A blog written by Crown Paints

Fire safety is of paramount importance and paint itself is increasingly being considered an integral part of any fire risk assessment, and in turn, helps buildings comply with safety legislation.

Building management teams can fulfil their legal and moral obligations by using specialised paint products and other safety precautions to minimise risks and ensure legislative standards are met.

In this blog, Glen Cooper, specification technical manager at Crown Paints guides specifiers through the technical information behind flame-retardant paint, as well as the key role it can play in fulfilling building managers’ responsibilities to their premises.

Paint is as important as ever in ensuring fire safety throughout buildings. Since paint often coats most of the interiors where it is used, it has the potential to play a key role in improving fire safety.

Different paints are classified by their flame retardance on walls and ceilings. Paint products which are rated Class 0 (BS476 Parts 6 and 7) or Class B (European tests BS EN ISO 11295-2 and BS EN 13823) will inhibit the spread of flames over the surfaces on which they are tested, and won’t generate a large amount of heat that could ignite items some distance away from the seat of the fire.

This does not make the walls and ceiling fire-proof – but, crucially, it can work with other systems to help slow the spread of the fire.

Crown Trade’s Timonox range, which includes specially formulated flame retardant paints, can be used in commercial spaces like offices, warehouses, factories, and public sector spaces such as schools, hospitals and police stations to fulfil the duty of care to protect against fire. These paints can be particularly effective for escape routes within buildings, like corridors or stairwells, too.

The Timonox range is used to put the products together to create a system that is appropriate to the level of risk inherent in your surfaces. The risk is assessed through sampling and analysis of individual properties. All of this is part of Crown Paints standard service to Clients.

Crown’s Timonox range also includes both overcoats and base coats, for all kinds of surfaces, including walls, ceilings, floors, and wood-based surfaces. This means any surface can be upgraded to be flame retardant, without necessarily having to remove the original paint.

The use of the primer or base coat will depend on the individual site conditions and coating history. This is important because as multiple layers of conventional paint coatings are added over time, surfaces of a previously non-combustible substrate can become more flammable. Therefore, complete overhauls may need to be considered – but Crown’s Timonox range can offer solutions to this too.

All products within the Crown Trade Timonox range have been independently tested on a variety of substrates and achieved the highest ratings of Class 0 (BS476 Parts 6 and 7) and Class B (European tests BS EN ISO 11295-2 and BS EN 13823). To achieve these results, it’s vital that these products are applied exactly in accordance with the manufacturer’s instructions in order to provide the level of flame retardance stipulated.

By utilising flame-retardant paint, like Crown Trade’s Timonox range, commercial and public buildings can also benefit from the products excellent stain resistance, resistance to graffiti, and will provide all-round high performance for a long-lasting finish. With the Timonox range covering a vast selection of colours, there is no need to compromise on aesthetics.

Specifying paint to enhance fire protection is no easy feat, but Crown’s expertise can help customers navigate the complexities and help ensure regulations are met.