Fire-rated sealing and fire stopping in Old Town, Edinburgh
Our CSCS-carded applicators take on fire-rated and intumescent sealing of service penetrations and linear gaps in Old Town. Send photos or drawings for a fixed quote.
- Unsealed penetrations discovered above suspended ceilings
- Fire seals cut back for extra cables and never reinstated
- Improvised or mixed-product fire seals
Fire stopping for Old Town sites
Send drawings, photos or a joint schedule, or tell us about the site, and we’ll come back with a fixed quote.
What we can’t put right
Some faults sit outside our scope, and we point that out rather than sealing over them:
- Fire doors, dampers or other fire safety equipment
- Openings that need collars, wraps, batts or boards rather than sealant
- Construction that lacks the fire resistance the seal relies on
Not sure which it is? You can call the office on 01277 525 020 or email drawings and photos and we’ll tell you honestly.
Joints and surfaces we work on
- Pipe penetrations
- Linear gaps at wall heads
- Small duct penetrations where the tested detail allows
- Cable penetrations
- Service gaps in risers
- Joints between fire-resisting walls and floors
Fire stopping in Old Town, done properly
Sealant is the specified answer for plenty of openings, such as metal pipes, cables and some small ducts where the detail covers them. Larger openings and some plastic pipes call for collars, wraps, batts or boards instead. We use sealant where it is the specified product, and we tell you when a detail calls for something else. We work on linear gaps at wall heads, joints between fire-resisting walls and floors and service gaps in risers, and the usual reasons a site gets in touch are openings left by services added after handover and fire seals cut back for extra cables and never reinstated. Sealant applicators who only do sealant are a different proposition from a general trade with a gun in the van: in Old Town, that means joint design, primers and backing rod as standard.
Under Scotland’s building standards, a service penetration should keep at least the fire resistance duration of the wall or floor it passes through. In Old Town, penetrations get the fire-rated sealant the specification asks for, built to its tested arrangement.
Our 12-month guarantee is about workmanship, not wear and tear. How long a sealant joint lasts depends on movement, exposure, cleaning and use, so we spell out the cover before we begin.
- Location
- Old Town (EH1, EH8, EH3)
- Region
- Edinburgh
- Cover
- 12 months on every job
- Quotes
- Quoted before any work starts
- Telephone
- 01277 525 020
- Page updated
- 3 November 2026
For managing agents and facilities managers
Main contractors use us as their sealant subcontractor, on new build and refurbishment alike. We work to your programme, your specification and your site rules, with CSCS-carded applicators on site.
Agents, factors and owners’ representatives all follow the same route: send details, get a fixed quote, we seal, guaranteed. We can agree access arrangements and keyholder contacts beforehand.
Why it’s worth doing now in Old Town
A seal that doesn’t match its tested detail gives false comfort. The fix is to remove it and reinstall to the detail. Failed sealant in a shared building in Old Town can affect more than one owner. Acting early avoids disputes and bigger repairs.
We don’t publish prices, because the scope varies so much from one building to the next. Call for a quote.
Why choose Mastic Doctor in Old Town
- Our applicators hold CSCS cards
- Fully insured, including public liability cover
- CHAS accredited
- Failed material removed, not covered up
See what affects the cost and our accreditations.
Also in Old Town
Where services cross fire walls in Old Town
Under the Scottish non-domestic Technical Handbook, clause 2.1.14, penetrations should be fire stopped to at least the wall or floor’s fire resistance duration, and products should be tested for their end use. Our part is installing the specified fire-rated sealant to its tested detail. The area within 2 miles of Old Town holds plenty of hotels. A hotel refit often runs new services through compartment walls between bedrooms and corridors, and each opening needs the specified seal.
For a hospital such as Astley Ainslie Hospital, which lies south of Old Town, penetration sealing is normally phased ward by ward, with infection-control rules agreed first. Tenant changes at centres like Waverley Mall (under half a mile north of Old Town) often mean new services through walls between units. Residences at universities like Old College (University of Edinburgh), less than half a mile to the east of Old Town, have compartment walls that must be resealed whenever services change.
Old Town is about 1 mile north-east of Edinburgh, in Edinburgh. Commercial clients in Old Town can call on us for service penetrations, as part of our coverage of Edinburgh. Our Edinburgh coverage takes in 174 places, large and small.
