A 5 storey Hotel's only alternative escape route on the upper floor is via a neighbouring adjoining terraced domestic dwelling!!!.
The resident in that dwelling is happy enough with the arrangements (I wouldn't be!), but is less than enthusiastic about weekly or monthly checks on the access door to their premises.
A solution has been suggested to test/operate/open access door quarterly. The RP and the fire engineer would conduct this quarterly test on alternate ocassions. (The FA engineer would test the magnet mechanism during his/her 6 monthly test of the AFD system).
Whilst far from ideal, this MOE has been in pace for years and is recorded in the old fire cert. The testing procedure isn't ideal either, but it's far better that the testing procedure which is currently in place - ie nothing!!
What's your view?
Is a 3 monthly test of this door reasonable??
Sounds like a throwback to the old days of travel distances to final exit door, protected stairways and, what seems to be in this case, to a door in a compartment wall. The escape route from that point on was irrelevant which was a bit strange but nevertheless was in accordance with the old codes. The door had to be half the FR of the wall which meant a 2hr fr door.
Talking about old standards, as I light my pipe, I can remember doing an inspection of a multi storey city building and came across a self rescue device. It was on the Fire Certificate. This operated by putting it around ones chest and, very importantly having one end fixed to an anchor point, launching ones self out of the window.
Think of the fun during an evacuation - weeeeeeeeeeeeee.
