentation in the archives of their institutions. As a rule, these are buildings of the old type, in which the wiring has not changed for years. Due to this, the increased load on the power grid threatens short circuits, through the fault of which spontaneous combustion can occur. Due to this, important documentation and other expensive material values can be irretrievably lost.

Change wiring in a premise taken for rent is not rational, and this repair can pour into a huge penny. But by equipping such buildings with fire doors they can still be provided with safety.

Maintenance of structures

Maintenance of installed hatches includes preventive inspections and inspections, which are supposed to be carried out at least quarterly and unplanned after any accident. The following types of work are considered to be obligatory:

• Checking the technical condition of the door closer.
• External inspection of the hatch and checking the condition of its moving parts.
• Elimination of identified malfunctions.

Other inspection of the condition of moving parts of the whole structure consists in external inspection, cleaning from dust and dirt, lubrication. It is very important to timely remove various jamming mechanisms that may occur during the opening. Fireproof hatches are installed only inside the premises, where at a temperature of -1 to +40 ° C and normal humidity, the period of their operation will be quite long.

Safety in the Service of Man

A fire is a destructive and terrible phenomenon. And to insure against it for 100% is almost impossible. But it is quite possible to significantly reduce the risk of ignition and significantly reduce the likelihood of fire. And this will help the correct and high-quality installation of the fire hatch. A competent assembly of a structure can save not only property, but also human lives.