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FIRE SERVICE AND GENERAL FIRE SAFETY TOPICS => Technical Advice => Topic started by: Ashley Wood on September 23, 2008, 07:04:40 PM

Title: Electrical intake room
Post by: Ashley Wood on September 23, 2008, 07:04:40 PM

Can someone clarify the situation here? An electrical intake room, only accessible from out side the building, has louvered doors. They are made of wood. An H & S bod has been to site and said that these should be removed and replaced with steel doors? Is this correct and where does it say so?

Thanks

Title: Electrical intake room
Post by: Chris Houston on September 23, 2008, 08:05:30 PM

seems unnecessary to me, speaking as an insurance surveyor. Pretty common situation.

Title: Electrical intake room
Post by: AnthonyB on September 23, 2008, 10:51:10 PM

Ignore it, absolutely no need, sounds like someone justifying their existence to me. Even if the doors were in poor order the replacement doesn't need to be steel.

May be different if it was a sub station or transformer room - these often are now steel.

Title: Electrical intake room
Post by: Chris Houston on September 23, 2008, 11:11:30 PM

Further to my reply to the above, ask him to justify his argument.  If he is worried that they will catch fire point out that most fire doors are made of..........wait for it..........wood.  

Can't see how it is a "health" or a "safety" issue to me anyway.

Title: Electrical intake room
Post by: kurnal on September 23, 2008, 11:18:31 PM

Its Poppycock. Period.

Title: Electrical intake room
Post by: wee brian on September 24, 2008, 09:43:06 AM

Louvred doors are (were?) standard spec for transformer rooms. If they catch fire you dont want to bottle them up. Also they sometimes blow up. A steel door will direct the blast back into the building - which is bad.

Check with the electricity company - they may have a spec you could refer to.

Title: Electrical intake room
Post by: Martin on September 24, 2008, 10:00:46 AM

I'm an H&S bod with some fire advice/monitoring added to my duties. I can't think of any H&S reasons for replacing traditional heavy duty louvred wooden transformer room doors with metal unless there is enough evidence of vandalism, attempted arson etc. to justify something even more substantial. We have a number of tower blocks with just such external wooden louvred doors to electrical incomer transformer rooms etc.   and I am not asking for anything extra or different. I get concerned about such out of the blue advice. If it is neccesary for one set of doors then it is neccesary for any similar doors in a similar environment. So unless there is some obvious extra risk I would query the reason behind the H&S advice.

Title: Electrical intake room
Post by: Ashley Wood on September 24, 2008, 03:13:34 PM

Thanks for that. You all backed up what I was thinking, but s I say, it's never tolate to teach an old dog new tricks, so I thought I would ask.

Thanks.