Wallrock, Erfurt MAV Linings and Fire
Ratings.
The fire rating system in regard to all
wallpapers including Lining Paper, Insulating
Lining paper, Wallrock Fibreliner, Wallrock Fireliner and
Wallrock Thermal Liner can be difficult to understand especially as the real
world performance will always be affected by other materials, such as the wall
itself, paint, adhesive, decorative wallpaper applied over the top and other
nearby structures.
Here we are trying to give a short
concise overview of fire ratings and obviously for absolute accuracy and
certainty you should always consult an expert in the field such as a Specifier,
Trade Body or Testing Body.
Whilst the last thing I want to do is
give a false sense of security or give the impression the fire rating of your
wallpaper is not very important - it is worth bearing in mind that having
properly maintained and positioned smoke detectors in your home is arguably far
more important than the fire rating of your wallcovering simply because we all
inevitably have lots of other combustible and smoke generating products in our
home.
When must wallpaper fire ratings be
considered by UK Law?
The simple answer is if your project
is subject to Building Regulations 'Building Regs' and/or inspections by a
Building Inspector, then the fire rating of the product must comply. In effect
this means big projects such as a ‘new build’, extension, garage conversion,
loft conversion, will all be subject to Building Regulations and the wallpaper
must comply with requirements regarding the fire rating of the product. This is
why our Wallrock
fibreliner range, Wallrock fireliners and many other of our products are independently tested
for compliance
When is it purely down to me to
decide?
Smaller projects such as general home
redecoration and makeovers are unlikely to be subject to building regulations
(unless it is a public space, hotel, care home or similar where regulations may
apply) so you do not legally need to consider the fire rating of the wallpaper
you have chosen. However, you may well want to consider the fire rating of the
wallpaper anyway, for example avoiding using less fire resistant wallpapers in
fire escape routes.
How can I find the fire rating of a
wallpaper product?
It may be on the label as a letter or
number, on the manufacturers website, or you may have to ask the manufacturer.
The manufacturer should be able to supply you with the actual test certificate.
Wallrock products carry the fire rating
clearly on the label for easy reference.
OK, so why do some products have a
letter as the fire rating and some a number?
The short answer is, there are two
overlapping test systems, either of which is acceptable for Building
Regulations;
·
The
British Standard (BS 476) categorises products by numbers 0 to 4 (0 being the
least flammable and 4 the most)
·
The
European Standard (EN 13501) categorises products by letters A to F (0 being
the least flammable and in theory F being the most *)
The chart below shows how the two
systems overlap:
British Standard Classification
|
European Standard Classification
|
Not Applicable
|
A
|
0
|
B
|
1 & 2
|
C
|
3
|
D
|
4
|
E
|
Unclassifiable
|
F
|
NB; Wallrock
Fireliner is tested to the
British standard as it is marketed solely in the UK and Wallrock Fibreliner to the European standard as
the product is sold throughout Europe. Although both products perform very well
under test conditions the Wallrock
Fireliner has a far superior fire resistance as
it does not burn even in free air a situation which most wallcoverings would
burn readily.
OK, I get that but is all wallpaper
tested before being sold to consumers and why the disclaimer * when talking
about the EN system?
In the introduction we mentioned that
the average home contains lots of combustible materials in much higher
quantities than the wallpaper applied to walls. So under the European system there
appears to be a a tacit recognition of this and therefore most wallpapers under 1.8 mm thick can be
classified as a ‘D’ without testing them.
So a wallpaper classified as a D may actually
perform better (or theoretically worse) if it was subjected to a fire test .
Similarly if a product is thicker than 1.8 mm it can be classified as an ‘F’
without testing.
Products with a European rating have
other lower case letters and numbers written after the letter – Do they mean
anything?
