Over the last 10 years apartment owners have become more aware of their rights and responsibilites. Including the defect warrantly period and the obligations of the builder and developer.
Fire protection defects are more common that waterproofing defects in apartment buildings.
Although while more buildings than ever before are being inspected for defects and the defect process is being managed, the most important defects of all are being missed and not inspected.
Fire System Defects
Fire defects are the second most common defect after facade and before waterproofing.
It is often assumed that if a building is obtaining an annual safety certification from a fire inspector the building is compliant and fine. But this is a common and dangerous assumption, the annual inspection only inspects the fire systems listed for the annual inspection, and they are checking for failures, not defects.
Apartment building fire defects can be classified in 5 groups
- passive 45%
- active 22%
- escape 14%
- fire fighting equipment 8%
- other 11%
Fire Defect Examples
| Fire Protection: Sub-categories | Examples of Defects Reported |
| Active – Fire Doors | Fire door seal incomplete, water damaged fire door, fire door hardware defective, incorrect / no signage to exit doors, fire door non-compliant, missing fire door hardware |
| Active – Dampers | Damaged fire damper to access hatch |
| Escape – Lighting | No or incorrect exit signage, emergency light not working |
| Escape – Obstructions | Exit pathway obstructed, lockable security screen obstructing fire door, trip hazards in fire escape pathway |
| Escape – Plans | Inconsistent emergency evacuation plans |
| Fire Fighting Equipment | Extinguisher missing, fire protection tags out of date, insufficient clearance around fire hose reel |
| Fire Hazards | Non-compliant combustible materials in fire rated zone, combustible materials in fire escape pathway |
| Passive – Fire Penetration Seals | Missing fire collars, missing or incomplete fire separation to penetration, no fire barrier at penetration, multiple services in penetrations, fire seal to wall / slab junction is non-compliant, incorrect size fire collar, non-compliant concrete infill around service penetration, damaged fire rated wall |
| Passive – Fire Separation | Compromised fire barrier, cracking to fire rated ceilings, lack of appropriate fire separation between units, fire seal missing, incorrect material used for fire barrier |
| Warning & Detection Systems | Incomplete installation of fire detection system, lack of fire detection system, missing smoke detectors |
| Water-based Systems | Hydrant valve clearance insufficient, fire booster valve prematurely corroded, incomplete installation of fire sprinkler system, premature corrosion of fire sprinkler system |
FIre defects are often high-cost items to access and repair, and they often require quick action once they are discovered as over 90% of the fire defects relate to the safety of people within the building.
Next Step
To avoid overlooking the second largest ground of building defects have a suitably qualified fire engineer inspect your building for fire defects and have strata defect lawyer advising the owners how to manage the process.