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Fire Frog

Services

Fire-Rated Bulkheads in Brisbane

A fire-rated box-out built around a galvanised pipe, wrapped at the junction.

A fire-rated bulkhead encloses services where no single tested system covers the penetration: too many services in one opening, one too close to the edge, or an opening enlarged past what any seal is rated for. Instead of sealing at the element, the services are enclosed in a rated construction that carries the compartment around them.

The bulkhead is a build rather than a patch. It is set out around the services, framed and lined in a rated board or board-and-wrap system to the tested construction, sealed where it meets the existing structure, and finished so it can be inspected. The rating comes from the whole assembly, so the board type, the layer count, the fixing centres and the joint treatment all follow the tested detail.

It is also the right call where services need future access. A bulkhead can be built with a rated access panel so a riser can be got into again without cutting a hole in a certified seal every time.

A bulkhead is typically a two-day build on a commercial job, and it is quoted that way. Where a bulkhead is the right answer it is usually the cheaper one too, because the alternative is repeatedly reworking a penetration that no tested system covers.

What we cover

  • ✓Assessment of whether a bulkhead or a direct seal is the correct answer
  • ✓Set-out around the services, allowing for clearances the tested detail requires
  • ✓Framing and rated lining to the tested construction, with correct layer count and fixing centres
  • ✓Junction sealing where the bulkhead meets the existing slab, wall or structure
  • ✓Rated access panels where future access to services is needed
  • ✓Penetrations through the new bulkhead sealed to a tested system
  • ✓Certification of the completed assembly on request

Why choose Fire Frog?

Bulkhead work is built on commercial sites across Brisbane, the Gold Coast, the Sunshine Coast, Ipswich and Logan, commonly around service risers and plant penetrations in multi-level residential, office and retail buildings.

Common questions

When is a bulkhead needed instead of sealing the penetration?
When no tested system covers the penetration as it exists. That is usually too many services in one opening, services too close together or too close to the edge, or an opening cut larger than any seal is rated for. Enclosing the services in a rated construction is the way to get a compartment back.
How long does a bulkhead take?
Around two days on a typical commercial job, depending on the size of the run, the access and how much of the surrounding structure needs making good. It is quoted as a build with a start and a finish rather than as an hourly patch.
Can services still be accessed afterwards?
Yes, where that is designed in. A rated access panel lets a riser be reached again without breaking a certified seal. It is worth raising before the bulkhead is set out rather than after.

Where we work

Passive fire protection across South East Queensland

New build, rectification and annual survey work on commercial projects.

Passive fire protection, firestopping and certification on commercial projects across South East Queensland.

Working on a project elsewhere in South East Queensland?

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