Fire door inspection checklist

Why the checklist matters

A fire door is not a product, it is an assembly. The leaf, frame, seals, hinges, closer and latch are tested together and only perform together. That is why the vast majority of fire doors that fail an inspection do so because of something small and cheap — a missing screw, a painted-over seal, a closer that no longer throws the latch — rather than because the door itself is wrong. Working through the same checklist in the same order each time is what turns fire door checking from guesswork into evidence.

1. Certification and identification

Look for a label or plug at the top edge of the leaf, or occasionally on the hinge stile. It should identify the manufacturer, the fire rating (FD30, FD60) and a scheme reference such as BM TRADA Q-Mark, BWF Certifire or IFC. No label does not automatically mean the door is not a fire door, but it does mean you cannot evidence the rating — and an unevidenced door will be written up as a finding on your fire risk assessment.

2. Gaps around the leaf

Measure with a gauge, not with a coin. Aim for 2–4mm consistently at the head and both stiles. Anything wider lets smoke pass before the intumescent has time to activate; anything much tighter causes the door to bind and stop latching once humidity changes. At the threshold, allow up to 8mm for a standard door, reduced to around 3mm where cold smoke control (FD30S) is needed, or fit a drop-down seal.

3. Intumescent and smoke seals

The seals sit in grooves in the leaf or frame. They must be continuous, well bedded, undamaged and not clogged with paint. Brush or fin smoke seals should touch the frame along their whole length. Missing sections, seals that have shrunk back from mitred corners, or seals held in with silicone are all failures.

4. Hinges

Three hinges minimum, all CE/UKCA-marked and fire-rated, every screw present, correct length and tightened. No packing behind the blade, no plastic washers, no signs of the leaf dropping. Metal filings on the floor or a bright arc worn into the frame usually means the door is dragging and the hinges need attention.

5. The self-closing device

Open the door to 15 degrees and let go. It must close fully and engage the latch without help. Test again from 45 and 90 degrees. Overhead closers should not be leaking oil, and the arm should not have been wound down so far that the door merely rests on the frame. Perko-type chain closers in older HMOs frequently fail this test and are the single most common defect we write up.

6. Latch, handles and locks

The latch must throw fully into a properly aligned keep. Handles, escutcheons and locks should be fire-rated and securely fixed. Any hole cut for a lock, letterplate or spyhole must be a tested component or the door's certification is void.

7. Glazing and beading

Vision panels must be fire-rated glass in the tested bead system, usually with intumescent glazing tape behind hardwood beads. Timber beads that have been replaced with softwood off-cuts, or glass held in with putty, fail.

8. Frame, wall and fire-stopping

The frame must be mechanically fixed to the structural opening, and the perimeter gap fire-stopped with an appropriate sealant or mortar — not expanding foam left proud and unsealed. Architraves should be tight to the wall. Check the wall above the door too: a certified door in a partition that stops at the ceiling tiles is protecting nothing.

9. Signage and hold-open devices

Doors that need to stay shut require "Fire door keep shut" signage, usually both sides in shared areas. Wedges, hooks and tied-back doors are a straightforward failure. If a door genuinely needs to stand open, fit an electromagnetic hold-open device linked to the alarm.

10. Condition of the leaf

Look for splitting, delamination, holes, deep gouges and unauthorised trimming. A door trimmed more than the manufacturer permits — often 3mm off the bottom — has lost its rating and cannot be brought back with filler.

11. Record it

Every door gets a reference, a location, a rating, a photograph and a pass/fail with the defect noted. That record is the evidence your fire risk assessor, insurer and local authority will ask for, and it is what turns a series of small repairs into a defensible compliance position.