Fire door inspection in Chiswick
Period houses split into flats, and what to do about old panelled doors.
Get a priceChiswick has big houses. Bedford Park has its red brick Victorian villas, and the streets near the High Road have tall terraces with deep hallways and high ceilings.
Many have been divided into flats. The old doors have often stayed.
The panelled door
A Victorian panelled door is a handsome thing. Four, six or sometimes eight raised panels, with thin timber in the middle of each panel.
It is also a common fire door problem in period buildings. People assume that an old, thick-looking door of solid timber will hold back a fire. A panelled door of that type is not a certified fire door, and it does not have a rating.
Some owners try to bring them up to standard. They add a strip, an overlay or a coat of intumescent paint. That does not make it a certified door, and the work can void whatever rating it had. Our advice is plain. Replace it with a certified doorset.
Listed houses and conservation areas
A lot of Chiswick is a conservation area, and some buildings are listed. In those places a new front door or a change to the shared hall may need permission from the council.
Ask first. The council can tell you whether permission is needed. If you have an inspection and a list of failed doors, you will be able to tell them exactly which doors, and why.
Flat entrance doors
In a divided house the flat entrance doors are the ones that protect the shared stair. We see a mix here. Original doors, certified replacements, and everything between.
Anything with glass above the door, such as a fanlight or a transom, is a point to check. A fanlight in a flat door is a weak spot, because ordinary glass will crack in a fire and let smoke through.
The shared hall
Period houses have a very particular layout. A big front door, a long hall, and stairs that wind up the side.
If the hall is the only way out, it must stay clear and the doors off it must be able to hold back smoke. A hall of that kind with a ground floor flat on each side and a door into each is a typical problem. Often at least one of those doors has been swapped.
Mansion blocks and larger buildings
Some of the buildings in Chiswick are larger blocks with a lift and a main stair. Taller ones come under the 2022 regulations if they pass 11 metres. Check the height and speak to the managing agent about who keeps the records.
Above the shops
Chiswick High Road has flats above some of its shops. As in other towns, the door from the street to the flats above and the door between shop and stair are what to look at first.
What we send you
A report with every door, photographed, with its gaps measured and its faults listed. For period buildings we add a line on each door about whether it can be repaired or has to be replaced, and why.
Repairs and costs
Our own crew repairs doors. If a door has to be replaced we price a plain certified doorset. A small building starts from around £250 plus VAT for the inspection.
From Luton
We are a Luton company and have no office in Chiswick. Chiswick is in the London Borough of Hounslow.
Questions we get asked
Can I keep my original front door?
You can keep it as a door. If it is a flat entrance door, it will not give you a fire door rating. Ask us and we will tell you what the options are.
Does intumescent paint make a door a fire door?
No. A fire door is a certified set, with the door, frame and seals tested together.
Send the postcode and a rough number of doors. We will come back with a price the same day.
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