Construction Industry Lingo
Construction Terminology for Fire Prevention
Every industry has their own lingo and sometimes not knowing the lingo can be intimating.
Each city/county agency has their own determination for regulations of commercial space fire protection and you’ll see different terms used, they might all sound like the same but they are different.
We hope this article helps to explain those differences.
Fire Stop – Obstruction in a cavity designed to resist the passage of flame, sometimes referred to as “fire blocking”.
Fire Taping – The taping of gypsum board joints without subsequent finishing coats. A treatment method used in attic, plenum or mechanical areas where aesthetics are not important.
Fire Wall – fire resistant partition extending to or through the roof of a building to retard the spread of fire.
Fire Resistive – Refers to properties or designs to resist effects of any fire to which a material or structure may be expected to be subjected.
Fire Retardant – Denotes substantially lower degree of fire resistance. Often used to describe materials that are combustible but have been treated to retard ignition or spread of fire under conditions for which they were designed.
Fire Proof – use of this term in reference to buildings is discouraged because few if any building materials can withstand extreme heat for an extended time without some effect. The term “fire resistive” or “resistant” is more descriptive.
