Which Type of Fireproofing Is Right for Your New Building

Fire­proof­ing is a ​“must,” not a ​“should,” in any com­mer­cial build­ing. If you are fire­proof­ing a new build­ing, dis­cov­er we will help to high­light the best mate­ri­als and meth­ods, includ­ing their pros, cons, and ide­al applications.

Pro­tect Your New Build­ing From Fire

As long as there’s oxy­gen, fuel, and heat, fire can ignite any­time, and mas­sive fires can have dev­as­tat­ing con­se­quences. Besides caus­ing wide­spread dam­age to a prop­er­ty and its con­tents, it can cause seri­ous injuries and even death. That’s why fire pro­tec­tion sys­tems are a must in any building.

Fire pro­tec­tion sys­tems fall into two cat­e­gories: active and pas­sive.

• Active fire pro­tec­tion sys­tems are often installed after con­struc­tion has been com­plet­ed. These sys­tems include but are not lim­it­ed to fire alarms, fire sup­pres­sion sys­tems, sprin­klers, and fire extin­guish­ers. They require a trig­ger (action) or an alert to func­tion. Their pur­pose is to detect and sup­press fire.
• Pas­sive fire pro­tec­tion sys­tems are built into the build­ing. They don’t sup­press fire but slow down the spread of flames through­out a build­ing. They help extend the time it takes for a struc­ture to fail and col­lapse. This gives occu­pants a bet­ter chance of escap­ing a burn­ing build­ing, pre­vent­ing injuries or poten­tial loss of life. It also pro­vides fire­fight­ers with more time to extin­guish the fire, reduc­ing pos­si­ble dev­as­tat­ing damage.

Fire­proof­ing is the process of mak­ing a struc­ture or mate­r­i­al fire-resistant.

Note: Fire­proof­ing is dif­fer­ent from fire-stop­ping. Fire-stop­ping pre­vents fire and smoke from spread­ing to oth­er areas in a build­ing. It involves seal­ing open­ings and gaps in a room.

What Is the Best Mate­r­i­al for Fire­proof­ing a New Building?

Under­stand that fire­proof­ing does not pro­vide absolute fire pro­tec­tion. It will only help pre­serve the integri­ty of the under­ly­ing struc­ture. All mate­ri­als will burn and suc­cumb to the flames even­tu­al­ly, giv­en a cer­tain amount of time and heat.

There are many fire­proof­ing mate­ri­als out there.
Here are two of the most com­mon options, as well as their pros and cons, to help you deter­mine which is right for your project.

Intu­mes­cent Paint

Also known as intu­mes­cent fire-resis­tant mate­r­i­al (IFRM), an intu­mes­cent paint or coat­ing is one of the most effec­tive fire­proof­ing mate­ri­als. It expands or swells up to 100 times its orig­i­nal thick­ness when exposed to high tem­per­a­tures. It cre­ates a foamy lay­er that turns into a tough car­bon char when it comes into con­tact with fire. The char acts as an insu­lat­ing lay­er, reduc­ing the heat trans­fer from the flames to the under­ly­ing substrate.

An intu­mes­cent coat­ing can pro­vide fire pro­tec­tion for 30 to 120 min­utes or even longer, depend­ing on fac­tors like the num­ber of coats and prod­uct quality.

Pros

Intu­mes­cent paint has many favor­able attributes:

• Aes­thet­ic Fin­ish
  An intu­mes­cent paint or coat­ing is con­sid­ered the light­est form of pas­sive fire pro­tec­tion. It’s just like reg­u­lar paint — you apply it in thin lay­ers to sub­strate mate­ri­als, cre­at­ing a smooth fin­ish. Avail­able in white, gray, tan, and black, intu­mes­cent paint can blend flaw­less­ly with the exist­ing archi­tec­ture. Some man­u­fac­tur­ers even offer cus­tom col­ors for more design options. It’s a great option in build­ings where aes­thet­ics mat­ter, like hotels and museums.

• Ver­sa­til­i­ty
  Fire­proof­ing con­trac­tors typ­i­cal­ly use intu­mes­cent paint on steel, but this mate­r­i­al can be applied to con­crete and wood, too. Exam­ples of wood you can coat with intu­mes­cent paint include OSB, gyp­sum, cladding, pan­el­ing, soft and hard­woods, and plywood.
• Faster and Eas­i­er to Apply
  Intu­mes­cent paints are rel­a­tive­ly easy to apply. You can use spray equip­ment, brush­es, or rollers. Like paint­ing, you must pre­pare the sur­face and apply a primer to ensure prop­er adhe­sion. An indoor appli­ca­tion will require a topcoat.

