The problem

The label is the proof that a door and frame were built and tested as a fire-rated assembly. Painters cover them. Maintenance removes them. Old doors lose them. Without a legible label, a surveyor cannot confirm the rating.

What a label tells a surveyor

A fire door or frame label shows which listing agency tested the product and what fire rating it carries. It is how an inspector knows a 90-minute door sits in a 90-minute opening and not a 20-minute one. On doors, labels are most often on the hinge edge. On frames, they are usually on the hinge jamb. Both spots are easy to paint over and easy to miss.

What the code requires

NFPA 80 makes a present, legible label on the door and the frame one of the items checked at every annual inspection. An unreadable label counts the same as a missing one. In healthcare, a label failure is cited under K211 like any other door deficiency. Our NFPA 80 fire door inspection guide covers the full annual checklist.

How we fix it

1. Find and photograph. Our inspection logs every missing, painted or unreadable label.

2. Clean what we can. Many painted labels can be cleaned without damage.

3. Coordinate field labeling. Where a label is gone, a listed testing agency must inspect the opening and apply a new label. We arrange the visit, prepare the doors and track each one to closeout.

4. Replace when needed. If an opening cannot be labeled, we price a listed replacement.

We work with a listed testing agency for field labeling. Tinclad does not apply fire door labels. Only a listed agency can, after it inspects the opening.

Why a door may not qualify for a new label

The agency labels only what still matches a listed assembly. A door that was cut down, fitted with unlisted glass or patched with the wrong material may not pass. Our fire door repair and replacement team fixes what can be fixed before the agency visit, so fewer doors fail it.

What you get

• Every opening with a label problem, listed with its ID, location and photo

• The status of each label: painted, missing or unreadable

• The action for each one: cleaned, sent to field labeling, or priced for replacement

• A closed status in your report and portal once each opening is resolved

Keep labels readable

Most painted labels are a painting problem. Tell your painters to mask door and frame labels, and put that rule in your paint specs. Label checks are part of every annual fire door inspection we run.

Label findings come up often in hospital fire door compliance surveys and in older commercial and multifamily buildings, where doors have been painted many times. Send us your list of label findings and get a fire door labeling quote.