Fire-rated sealing and fire stopping in Houbie, Shetland Islands
Fire-rated and intumescent sealing of service penetrations and linear gaps in Houbie. CHAS accredited, Constructionline member, with a 12-month guarantee on workmanship.
- Seals disturbed by maintenance and left open
- Seals that don’t match their tested detail
- Fire-stopping items raised at inspection or handover
Need fire stopping in Houbie?
Send drawings, photos or a joint schedule, or tell us about the site, and we’ll come back with a fixed quote.
What we’re called out for in Houbie
Most open service penetrations are left by later work. New cabling, rerouted pipework or a data route drilled through a riser leaves an opening that nobody returns to. Over a few years of fit-outs, a wall can collect a lot of these.
Look out for the following:
- Fire-stopping items raised at inspection or handover
- Head-of-wall gaps with no fire seal
- Service penetrations left open after M&E works
- Seals disturbed by maintenance and left open
Halls and meeting rooms at places like Fetlar Church sometimes gain new services, and any compartment wall crossed needs the specified seal.
Questions to ask before you book
- How they’ll work around occupants
- Proof of insurance
- Will failed sealant be removed rather than covered?
- Will RAMS and insurance details be available?
How we handle fire stopping in Houbie
A lot of fire-stopping work comes after M&E installation, a refit or a tenant fit-out. New cable runs, replaced pipework and extra data routes all punch holes in compartment walls, often unnoticed. We close the openings listed on your schedule, using the specified sealant and detail. We work on linear gaps at wall heads, joints between fire-resisting walls and floors and pipe penetrations, and the usual reasons a site gets in touch are service penetrations left open after M&E works and unsealed joints where partitions meet the slab. Sealant applicators who only do sealant are a different proposition from a general trade with a gun in the van: in Houbie, that means joint design, primers and backing rod as standard.
In smaller Scottish places like Houbie, buildings with fire-resisting walls typically include schools, care homes, hotels and health centres. Where services pass through, specified fire-rated sealant is installed following the manufacturer’s guidance for that wall or floor.
A 12-month guarantee applies to all our work. If an installation problem shows up, speak to us on 01277 525 020 or email us and we’ll arrange a return visit.
- Place
- Houbie (ZE2)
- Wider area
- Shetland Islands
- Guarantee
- 12 months on every job
- Quote
- Fixed quote, scope in writing
- Telephone
- 01277 525 020
- Page updated
- 3 November 2026
Fire stopping around Houbie: points for this area
In Scotland, clause 2.1.14 of the non-domestic Technical Handbook expects service penetrations to keep at least the fire resistance duration of the wall or floor, with proprietary products, intumescent ones included, tested for their end use. Our part is installing the specified fire-rated sealant to its tested detail. Island jobs, Houbie among them, are planned around the ferry and the forecast. The specification and photographs of each penetration let us bring the right products first time.
For a school such as Fetlar Primary School, penetration sealing fits best at the end of the summer works.
Houbie is in the Shetland Islands. Anywhere in ZE2, the process is the same: send details, get a fixed quote, we seal, and the work is guaranteed. We work across 63 places in the Shetland Islands.
Business premises anywhere in ZE2 are within our area for service penetrations. Nearby places we also cover include Clivocast (6 miles north), Aywick (6 miles south-west), Mid Yell (7 miles west), Camb (7 miles west) and Burravoe (9 miles south-west). Island and remote sites need extra planning, with travel, ferry crossings where needed and weather to allow for, so give the site location in your enquiry.
Around Houbie
Other landmarks nearby include Fetlar Interpretive Centre (under half a mile south-east). The countryside around Houbie includes Vord Hill and Skutes Water.
On site: what to expect
Working in a building that stays open takes some planning. The work area is signed and kept contained, keep walkways clear and work section by section so the rest of the building stays in use. Tell us who will meet us and how to get in at your building near Houbie. That goes into the plan alongside the quote.
- We ask for the product and detail your designer has specified.
- Openings are measured and grouped by detail.