We take on service penetrations across the EH1, EH8 and EH3 postcode area. Buildings on Meuse Lane, High Street and Meadow Lane are within our area. Nearby places we also cover include Lauriston (1 mile south-west), Buccleuch (1 mile south-east), Holyrood (1 mile north-east), Dumbiedykes (1 mile east) and Canongate (1 mile north-east) for service penetrations. A short drive away, we cover Queensferry (8 miles west), South Portobello (3 miles east), Southhouse (4 miles south-east), Gilmerton (4 miles south-east), Muirhouse (3 miles north-west) and Gracemount (3 miles south-east).
Around Old Town
Locally, jobs take us to sites close to St Cuthbert's Church, Greyfriars Bobby Bar and The Meadows, among other places. You will also find Old Royal High School (0.6 miles north-east) and National Museums Scotland Library (under half a mile south-east). Old Town has its own railway station: Edinburgh Waverley station. Other landmarks nearby include Edinburgh Castle (less than half a mile west) and Museum of Scotland (less than half a mile south-east). Not far away are Salisbury Crags and Dunsapie Loch.
Should maintenance staff do it?
What you see is the finished bead, but most of the work is hidden. Correct depth, the right primer and a sealant matched to the movement are where general trades tend to cut corners.
For a quick touch-up, site staff may be fine, but anything bigger is another matter: a specialist works through quantities efficiently, leaves a consistent finish and backs it with a 12-month guarantee.
Maintenance after handover
Sealant joints are maintenance items, and their life depends on movement, exposure, cleaning and use. We suggest:
- Make fire stopping part of every scope that crosses a fire-resisting wall
- File the specified details where the next contractor can find them
- Have penetrations checked while they can still be seen
- Ask the designer to confirm details early on refits
After the work, brief anyone else working in the area that the openings are now sealed. If a seal has to be opened for a new service, it should be reinstated to the same detail using the same product.
A simple record of seal locations and products helps. When a new service goes through, everyone knows which product and detail to match, and it helps at inspections.
Old Town: questions and answers
Do you work on fire-rated sealing in hotels in Old Town?
Yes, to the specification and the product’s tested detail. Each seal follows the tested detail, and rooms are done in turn.
Can you work around term dates at a campus such as Old College (University of Edinburgh)?
Yes. We plan campus work around teaching, exams and residence turnarounds. Tell us which site documents you need, such as RAMS, our insurance certificate or CSCS details, and they’re confirmed with the quote.
Is your workmanship covered by a guarantee?
Yes, for 12 months. If our installation fails in that time, we return and fix it.
How long does a job like this take?
The duration is planned around your programme and the access we’re given. We will give you an estimate of time on site when we quote.
Can you follow the specification on our project?
Yes. Include it with the drawings when you ask for a quote, and we’ll price the work to it.
How do you choose the sealant?
If the job is specified, we follow the specification. Otherwise, we recommend a product to suit the joint’s movement, the substrate and the conditions, following the manufacturer’s guidance.
How long before the joints can be used?
That comes down to the sealant and the temperature. Some take light use quickly, others need longer to cure, so we’ll confirm the curing time on the day.
Our process
The first thing on site is a walk round with your contact, agreeing which joints are in scope, where to start and what must stay open. Then we strip out anything that has failed, prepare every joint and seal it. In a Scottish city, kerbside space and loading need planning, especially near the centre. Shared closes, stairs and the property factor may need to be part of the plan.
- First we go through the drawings, schedule or specification for the seals and ask about anything unclear.
- On site, each opening is checked against the tested detail it is meant to follow.
- Unsuitable fillers and loose debris are taken out of each opening.
- We fit the backing the detail asks for, to the stated depth.
- We apply the specified sealant to the depth and around the services as the detail shows.
- If an opening needs something other than sealant, we tell you instead of improvising.
Before we start on site
- Point out any areas we must not close
- Tell staff and tenants when we will be in
- Point out parking and an unloading spot
Getting a fixed quote
Quotes are fixed against the scope you send, so the cost is agreed before work starts. To start the process, call the office on 01277 525 020 or send photos by email.