Published: 13 July 2026 | Last Updated: 7 August 2026 | 7 minute read
Most fire door damage doesn’t happen during a fire – it happens during installation.
When people think about fire door failures, they often imagine smoke seals, door closers or incorrect gaps.
In my experience, one of the biggest causes of unnecessary remedial work starts long before the building is occupied. It happens during delivery, handling and installation.
Modern fire doors are large, heavy and expensive. Depending on the specification, a single door can weigh between 40 kg and well over 70 kg. Moving these doors safely around a construction site isn’t easy, especially when they’re being carried upstairs, manoeuvred through narrow corridors or stored in temporary locations.
Unfortunately, it’s during these stages that many fire doors receive damage which could have been prevented.
Corner Damage – Where Most Problems Begin
One of the most common problems I see is damage to the bottom corners of the door.
When installers need to turn a heavy door, it’s natural to stand it on one corner and rotate it into position. The problem is that the entire weight of the door is then concentrated through an area only a few millimetres wide.
That load crushes the timber fibres within the lipping and often splits the timber along its natural grain.
Once that happens, the damage has already been done.
Timber Always Fails Along Its Weakest Direction
Timber is incredibly strong when loaded correctly.
However, if force is applied in the wrong direction, particularly along the grain, it becomes much easier for the lipping to split away from the door.
Dragging a fire door across a concrete floor creates exactly this type of force.
If the edge catches even slightly, the timber fibres can tear away, often leaving a repair that is immediately visible once the building is occupied.
A Simple Change Can Prevent Most Corner Damage
Over the years I’ve changed the way I move fire doors.
Instead of rotating a door on the narrow edge of the lipping, I try to rotate it so that the load is spread across as much of the bottom edge as possible.
By distributing the weight across the full width of the lipping rather than concentrating it onto one point, the risk of crushing or splitting the timber is significantly reduced.
It’s a simple change, but one that can prevent costly repairs.
Damage Doesn’t Stop Once the Door Is Installed
Many people assume that once the building is complete the fire doors remain protected.
That isn’t always the case.
I’ve seen countless fire doors damaged because people are moving furniture, hospital beds, filing cabinets, kitchen appliances and maintenance equipment through buildings.
If the self-closing device begins closing while equipment is still passing through the doorway, the edge of the door often catches first.
The face of the door may be protected by a kick plate, but the lipping remains exposed.
I’ve seen numerous examples where chunks of timber have been torn from the edge simply because the door closed onto equipment being moved through the opening.
Can Lipping Damage Be Repaired?
Not every damaged lipping means the entire fire door needs replacing.
Where the damage is limited to the timber lipping itself, repairs may be possible using methods that are acceptable to the manufacturer or supported by an approved repair system.
However, once damage extends into the construction of the door leaf itself, or unauthorised modifications have been made, the options become much more limited.
This is why preventing damage is always preferable to repairing it afterwards.
The Damage You Don’t See
Fire doors aren’t only damaged themselves.
Sometimes the installation process damages the building around them.
One of the most frustrating jobs during remedial work is removing existing architraves.
Many installers carefully score around the architrave using a utility knife before removal.
The intention is good.
The reality is often very different.
Paint films tear.
Plaster comes away with the timber.
Walls require filling and redecorating before the new architrave can even be fitted.
Hidden Problems Behind the Architrave
Ironically, removing an architrave often reveals problems that couldn’t be seen beforehand.
Behind the trim I’ve found:
- Missing fire-stopping.
- Large voids.
- Poorly positioned packers.
- Inadequate fixings.
- Excess expanding foam or wrong foam used.
- Frame movement.
From the front, the installation can appear perfectly acceptable.
Only after removing the architrave do the real problems become visible.
When Expanding Foam Goes Wrong
One site experience I’ll never forget happened completely by accident.
A can of expanding foam was accidentally pierced when another object fell onto it.
Within seconds, foam was everywhere.
It covered the walls.
It covered the doors.
It covered the floor.
It even covered me.
Fortunately, it happened on a new-build property before the finishes had been completed.
Had the same incident occurred in an occupied hospital, school, office or apartment, the clean-up costs could have been substantial.
Caption:
“A single accident with expanding foam can create extensive damage and lengthy clean-up work.”
One incident on site particularly changed the way I thought about expanding foam. A can was accidentally punctured, covering the surrounding area in foam within seconds. Fortunately, it happened on a new-build project before the final finishes had been completed. Had it occurred in an occupied hospital, school or office, the damage and clean-up costs could have been significant. Experiences like this have made me question whether there are safer and more controlled ways of applying expanding foam during fire door installations.
What 30 Years on Site Has Taught Me
After more than three decades working as a joiner and many years specialising in fire door remedial work, one lesson stands out above everything else.
Most remedial work isn’t caused by major failures.
It’s caused by small mistakes.
A door rotated on one corner.
A lipping dragged across a concrete floor.
A knife cutting into plaster.
An architrave removed without protecting the wall.
A frame fixed slightly out of alignment.
Each mistake may only take a few seconds to make, but it can cost hours to repair.
Good fire door installation isn’t just about meeting regulations.
It’s about preventing problems before they happen.
About the Author
Eddie Proudman is the founder of Proudman Fire and has over 30 years of joinery experience, including more than eight years specialising in fire door remedial work. Many of the tools developed by Proudman Fire were inspired by recurring problems encountered on real construction sites, with the aim of helping installers work more accurately, reduce damage and improve consistency.
About Proudman Fire
Proudman Fire develops professional fire door tools for installation, maintenance and remedial works. Our purpose-built products are designed from real site experience to help fire door professionals improve productivity, accuracy and efficiency worldwide.
