“The overall fire-tested system consists of the building element, the penetrating service and the protection method. These components must match the tested system, or any variation must be supported by appropriate evidence.“
John Rakic
John Rakic is the proud Owner and Managing Director of Trafalgar Group with over 20 years of experience in the passive fire industry.
This is just a snippet of the full article. To read the entire article, download the pdf today.
“Pink plasterboard”, or so-called “fire-rated plasterboard”, is well known within the industry.
In Australasia, it is supplied with a paper-faced finish. This may surprise some people because paper burns; however, the National Construction Code (NCC) classifies the material as non-combustible.
There are several manufacturers and dozens of wholesale suppliers of this material. However, determining its fire rating—or, more accurately, its FRL (Note: For New Zealand readers, the FRR)—is not as simple as assuming that one layer provides one hour and two layers provide two hours.
It gets more complicated when we start making openings in these fire-rated walls and running a plethora of services.
This article provides an overview of the requirements for complying with the National Construction Code
(NCC) when fire sealing or fire stopping service openings in fire-rated plasterboard construction.
Understanding the Complete Fire-Tested System
A compliant service penetration system consists of three essential components:
- The fire-rated building element
- The penetrating service or services
- The protection method used at the penetration
These components are assessed together as a complete system. The fire-stopping product cannot be considered separately from the wall construction and penetrating services included in the fire test.
Common Fire-Rated Plasterboard Wall Constructions
Fire-rated plasterboard walls in Australia are commonly constructed using steel studs and tracks clad with one or more layers of fire-resistant plasterboard.
Typical constructions include:
- 60-minute wall: One layer of 13 mm pink plasterboard fixed to both sides of minimum 64 mm steel studs
- 90-minute wall: One layer of 16 mm pink plasterboard fixed to both sides of minimum 64 mm steel studs
- 120-minute wall: Two layers of 13 mm or 16 mm pink plasterboard fixed to both sides of minimum 64 mm steel studs
Individual systems may vary between manufacturers. Always review the relevant system documentation and fire-test evidence before specifying or installing a fire-stopping system.
This is just a snippet of the full article. To read the entire article, download the pdf today.
Explore More Resources:
