Fordstreet fire stopping
Work needed on a service penetration in Fordstreet? We assess it, carry out the work and guarantee our workmanship for 12 months.
- Builders’ foam or ordinary silicone in compartment walls
- Fire seals cut back for extra cables and never reinstated
- Seals that don’t match their tested detail
Fire stopping near Fordstreet
Tell us what needs sealing and where, with photos or drawings if you have them, and we’ll price it.
Fire stopping in Fordstreet
Facilities managers in Fordstreet often find open service penetrations when ceilings come down for other work. Where the walls and floors already have a fire-stopping specification, we can work to it. With no specification in place, the first step sits with your designer or fire engineer, not with us. We work on linear gaps at wall heads, pipe penetrations and joints between fire-resisting walls and floors, and the failures we are asked to look at most are damaged fire seals in risers and voids and hidden openings found during inspections. A single leaking joint is often how a building in Fordstreet first comes to us: we look at the rest while we are there and tell you what we find.
Rural conversions around Fordstreet can put new fire-resisting partitions inside older structures. A penetration seal only performs as tested if product, substrate, service, gap and depth all match the detail.
Every job ends the same way: guaranteed. Our workmanship is backed for 12 months, and the quote explains what it covers.
- Place
- Fordstreet (CO6)
- Region
- Essex
- Guarantee
- A 12-month guarantee
- Price
- Quoted before any work starts
- Telephone
- 01277 525 020
- Last updated
- 3 November 2026
Questions about Fordstreet
Is Fordstreet off your patch?
No. Small places get the same service as large ones. We work across Greater London and the South East. Where we can, we group nearby jobs to make the most of each trip.
What happens to BS 476 references for fire stopping in Fordstreet?
Approved Document B loses its BS 476 references from 2 September 2029, and BS EN 13501-2 becomes the route, subject to transitional arrangements. The designer or fire engineer sets the specification, and we install the product to the manufacturer’s tested detail.
How long does a typical visit take?
That varies with the scale of the job, but the work usually takes anything from one day to a planned run of visits, depending on the number of seals and the access. Larger or phased jobs take longer, and we’ll give you a timescale with the quote.
Can the sealant be colour-matched?
That depends on the product specified. Some ranges are wide, others limited, so we’ll confirm the colours available for the specified product with the quote.
Can one quote cover more than one building?
Yes. Multi-site work and planned programmes are a core part of the service, planned site by site to suit how each building is used.
Do you hold CHAS accreditation?
Yes. Mastic Doctor is CHAS accredited and a Constructionline member, which helps with supplier vetting.
Can you quote from photographs?
Many jobs can be quoted from photographs, drawings or a joint schedule. Where they aren’t, we arrange a site visit before quoting.
General trades versus a specialist
Certain joints really need a specialist: fire-rated seals that must follow a tested detail, trafficked floor joints and external movement joints among them. A poor seal in places like these tends to cost more to put right later.
There’s also the paperwork. Main contractors and clients often ask for CSCS cards, RAMS and insurance details, and we will confirm the paperwork you need with the quote.
On site: what to expect
The first thing on site is a walk round with your contact, to confirm the scope, the order of work and any areas we must keep clear. Then we strip out anything that has failed, prepare every joint and seal it. Smaller jobs around Fordstreet can be grouped with others nearby. A fixed quote is given before anything starts.
- The specification and schedule come first, so we know which details apply.
- We plan the sequence of floors, risers and voids with you.
- We compare every service penetration with its tested detail before sealing.
- Foam, ordinary sealant and debris come out first.
- The specified backing and sealant go in to depth and are finished neatly.
- Anything outside the detail is reported to you rather than sealed.
What we need from you
- Agree which areas must stay open
- Share the asbestos register for older buildings
- Flag any permit to work we’ll need
Getting a fixed quote
Every job follows the same four steps: send details, get a quote, we seal, guaranteed. To take the first step, ring 01277 525 020 or send photos by email.
Read more
What sets the cost
To price the job, we consider:
- Working within restricted access windows
- The size and state of each joint
- Induction, permit and paperwork requirements
- Location, for remote and island sites
What a job costs comes down to the quantity of joints, how much old material needs removing and the access. Call for a fixed quote once you have the details.