Yes they do. Let’s take Wallrock Fibreliner
Original say you have B-s1,d0
B is the resistance to fire, in this case very good (as shown in the
earlier chart)
S1 is the amount of smoke generated, 1 would be best, 3 the worst
d0 is the relative amount of flaming particles falling , 0 is best, 2 the
worst
Additional classes for smoke
development
|
Additional classes for burning
droplets
|
s1 the structural element may emit
a very limited amount of combustion gases
|
d0 burning droplets or particles
must not be emitted from the structural element
|
s2 the structural element may emit
a limited amount of combustion gases
|
d1 burning droplets or particles
may be released in limited quantities
|
s3 no requirement for restricted
production of combustion gases
|
d2 no requirement for restriction
of burning droplets and particles
|
In this regard the European system is
useful as you may have a product that resists fire but gives off a lot of smoke
in a real home fire and we all know it can often be the smoke that is the real
killer rather than the fire itself. Products with plastic coatings are often
particularly bad for this.
OK, so what do Building Regulations
say I need?
That depends on where exactly you
will use the wallcovering. The chart included here shows how different rated
wallcoverings can be used in projects subject to Building Regulations:
Location
|
BS Class
|
European Class
|
Small rooms of an area not more than;
a) 4m2 in residential accommodation
b) 30m2 in non-residential accommodation
|
2
|
D-s3,d2
|
Other rooms (including garages
|
1
|
C-s3,d2
|
Circulation spaces in dwellings
|
1
|
C-s3,d2
|
Other circulation spaces, including
the common areas in blocks of flats
|
0
|
B-s3,d2
|
As you can see Wallrock Fibreliner
Original easily conforms to
Building regulations
How can wallpaper have any fire
resistance anyway?
When a pure paper is adhered to a
non-combustible surface it does not necessarily burn easily because it is not
in ‘free air’. Similarly some plastic coated wallpapers, such as PVC coverings,
do not necessarily combust easily (but give off smoke).
We recognise that you may not want to
use a product regardless of test results that will burn readily in free air so
we offer a wallpaper that resists combustion even in free air and can actually
be used to offer some protection to more vulnerable surfaces called Wallrock Fireliner
How is a test conducted and under
what conditions?
A test looks to replicate real world
conditions so the paper is applied to a non-combustible surface with a typical
adhesive (which will be described in the test) as it would be in a typical
home. If it is a paintable wallcovering then you would expect the test to show
two coats of emulsion paint had been applied simply because this is typically
what would happen in the real world. The test essentially consists of directing
a naked flame at the surface and measuring flame spread over a period of 10
minutes. The wider the flames spread outwards in that time the lower the
rating. The test is repeated several times and the worst results used to rate
the product. Please see the chart here:
|
Flame spread at 1.5 min (mm)
|
Final flame spread (mm)
|
Class 1
|
165 (+25)
|
165 (+25)
|
Class 2
|
215 (+25)
|
455 (+45)
|
Class 3
|
265 (+25)
|
710 (+75)
|
Class 4
|
Exceeding Class 3 limits.
|
It is worth bearing in mind the test
is always going to be ‘indicative’ as there are variables to consider;
·
The type
of adhesive used to apply the product could make a small or potentially big
difference in extreme cases e.g. our Wallrock Thermal FR Adhesive contains active ingredients that help to resist flame
spread.
·
Product manufacturing variables
·
In the
case of paintable wallcoverings – what brand of paint has been used.
The product I want is E rated, can I
use it?
First, if Building Regulations apply
– almost definitely not**
Second, if they don’t apply you can
use it but we would advise you consider the area it is being used e.g. is it a
fire escape route?
So why the ** above?
The product may be able to be used as
part of a system that improves the fire rating significantly, as below.
Can a Fire Rating be Improved?
The short answer is 'yes, it can'.
Take these products for example, Red Label Heatsaver, Red Label Insulating Lining Paper, Insulating Lining Paper Graphite + and Wallrock
Thermal Liner all have lowly rating of E or F even though the bonded lining alone has
a far superior rating on its own.
As there are so many variables as to
how this product may be used we declare it as an E or an F - worst case scenario.
However, when the products are
applied with Wallrock Thermal FR Adhesive and covered with Wallrock Fireliner lining paper with two coats of emulsion they achieve much better test
results e.g. BS Class 1 which is
Building Regulations compliant for residences.
I hope this helps clear up a few
questions.
