Find out what a firestop is and what it can do for you.
Installing a firestop is the first step towards keeping a building safer against fires. With proper installation, a firestop helps make it easier to escape from a building if a fire does take place. Since firestops serve as shields against fire and smoke, they also lower the amount of fire damage and smoke damage your building sustains. Find out what a firestop is and what it can do for you.
What Is It?
A firestop is a system that protects against fires. It seals off any cracks and crevices with fireproof material that stops a fire from spreading from one room to another. By stopping a fire from spreading, it becomes easier for people to escape a fire, and it also makes it easier to address the fire since it’s held in one area. There are a couple of different materials you can use for your firestop.
Sealants
If you’re sealing around tubing, ductwork, and pipes, penetrations sealants are the best option for you. They can hold a fire off for as long as two to four hours. Use joint sealants if you need to caulk any areas between your wallboards. They swell up when they get into contact or nearly get into contact with fire. Because they expand, it stops fires from sneaking through cracks in your building and getting into other rooms.
Pillows
If you don’t go with sealants, there is another option you have for firestops: pillows. No, not the kind of pillow you use to sleep at night, although it has the appearance of a more traditional pillow. A firestop pillow is made from fire-resistant material, usually something like intumescent foam rubber or rockwool batts. You use these pillows for any holes in your walls or inside your floor to help fend off fires.
Other Components
Composite sheets are used mainly to repair any firewalls you have, but they can also be sealed within a penetration sealant. Pipe collars can be used any time plastic pipes are built through ceilings or walls and require sealing. The collars have material that seals up automatically when it is heated up by a fire. Lastly, there are sleeves. They are metal pipes that have intumescent putty in them. This lets cables and cords pass through with no trouble.
Concrete Visions Will Get The Job Done Right
Concrete Visions has been working with clients for over 25 years. Our G&M Services installers are certified with the industry’s major firestop product manufacturers. As part of our firestop service, we can assess abnormal field conditions and, with the manufacturer’s technical support assistance, provide engineering judgments in a timely fashion to comply with contract specifications. Our Field Mechanics undergo ongoing training, including mandatory monthly safety meetings, weekly Toolbox Talks where safety and equipment information is shred, and trainings on safe work standards and safety best practices.