What Fire Rating Does my MF Ceiling Have?

What Fire Rating Does My MF Ceiling Have?

Need to work out what fire rating your ceiling should have? Here’s our guide.

What fire rating does my MF ceiling need?

MF ceilings will typically need to be fire rated at 30 or 60 minutes. 30 minutes is the more common, but 60 minutes may be required where, for example, the ceiling sits beneath a mezzanine. Contact local building control to find the exact requirement for your application.

What is the fire safety standard for an MF ceiling?

Your MF ceiling will need to meet the requirements of BS EN 1365-2. This is the standard required for a non-loadbearing ceiling with standalone fire resistance (that is, a ceiling that possesses a fire resistant capability irrespective of the building elements around it).

What rating does my MF ceiling have?

It’s important to note that the fire resistance classification of a ceiling is only ever as good as its ‘weakest’ component. An MF ceiling that, for example, uses Gyproc Fireline plasterboard will theoretically offer 60 minutes’ structural fire protection.

That assumes, however, that the MF ceiling sits beneath concrete, and that primary channel and furring sections of the grid are fixed at specific intervals. Where any of those elements differ – for example, where the ceiling above the MF ceiling is wood – the fire performance may also differ.

In the above example of a timber floor construction, Casoline recommends a double layer of Gyproc Fireline to attain the same 60 minute fire resistance.

Protecting the fire performance of your ceiling

Remember that any perforation of your MF ceiling, either for aesthetic purposes or to insert downlighters, will also affect and possibly compromise fire performance. In the case of lighting installation, use fire resistant hoods above lights to protect fire performance.

To find the MF ceiling products that deliver the right fire performance for your application, give one of our experts a call on 01253 864902.