Before you send an enquiry
Good information means a firmer quote. Helpful details to send:
- The asbestos register, for older buildings
- What the building is and how it’s used
- Approximate linear metres or a joint schedule
- Your programme or deadline
Let us know the site, the scope and your timescale, and a fixed quote will follow. To get it moving, call the office on 01277 525 020 or use the quote form.
Also near Fordstreet
Also in Fordstreet
Compartment walls and floors in Fordstreet
Fordstreet has several hotels close by, all within 2 miles. Hotels are divided into compartments, and refurbishments that add pipes and cables through bedroom and corridor walls leave gaps to close. In England, Approved Document B covers fire stopping of openings and penetrations. References to the older BS 476 classes are being removed from it from 2 September 2029, after which the European classification, BS EN 13501-2, is the route, subject to transitional arrangements. Our part stays the same: the specified product, installed to its tested detail.
Older community buildings such as Church of St Margaret and St Catherine that have been rewired or given new heating can have service gaps through walls worth checking against the specification. Schools such as Holy Trinity CofE Primary School often have new data and services installed during holidays, and penetrations through fire-resisting walls should be checked afterwards. Hospital estates such as Essex County Hospital, 4.4 miles east of Fordstreet, are divided into fire compartments, and any service penetration through them should be sealed to the specified, tested detail.
Fordstreet is about 5 miles west of Colchester, in Essex. We cover Fordstreet and the rest of Essex, and jobs here get the same fixed quote and 12-month guarantee as anywhere else. Our Essex coverage takes in 644 places, from busy centres to rural villages. For work in that direction, see our London page (47 miles or so).
Postcode districts covered here: CO6 for service penetrations. Buildings on Ford Street, Fordstreet Hill and Ponders Road are within our area for service penetrations. Nearby places we also cover include Rose Green (1 mile north-west), Chappel (2 miles north-west), Swan Street (2 miles west), Wakes Colne (2 miles north-west) and Great Tey (2 miles west). Nearby towns on our patch include Colchester (5 miles east), Braintree (10 miles west), Maldon (13 miles south), Witham (10 miles south-west), Camulodunum (4 miles south-east) and Halstead (7 miles west).
Near you in Fordstreet
Locally, jobs take us to sites close to The Queen's Head Public House. The closest station to Fordstreet is Chappel & Wakes Colne station, roughly 1.8 miles north-west of the centre. Other landmarks nearby include Essex County Hospital (4.4 miles east) and Mount Bures (3.6 miles north). Open spaces near Fordstreet include Iron Latch.
What happens if it’s left?
The longer openings stay, the more there tend to be: each new service adds to the list. A schedule that is dealt with regularly stays manageable. Converted and older buildings near places like Fordstreet tend to move, and aged sealant cracks. A sealant with the right movement capability, correctly sized, lasts far better.
Pricing service penetrations depends on quantities, condition and access, and any specification that applies. Call for a quote.
Why appoint us
- Constructionline member for supplier checks
- Fully insured
- One number for every site we cover
- Over 20 years of commercial sealing
After the work
Every sealant joint needs some looking after, and how long they last depends on how they’re treated. Our advice:
- Look above ceilings when tiles are lifted for other jobs
- File the specified details where the next contractor can find them
- Check with the data sheet before painting over fire sealant
- Agree the fire-stopping specification before services go in
Once the seals are in, tell other trades they exist and must not be disturbed. If a seal has to be opened for a new service, it should be reinstated to the same detail using the same product.
Specify fire stopping early on refits, not as an afterthought. Details can then be picked to suit the actual pipes, cables and ducts, and the work runs in step with the M&E.
What sealant work can’t fix
Being straight saves everyone time. New sealant won’t cure:
- Signing off or certifying a building’s fire stopping
- Reviewing a building’s overall fire safety
- Large openings beyond what any sealant detail covers
If in doubt, ring 01277 525 020 or send photos by email and we will say what we think before you book.
Joints and surfaces we work on
- Cable penetrations
- Small duct penetrations where the tested detail allows
- Joints between fire-resisting walls and floors
- Linear gaps at wall heads
- Service gaps in risers
- Pipe penetrations