Fire-rated sealing and fire stopping in Wickham, West Berkshire
Commercial sealant work in Wickham for contractors, FMs and building owners: fire-rated and intumescent sealing of service penetrations and linear gaps, quoted at a fixed price.
- Head-of-wall gaps with no fire seal
- Unsealed penetrations discovered above suspended ceilings
- Fire stopping installed outside its tested range
Fire stopping in Wickham
Share the site address and what’s failing, and we’ll reply with a fixed quote or arrange a visit.
Fire stopping in Wickham: the local picture
Approved Document B is the English guidance that covers fire stopping around openings and penetrations. The national BS 476 classes are due to drop out of it from 2 September 2029, leaving the European BS EN 13501-2 route, subject to transitional arrangements. Our part stays the same: the specified product, installed to its tested detail. Central London is about 58 miles from Wickham. Tenant changes on commuter-belt business parks mean regular fit-outs, and new services through compartment walls; the gaps need the specified seal.
In a school such as Welford and Wickham C.E. Primary School, fire-rated sealant goes in around service penetrations where it is specified. Older community buildings such as Church of St Swithin that have been rewired or given new heating can have service gaps through walls worth checking against the specification.
Wickham is about 6 miles north-west of Newbury, in West Berkshire. Across the RG20 postcode area, it works the same way: details in, fixed quote out, then sealing and a 12-month guarantee. Our West Berkshire coverage takes in 140 places. We also cover Reading, around 20 miles from Wickham.
We take on service penetrations across the RG20 postcode area. Buildings on Welford Road, Baydon Road and Mant Close are within our area for service penetrations. We also cover Easton (1 mile east), Weston (1 mile north), Clapton (1 mile south-west), East Shefford (2 miles north) and Shefford Woodlands (2 miles north-west) for service penetrations. Bigger towns within reach include Newbury (6 miles south-east), Thatcham (8 miles east), Speenhamland (5 miles south-east), Hungerford (4 miles south-west), Lambourn (6 miles north-west) and Shaw (6 miles south-east).
Near you in Wickham
We work on buildings around The Five Bells pub. The nearest railway station is Kintbury station, roughly 3 miles south of the centre. A little further out are Hamstead Marshall 3 (3.4 miles south-east). Green spaces nearby include Sole Common Pond.
How we handle fire stopping in Wickham
A fire-rated sealant is only one part of a tested system: the evidence covers a specific product, wall or floor type, service, gap, depth and backing. Before we seal anything, we check the opening against the detail it is meant to follow, and raise it with you if it falls outside. Site teams most often ask us about expanding foam used as fire stopping and damaged fire seals in risers and voids, on cable penetrations, small duct penetrations where the tested detail allows and linear gaps at wall heads. A single leaking joint is often how a building in Wickham first comes to us: we look at the rest while we’re there and tell you what we find.
Rural conversions around Wickham 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.
We stand behind the joints we seal with a 12-month guarantee. That covers our preparation and application.
- Location
- Wickham (RG20)
- Region
- West Berkshire
- Cover
- 12 months on our workmanship
- Quotes
- Quoted before any work starts
- Telephone
- 01277 525 020
- Last updated
- 3 November 2026
When something else is needed
A few problems need another trade or a different fix, and we point that out rather than sealing over them:
- Deciding what a wall or floor needs, which belongs to the designer
- Approving the work on behalf of building control
- Fire risk assessments, a job for a competent assessor
If in doubt, ring 01277 525 020 or send details through our quote form and we will say what we think.
Surfaces we seal
- Service gaps in risers
- Linear gaps at wall heads
- Pipe penetrations
- Joints between fire-resisting walls and floors
- Cable penetrations
- Small duct penetrations where the tested detail allows
Diagnose, treat, sign off
We bring the products specified for the job, along with primers and backing rod. Joint faces are cleaned back to sound, dry surfaces, the manufacturer’s primer is applied where it’s called for, and each bead is tooled to a neat concave finish. Smaller jobs around Wickham can be grouped with others nearby, which keeps travel down. You will have a fixed quote before work starts.
- First we confirm the product and tested details named in the specification.
- Openings are measured and grouped by detail.
- Improvised fillers and failed sealant are removed.
- Mineral wool or other backing is fitted where required.
- Fire-rated or intumescent sealant goes in around the services and is tooled off.
- We walk the completed areas with you and confirm the records agreed at quote stage.
Getting the site ready
- Let building users know which areas are affected
- Agree which areas must stay open
- Confirm the product named in the specification
Getting a fixed quote
For a fixed quote, call the office on 01277 525 020 or use the quote form with the site address and an outline of the work. Our quote form is another easy route.
Related advice
After the work
For the best life from the joints:
- Keep general-purpose fillers away from compartment walls
- Ask which product is in place before decorating
- Make fire stopping part of every scope that crosses a fire-resisting wall
- Arrange inspection before areas are covered up
Keep the product data and installation details with the building’s fire safety information. It makes later repairs much easier to match.
A simple record of seal locations and products helps. When a new service goes through, everyone knows which product and detail to match, which saves guesswork.
What the job involves on each surface
Cables and cable bundles
Data cabling added after handover is a regular cause of open service penetrations. We reseal around them to the specified detail, and we tell you if the bundle exceeds what sealant covers.
Plastic pipes
Waste and drainage pipes through floors are a frequent case. Whether sealant alone is acceptable depends entirely on the tested detail, and we won’t substitute it for a specified collar.
Owners, agents and contractors
We work for building owners and managing agents on everything from one building to a spread of sites. One quote can cover more than one site, which keeps the paperwork simple.
If you look after buildings for someone else, clear figures and clear communication matter. We quote a fixed sum, confirm the scope and walk the finished work with you or your representative.
Your questions answered
How does the removal of BS 476 from Approved Document B affect fire-rated sealing in Wickham?
References to BS 476 classes are being removed from Approved Document B from 2 September 2029, after which BS EN 13501-2 classification is 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.
Is a smaller place like Wickham outside your area?
Not at all: smaller places are covered as well as towns. We work across Greater London and the South East. Send photographs and a list of what needs doing, and we will plan the job to need as few trips as possible.
Who decides which product is used?
If the job is specified, we follow the specification. If not, we choose for the movement, the surfaces and the conditions, in line with the manufacturer’s guidance.
Will you quote for a small job?
Small jobs are welcome alongside larger packages. Photos and a description are enough to start.
What do you charge?
We don’t publish prices, as every site differs. Send photographs or drawings and we’ll price it at a fixed figure.
What happens if old sealant might contain asbestos?
Managing asbestos is the dutyholder’s responsibility, so for older buildings we ask for the asbestos register first. Work pauses if suspect material is found, until it has been tested.
How do we ask for a quote?
There are four steps: send details, receive a fixed quote, we carry out the work, and it’s guaranteed. The first step only needs photographs and a postcode.
Why act early in Wickham
It is cheaper to seal service penetrations as each services package finishes than to come back for them later. Openings are visible, access is open and nothing has to be taken down and each detail can be checked as we go. Halls, stores and units around places like Wickham may not be checked every day, which gives a failed joint time to do damage. Renewing joints in good time avoids the problem.
Larger quantities, tricky access or phasing all shape the price. Site requirements like inductions and permits play a part as well, along with the time of year for external work.
What you get with us
- CSCS-carded applicators
- Fixed quotes based on photos, drawings or a visit
- Failed material removed, not covered up
- 12-month guarantee on workmanship
Take a look at what affects the cost or our accreditations.