The Importance Of Fire Door Retainers

There are a number of different elements at work in a fire door. Each of these work together to create an intuitive, sophisticated and dependable emergency door, which will protect the  building’s occupants if a fire arises. 

A fire door retainer is a great example of a fire door safety feature. This mechanism holds the fire door open throughout the normal working day. 

We often see that people use fire doors to get through the building, or prop them open to allow fresh air to flow through the building. However, it is illegal to wedge fire doors open (as they are prevented from closing in the event of a fire). 

So, fire door retainers allow users to keep these heavy doors open in a safe and legal way. This is because, in the event of a fire, the fire door retainers will allow the automatic door closer to take over and shut the fire door, to help contain the fire and prevent it from spreading. 

It is important to stress that keeping fire doors wedged open is not only illegal, but it is very dangerous. Doing this would compromise the operability of the door closer, and so the fire could rage through the building at a far quicker pace, while smoke and toxic gases rapidly circulate around the premises. As you can imagine, this would seriously endanger all of the people who are working there. 

Fire door retainers are a legally compliant way to keep these doors usable during your day-to-day routine.  

Then, if an emergency occurs, these retainers will automatically switch off, allowing your fire door to close and create a strong, sealed barrier against both the fire, heat and any harmful gases.

If you would like to find out more about fire door retainers, or how to ensure your premises are completely compliant with the latest fire safety regulations, don’t hesitate to get in touch.