Fire stopping in Winchester
Fire stopping for Winchester, from a contractor working since 2005. Fully insured, with a 12-month guarantee.
- Open linear gaps along the top of fire-resisting walls
- Non-fire-rated filler around services
- Openings found when ceilings come down for a refit
Fire stopping across Winchester
Photos, a specification or a quick description of the joints is enough to start a fixed quote.
Fire stopping for commercial buildings in Winchester
A lot of fire-stopping work comes after M&E installation, a refit or a tenant fit-out. Each new cable, pipe or data route cut through a fire-resisting wall leaves an opening behind, often unnoticed. We close the openings listed on your schedule, using the specified sealant and detail. Most enquiries involve builders’ foam or ordinary silicone in compartment walls and unsealed openings around new pipes and cables, on cable penetrations, service gaps in risers and small duct penetrations where the tested detail allows. A specialist sealant contractor works differently from a general builder: in Winchester, that means joint design, primers and backing rod as standard.
Bigger buildings around a town like Winchester are often done in sequence: services first, then penetration and linear seals. We work to the specification and the manufacturer’s installation guidance, while design and sign-off stay with the designer and building control.
Building owners and contractors get the same cover: a 12-month guarantee on our workmanship. Faults in the structure, damage and other trades’ work fall outside it, and we say so plainly.
When to call us in Winchester
Mixing products or improvising a detail breaks the link with the test evidence. Gaps beyond the tested size, shallow sealant, no backing where it was needed, or products from different systems mixed together are the usual culprits.
Any of the following is a good reason to get the joints checked over:
- Snag lists that include open service penetrations
- Unsealed openings around new pipes and cables
- Fire stopping installed outside its tested range
- Head-of-wall gaps with no fire seal
At a university such as University of Winchester (0.5 miles west of Winchester), labs, lecture blocks and residences are re-serviced often, so penetration seals are best checked after M&E work.
Before you book anyone
- Will failed sealant be removed rather than covered?
- Proof of insurance
- Can the work be phased to keep areas open?
- How joint depth will be controlled
Also near Winchester
Other services in Winchester
Your questions answered
Can work in a care setting near Winchester go ahead while residents are there?
Yes. We agree rooms and times with the manager and work a few areas at a time. Any site rules, from signing in to infection control, are agreed before we start.
Do you seal service penetrations in hotels around Winchester?
Yes. We install fire-rated and intumescent sealant where it is specified. Work is done room by room so the hotel keeps trading; design and sign-off stay with the designer and building control.
Do your applicators hold CSCS cards?
Yes. We use CSCS-carded applicators.
Can the sealant be colour-matched?
It 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.
Do you take on small jobs?
Small jobs are welcome alongside larger packages. Photos and a description are enough to start.
Is it fine to apply new sealant on top of old?
No. We cut the old material out and clean the joint back before sealing, since fresh sealant will not bond reliably to aged material.
Do you hold CHAS accreditation?
Yes. We’re CHAS accredited and a Constructionline member, which helps with supplier vetting.
Different surfaces, different methods
Cables and cable bundles
Cable penetrations are frequently sealed with fire-rated sealant where the detail allows. The detail limits bundle size and the gaps between and around cables.
Metal pipes
Metal pipes conduct heat, so their details often call for extra measures along the pipe. We follow whatever the detail requires and flag anything we can’t match.
What we can’t put right
A proper diagnosis includes knowing what sealant can’t do. We will tell you if the real problem is one of these:
- Deciding what a wall or floor needs, which belongs to the designer
- Issuing fire ratings or certificates for seals
- Construction that lacks the fire resistance the seal relies on
If you’re not sure, just give us a call on 01277 525 020 or email drawings and photos and we’ll give you a straight answer before you book.
What we seal
- Small duct penetrations where the tested detail allows
- Pipe penetrations
- Service gaps in risers
- Joints between fire-resisting walls and floors
- Linear gaps at wall heads
- Cable penetrations
From enquiry to sign-off
Site rules come first: signing in, inductions and any permit to work. Once we are cleared to begin, the joints are worked through in the order agreed with your site contact, and each area is checked before we leave it. For premises in central Winchester, deliveries and parking need a bit of planning, while out-of-town estates typically have yards and car parks. Let us know what’s there when you send details.
- We start with your penetration schedule, drawings or specification.
- We plan the sequence of floors, risers and voids with you.
- We compare every service penetration with its tested detail before sealing.
- Unsuitable material is removed and the opening cleaned.
- The specified backing and sealant go in to depth and are finished neatly.
- We tell you about openings that need a different product.
Getting the site ready
- Send any specification or drawings in advance
- Clear stock, furniture or equipment away from the joints
- Let building users know which areas are affected
Quotes
Tell us about the building, the joints and when you need the work done, and a fixed quote will follow. The easiest way is to phone 01277 525 020 or send photos by email.
Related advice
Fire stopping around Winchester: what changes locally
The area within 2 miles of Winchester holds a good number of hotels. A hotel refit often runs new services through compartment walls between bedrooms and corridors, and each opening needs the specified seal. 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.
Theatres, wards and plant rooms at sites like Royal Hampshire County Hospital (0.6 miles west of Winchester) all have compartment walls crossed by services. For a unit at a site such as Bar End Industrial Estate, which lies south-east of Winchester, new power or data runs between office and warehouse can breach a compartment wall.
Winchester is in Hampshire. Businesses, contractors and managing agents in Winchester use us for work on service penetrations, as part of our coverage of Hampshire. Winchester is one of 723 places in Hampshire on our list. Sites around Southampton have their own page, roughly 10 miles from Winchester.
Postcode districts covered here: SO22, SO23, SO32 and SO21. Among the streets we cover are The Square, Market Street and Market Lane. With the A31 and A32 nearby, Winchester is straightforward for us to reach. Nearby places we also cover include Bar End (1 mile south-east), Highcliffe (1 mile east), Hyde (1 mile north), St Cross (1 mile south) and Stanmore (1 mile south-west). A short drive away, we cover Eastleigh (6 miles south), Fareham (15 miles south), Andover (13 miles north-west), Totton (13 miles south-west), Chandler's Ford (6 miles south-west) and Hedge End (10 miles south). Among the larger centres in Hampshire is Winchester, and its commercial and public buildings are all within our area.
What’s near Winchester
We work on buildings around Peter Symonds College, The Green Man pub and Leigh House Hospital and the streets around them. For rail, the closest station is Winchester station, roughly 0.6 miles north. Other landmarks nearby include Winchester City Museum (less than half a mile north-east) and St John's Rooms And Chapel (less than half a mile east). The countryside around Winchester includes Winnall Moors and Twyford Down.
General trades versus a specialist
For most general trades, sealant is a sideline. A specialist prepares properly, controls joint depth and picks a product with the right movement class, which is what makes a joint last.
Redoing a failed joint usually costs more than getting it right at the outset, because the whole bead must be removed and the faces cleaned back again. That’s why many clients bring in a specialist from the beginning.
Why act early in Winchester
Inspections and handover checks often pick up fire stopping. Late discoveries can delay handover while openings are reopened and resealed, so earlier action pays back. In a town the size of Winchester, traffic, footfall and weather keep working on a failed joint. Catching it early keeps the fix simple.
Access often affects the price as much as the sealing: easy-to-reach joints are quicker than those that need equipment to get to. Mention the access as part of your enquiry.
Why clients in Winchester choose us
- Products installed to the manufacturer’s instructions
- Public liability insurance in place
- CSCS-carded applicators
- 12 months’ guarantee on every job
Take a look at our cost guide and our accreditations and insurance.