Fire-separating element

Approved Document B ‘Fire safety’ defines a fire-separating element as:

'A compartment wall, compartment floor, cavity barrier and construction that encloses a protected escape route and/or a place of special fire hazard.

Buildings are sub-divided by elements of fire resisting construction into fire compartments. Part B3 of the building regulations requires that:

• Openings in fire-separating elements are suitably protected in order to maintain the integrity of the element (i.e. the continuity of the fire separation); and
• Any hidden voids in the construction are sealed and sub-divided to inhibit the unseen spread of fire and products of combustion, in order to reduce the risk of structural failure and the spread of fire insofar as they pose a threat to the safety of people in and around the building.

[edit] Related articles on Designing Buildings Wiki

• Approved document B.
• Approved documents.
• Building regulations.
• Cavity barrier.
• Compartment floor.
• Compartmentation.
• Ducting.
• Fire.
• Fire damper.
• Fire resistance.
• Fire separation.
• Fire-stopping.
• Place of special fire hazard.
• Protected escape route.
• Sacrificial timber.