When a fire starts in building, industry or home, it doesn’t take much time or effort for it to spread. It can virtually impact the entire structure in a matter of a short time. Therefore, one can argue that it is imperative to create security features that help in fire stopping.

For instance, let’s say that in a 12 storied building a fire begins on the first floor. In such a case, there a plan will be needed to ensure that everyone living from floor 2nd to floor 12th are evacuated safely. For this to happen, it is vital to contain the fire on one floor. In this writeup, we talk about fire stopping a passive method of fire protection.

Understanding Fire Stopping

Fire stopping is a method of containing a fire in an area by utilising a plethora of devices. It is mostly done by sealing any opening so that the fire doesn’t spread from one section of the building to another. The methods employed in fire stopping are:

• Create fire-resistant compartments which limit the fire and prevent it from overtaking and engulfing the complete structure.
• Every opening and gap is closed to guarantee that the fire doesn’t spread either laterally or vertically.

The tools that are wielded to make sure that the fire doesn’t expand to more sections vary as per the structure of the building.

Understanding Passive Fire Protection:

After a fire occurs, we react to it and try to find ways to extinguish. But this is not enough to ensure that the fire doesn’t spread and destroy property or life. There is a necessity of pre-emptive techniques that safeguard people and buildings from fire. Any such step taken is called passive fire protection. Therefore, a strategy or product that deals with fire before it has occurred comes under the preview of passive protection.

A perfect example would be a product that is installed into a building while it was being constructed. Another instance could be retrofitting the structure with fire collars along cables and pipes to prevent fire expansion.  Fire resistant walls, doors and even floors are methods that can be used for passive fire protection. One more example would be smoke or fire dampers that make certain that fire doesn’t occur or spread through the ducts.

Both passive protection and fire stopping are crucial to limiting the havoc fire creates. When used correctly it has the potential to save many lives because they either halt fire or restrict its area.

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