MAINTENANCE, REFURBISHMENT & REGENERATION Don’t drop the fire ball on testing
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Six years after the testing of fire dampers at least every 12 months became compulsory, far too many building managers still have no accurate lists of where fire dampers are installed, let alone a robust testing process. Gary Nicholls, managing director of Swiftclean, explains what the requirement is and how short of compliance the industry is still falling
espite testing at least every 12 months being mandatory in compliance with BS:9999, it is estimated by those who provide testing, that more than half of the UK’s fire
dampers have never been tested, let alone regularly tested and maintained. Prior to 2017, the frequency of testing depended on the type and construction of the fire damper, the testing of which was frequently overlooked. However, BS:9999 now applies to all fire dampers and is a major compliance issue. Fire dampers comprise a set of steel louvres, installed in ventilation systems at the point at which ductwork passes through an internal fire-resistant wall. Without ductwork, there is a compartment, which helps to delay the spread of fire. The ductwork creates an opening in the fire wall through which smoke and flames can travel, so it is necessary to be able to automatically close the louvre blades should a fire occur, restoring the fire-resistant barrier. If the fire dampers close effectively, they reinstate the fire-resistant compartment, helping to delay the spread of fire and smoke. If the louvres don’t close, the fire-resistant wall is effectively breached, allowing fire to spread. It’s as simple as that. The testing process is known as drop testing, as it ensures that the steel louvres will drop effectively into place. A worryingly large number of building managers are still either unaware that their property has fire dampers, or have inherited an incomplete list of assets with only sketchy details of where fire dampers may be located. The first task is, therefore, to locate and identify fire dampers, so that a robust fire safety process for ongoing testing and maintenance can be established. Some estimates, by those who provide fire damper testing, suggest that the level of regular testing may be as low as 25% of all those installed. Anecdotally, some building managers reportedly test a number of their fire dampers each year, rotating the full number of assets, but have yet to establish regular twelve-monthly testing for every fire damper. This is not compliance. Knowing how many fire dampers you have and where they are located is an important step towards compliance. The construction of the property is often indicative of the presence of fire dampers, especially in a large number of
ABOVE: Fire dampers pre and post clean. BELOW: Fire dampers open and closed
public and commercial buildings. Properties with long corridors and rooms leading off them, with mechanical ventilation systems serving these rooms, usually will have fire dampers. This means that fire dampers will be present in many schools, colleges, halls of residence, hotels, hospitals, and office buildings, to name just a few. The most practical approach is to call in a specialist fire damper testing provider, who will be able to locate, identify and create a register of assets for future testing. This should become part of the overall assets register for each property. If the ductwork is compliant with TR19®, there should be sufficient access points in order to be able to check the location of fire dampers in ventilation ductwork. If not, it may be necessary to retrofit additional access hatches; something that would need to be done in any case to achieve TR19® compliance for the ventilation ductwork system, during cleaning. If the dust levels in your ventilation ductwork are over the TR19® limits, then cleaning will be required; this could be a good time to start locating fire dampers. Sizable sites and buildings such as hotels, corporate offices, hospitals or halls of residence may have hundreds, or even thousands, of fire dampers, so budgeting for testing is essential. If you haven’t achieved compliance up to now, this may be a significant new item to add to the property management budget. A further cost may be incurred for remedial work on the fire dampers themselves, as they may have been incorrectly installed or simply do not function as required. Drop testing technicians have identified many that were not installed at the point at which the ductwork met the fire-resistant wall, so the barrier is not
18 BUILDING SERVICES & ENVIRONMENTAL ENGINEER JUNE 2023
effectively restored, even if the fire damper is working correctly. Others were installed upside down, so gravity will always prevent the louvres from closing. Others were clearly propped open during the ventilation system commissioning in order to test air flow volume. Fire dampers have been found propped open with bottles, cans, blocks of wood and lengths of string that were never removed. It is essential that all such props are removed, and that installations are corrected where necessary, so that future testing will be straightforward. As testing is usually invoiced on a per fire damper basis, once a complete asset register has been formed, it is possible to budget more accurately for testing, allowing a contingency for any future remedial work. Drop testing should form part of either the annual maintenance or the fire safety budget, and should certainly be built into the long-term maintenance budget. In some cases, outsourced management agents or facilities managers may have to educate the property owner as to why this is necessary. Following the Grenfell Fire and the subsequent Hackitt review of the building regulations and fire safety, it has never been more important that the specialist provider you choose should be fully competent and be able to help with scheduling ongoing tests, which can be completed, if need be, outside normal working hours, or in low season for hotels. If you can use the same provider for ventilation cleaning as for fire damper testing, you may find that there are economies to be made.
However you tackle your compliance, fire dampers undoubtedly help to save lives, so should be a firm fixture in the annual maintenance schedule.
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