Cons

While intu­mes­cent paint has many advan­tages, there are a few things to keep in mind:

• High­er Upfront Cost
  Intu­mes­cent fire­proof­ing can be cost­ly. Its aver­age price can reach more than $10 per square foot. The pric­ing will gen­er­al­ly depend on var­i­ous fac­tors, such as labor and the num­ber of coats. The num­ber of coats will be dic­tat­ed by build­ing occu­pan­cy type to achieve the thick­ness required to pro­vide a fire rat­ing in accor­dance with local fire codes. Request a quote from your trust­ed local fire­proof­ing con­trac­tor for a reli­able estimate.

Spray-Applied Fire Resis­tance Materials

Com­mon­ly known as cemen­ti­tious fire­proof­ing, a spray-applied fire-resis­tive mate­r­i­al (SFRM) is also com­mon­ly used for pas­sive fire pro­tec­tion. As the name implies, it con­tains Port­land cement mixed with ver­mi­culite, quartz, and oth­er mate­ri­als that help light­en the solu­tion. It’s sup­plied as a dry pow­der in a bag, which you mix with water before spray application.

Its most com­mon appli­ca­tion is on struc­tur­al steel, although it can be used on many oth­er build­ing materials.

Pros

SFRM has plen­ty to offer for build­ing owners:

• An Eco­nom­i­cal Choice
  If you’re look­ing for a fire­proof­ing mate­r­i­al that doesn’t require a high upfront invest­ment, a cemen­ti­tious coat­ing may be the right choice. The cost typ­i­cal­ly ranges between $2 and $4 per square foot, which is much less than intu­mes­cent paint. Note, how­ev­er, that the cost may get high­er depend­ing on fac­tors like labor and qual­i­ty of materials.

Cons

SFRM may be afford­able, but it has its own set of disadvantages:

• Bulky and Rough Appear­ance
  A cemen­ti­tious coat­ing cre­ates a thick bar­ri­er that almost looks like cement. It can stick out like a sore thumb if your struc­ture gen­er­al­ly has smooth sur­faces. This is why fire­proof­ing con­trac­tors avoid using it on exposed struc­tur­al steel and oth­er materials.
• Dura­bil­i­ty Con­cerns
  Cemen­ti­tious coat­ings can have dura­bil­i­ty issues. They can be prone to crack­ing, espe­cial­ly when you mis­cal­cu­late the load weight of the pro­tect­ed sur­face. The product’s com­po­nents must match the intend­ed use, such as a park­ing garage or load­ing dock which must be durable and impact-resis­tant. Reg­u­lar inspec­tion is nec­es­sary to ensure this sys­tem stays func­tion­al. Cemen­ti­tious coat­ings are also vul­ner­a­ble to flak­ing, which might con­t­a­m­i­nate indoor air.
• Risk of Sub­strate Cor­ro­sion
  A cemen­ti­tious coat­ing isn’t suit­able for humid envi­ron­ments. Mois­ture may find its way into the space between the coat­ing and the sub­strate, cor­rod­ing the very sur­face that the coat­ing is sup­posed to protect.
• Dif­fi­cult Appli­ca­tion
  Cemen­ti­tious fire­proof­ing requires mul­ti­ple coats, which makes the appli­ca­tion labor-inten­sive. You must also get the thick­ness right; oth­er­wise, the coat­ing may do more harm than good.
• Min­er­al Wool: Besides supe­ri­or insu­la­tion, min­er­al wool has incred­i­ble fire resis­tance prop­er­ties. Depend­ing on the type, min­er­al wool can with­stand 400 to 2,200 degrees Fahrenheit.

Oth­er fire-resis­tant mate­ri­als include glass, stones, per­lite boards, and fire-retar­dant treat­ed wood.

Talk to a Fire­proof­ing Professional

Talk to a fire­proof­ing pro­fes­sion­al to learn more about your options. A pro can also help you deter­mine the right mate­r­i­al for your project.

Fire­proof Your New Build­ing With Kaloutas

The right fire­proof­ing mate­r­i­al for your new build­ing will depend on var­i­ous fac­tors. It should meet local fire codes, suit your build­ing type, and fit your bud­get con­straints. If the options are over­whelm­ing and you want to ensure you make the right choice, talk to Kaloutas’ fire­proof­ing professionals.

We’re experts in indus­tri­al and com­mer­cial fire­proof­ing, and we’re equipped to deter­mine the right mate­ri­als and meth­ods for your new build­ing. Kaloutas aims to make fire­proof­ing easy for facil­i­ty man­agers and gen­er­al con­trac­tors. When you part­ner with our team, we guar­an­tee qual­i­ty ser­vice wor­thy of your trust. You can have peace of mind know­ing your new build­ing is safe from fire dam­age. All our mem­bers under­stand the sig­nif­i­cance of fire­proof­ing, and we’re com­mit­ted to doing it right.

Ready to fire­proof your new build­ing?
Request a project esti­mate or call 978−532−1414 for more details.