- Improvised fillers and failed sealant are removed.
- Where the detail needs backing, it goes in at the stated depth.
- We gun the sealant in to the specified depth around each service and tool it.
- We walk the completed areas with you and confirm the records agreed at quote stage.
What we need from you
- Make sure the joints can be reached
- Send your site hours and access windows
- Agree which areas must stay open
Quotes
A handful of photographs and a postcode is the fastest way to a quote. Upload them with the quote form, or phone 01277 525 020 or email us if you’d rather talk the job through.
Advice
What affects the price in Houbie
Quotes vary with the job. It mainly depends on:
- The site’s rules and procedures
- The total length or number of joints
- Travel to remote or island sites
- Specialist products, such as fire-rated or hygienic sealants
Access often affects the price as much as the sealing: joints within easy reach take less time than ones that need access equipment. Tell us how the joints are reached and call for a quote.
What we need to price the job
However big the job, the same details help:
- What the building is and how it’s used
- The site address and postcode
- Anything awkward about access or site hours
- Any specification or named product
Tell us about the building, the joints and when you need the work done, and a fixed quote will follow. To get it moving, ring 01277 525 020 or email drawings and photos.
Also in Houbie
FAQs: Houbie
What do Scotland’s building standards say about service penetrations in Houbie?
Scotland’s non-domestic Technical Handbook covers it in clause 2.1.14: penetrations keep at least the element’s fire resistance duration, with products tested for their end use. Design sits with the designer and the verifier; installation to the tested detail is our part.
Do you decide the fire-stopping details for buildings in Houbie?
No, that sits with the designer, fire engineer or building control. We install fire-rated and intumescent sealant around service penetrations and linear gaps where it is specified, to the manufacturer’s tested detail.
How do I request a quote?
The quote form is the simplest route, though you can also ring 01277 525 020 or email the details over. Photos, drawings or a joint schedule help us quote quickly.
Can you follow the specification on our project?
Yes. We follow the specification, along with the manufacturer’s installation guidance, and we raise anything unclear before work begins.
What happens if old sealant might contain asbestos?
Asbestos is possible in some older mastics, particularly in buildings from before 2000. We check the asbestos register before cutting out old sealant in an older building, and if asbestos is suspected, work stops until it’s tested. Removing asbestos is a job for asbestos specialists, not us.
Do you need to see the site first?
That depends on the size and complexity of the job. Simple work can often be priced from photographs, while larger or less clear jobs get a site visit first.
Is your workmanship covered by a guarantee?
Yes. It runs for twelve months and covers how we prepared and sealed the joints, though not damage or work by other trades.
When it isn’t the sealant
Sealant solves a lot, but not everything, and we are upfront when that’s the case. These need a different solution:
- Reviewing a building’s overall fire safety
- Deciding what a wall or floor needs, which belongs to the designer
- Gaps in walls that were never built as compartment walls
If you’re not sure, just speak to us on 01277 525 020 or send photos by email and we’ll give you a straight answer before you book.
Where we work in Houbie
- Linear gaps at wall heads
- Pipe penetrations
- Cable penetrations
- Service gaps in risers
- Small duct penetrations where the tested detail allows
- Joints between fire-resisting walls and floors
Should maintenance staff do it?
The visible bead is only part of the job. Correct depth, the right primer and a sealant matched to the movement are where general trades tend to cut corners.
Putting right a botched joint often costs more than sealing it well at the start, because the whole bead must be removed and the faces cleaned back again. For that reason, many FMs and contractors use a sealant specialist from the outset.
Maintenance after handover
Keep the joints in good shape with a few simple steps:
- Brief every trade that openings they make must be sealed
- Include service cupboards in routine inspections
- Have penetrations checked while they can still be seen
- Agree the fire-stopping specification before services go in
New services after handover are a common way fire stopping gets breached. Building it into each contractor’s sign-off keeps the walls intact.
A simple record of seal locations and products helps. When a new service goes through, everyone knows which product and detail to match.