Services
Fire-Rated Bulkheads in Brisbane

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?
How long does a bulkhead take?
Can services still be accessed afterwards?
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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