Fire Stopping and Compartmentation - Clear from Start to Finish

 

Fire Stopping, Compartmentation and Compliance

Fire stopping plays a key role in preventing the spread of fire and smoke through a building. It ensures that walls and floors designed to resist fire continue to perform as intended, even where services pass through them.

Maintaining effective compartmentation is essential for protecting occupants, limiting damage, and supporting safe evacuation.

What Is Fire Stopping?

Fire stopping is the process of sealing openings and joints in fire-resisting construction to maintain the integrity of fire compartments.

Whenever pipes, cables, ducts, or other services pass through walls or floors, they create penetrations. These must be sealed using tested fire-rated systems to prevent fire and smoke from spreading between areas.

Fire stopping forms part of a building’s passive fire protection system and is required under legislation, including the Regulatory Reform (Fire Safety) Order 2005, which places a duty on responsible persons to maintain fire safety measures.

What Is Compartmentation?

Compartmentation is the method of dividing a building into fire-resistant sections using walls, floors, and doors designed to contain fire for a specified period.

The purpose is to:

• Slow down the spread of fire and smoke
• Protect escape routes
• Give occupants time to evacuate safely
• Limit damage to the building

For compartmentation to work, every part of the barrier must remain intact. This includes walls, floors, ceilings, doors, and all service penetrations.

Even a small unsealed gap can compromise the entire compartment.

Why Is Fire Stopping Important?

Fire and smoke can travel quickly through unprotected openings, often without being immediately visible.

Proper fire stopping helps to:

• Maintain compartmentation
• Protect escape routes and stairwells
• Limit fire spread between areas
• Reduce damage to property and services
• Support compliance with fire safety legislation

Even small gaps or poorly installed materials can compromise performance and lead to non-compliance.

Where Is Fire Stopping Required?

Fire stopping is typically required anywhere fire-resisting construction has been penetrated or interrupted, including:

• Service risers and vertical shafts
• Walls and floors with pipe or cable penetrations
• Ceiling voids and hidden spaces
• Around ductwork and ventilation systems
• Linear gaps between walls, floors, and structural elements

These areas are often overlooked but are critical to maintaining overall fire performance.

What’s Included in Fire Stopping?

• Sealing of service penetrations (pipes, cables, ducts)
• Installation of fire-rated batt and board systems
• Application of fire-resistant sealants and coatings
• Fire collars and wraps for plastic pipe penetrations
• Linear joint and movement gap sealing
• Fire stopping within service risers and voids
• Inspection and remediation of non-compliant penetrations
• Installation in line with tested systems and manufacturer guidance
• Photographic records and documentation for compliance

Common Fire Stopping Issues We Find

In many buildings, fire stopping is either missing, damaged, or incorrectly installed. These issues are often hidden and only identified during inspections or fire risk assessments.

Typical problems include:

• Open or unsealed penetrations around pipes and cables
• Expanding foam or non-fire-rated materials used incorrectly
• Missing or damaged fire collars on plastic pipework
• Poorly installed systems with visible gaps
• Large voids around service risers and ductwork
• Fire stopping disturbed during later works
• Mixed or non-tested systems used together
• No documentation or evidence of compliant installation

Even where fire stopping is present, it is often not installed to a tested system, meaning it may not perform as required in the event of a fire.

Compliance and Standards

Fire stopping works must be carried out using tested systems and in accordance with recognised standards such as BS 476 and relevant BS EN standards.

Each penetration must maintain the required fire resistance of the surrounding construction. Incorrect installation or the use of non-approved materials can result in failure and may lead to enforcement action.

Need Fire Stopping Works?

If you have identified issues, are carrying out building works, or need to confirm compliance, we can assess your site and carry out the required fire stopping works.

All works are completed to recognised standards, with clear documentation provided to support your fire safety records and compliance obligations.