Fire protection for steel beams · Shrewsbury
Fire protection for steel beams in Shrewsbury
Steelwork, approvals and making good for fire protection for steel beams in Shrewsbury and nearby.
- Free survey visit in Shrewsbury
- Engineer's calculations arranged
- Building control handled for you
- Free survey visit
- Engineer's calculations arranged
- Building control handled
- Fixed written price once scope is agreed
- England, Wales, mainland Scotland & NI
About our fire protection for steel beams service in Shrewsbury
If you live in Shrewsbury, fire protection for steel beams can usually be planned and priced after a single survey visit. It sits about 12.9 miles from Telford, which we also cover. We cover SY1, SY2 and SY3, and we fix the price in writing once the layout and scope are agreed.
A bare steel beam is strong at room temperature but loses much of its load-carrying capacity once it gets hot enough in a fire. If that beam holds up a floor or the walls above, it matters to everyone in the building. Fire protection slows the rate at which the steel heats up, buying time for people to get out safely.
Worth knowing before you start
- Boxing a single beam usually takes around a day, plus skimming and drying. Intumescent coatings need each coat to dry before the next goes on, so they can take several days depending on the thickness required and the room temperature.
- Fire boarding should not be cut into casually later on. Downlights, cables and pipes pushed through the boxing can weaken it, so services are planned before boarding, and any openings are sealed with suitable fire-stopping materials.
- Exposed steel is popular in open-plan kitchens and loft spaces. An intumescent system can take a decorative top coat in most colours, although up close the finish has a slightly textured look compared with steel painted in a factory.
- Steel does not burn, but it loses stiffness and strength as it heats. Protection is there to keep the temperature of the beam down for a set period, so the floor or walls it carries stay up while people leave.
- The fire resistance needed depends on the building and where the steel sits. In a typical two-storey house, elements of structure commonly need 30 minutes, but taller homes, flats and commercial premises can need more. The engineer and building control confirm the figure.
What happens, step by step
Free visit
A short visit to Shrewsbury to see the job, agree what you want and check the bearings, floors and services that affect the design.
Calculations
The engineer's calculations and a simple drawing are prepared for your opening and shared with you before anything is ordered.
Building control
We submit a building notice or full plans application to Shropshire Council, so approval is in place before the wall is touched.
Steel in, made good
On site we prop, open up, fit and pack the steel, then fire protect, box in and plaster once the inspection is done.
Guide prices for fire protection for steel beams in Shrewsbury
As a guide, budget £150–£600 per beam including VAT for fire protection to a steel beam in Shrewsbury, based on published UK cost guides adjusted for prices in the West Midlands (no adjustment).
| Job | Typical guide range | What it usually covers |
|---|---|---|
| Fire protection to a steel beam | £150–£600 per beam | Fire-rated board boxing or an intumescent coating system as specified |
| Steel beam replacement | £2,000–£5,500 | Propping, removing the failed beam, new steel on proper bearings, approval and making good |
| Steel column or post | £500–£1,500 per column | Column supplied and fitted with base and cap plates on a pad foundation |
| Structural calculations for a beam | £250–£750 | Site measure or photos, beam and padstone design and calculations for building control |
Figures include our approximate regional adjustment for prices in the West Midlands (no adjustment) and are rounded. How these figures are worked out.
Approvals in Shrewsbury
In England, taking out a load-bearing wall or putting in a beam is building work under the Building Regulations 2010. It needs approval from building control, either Shropshire Council or a registered building control approver, through a full plans application or a building notice. Part A covers the structure and Part B covers fire safety, which is why steel in homes is usually fire protected.
If the beam bears into a wall you share with a neighbour, the Party Wall etc. Act 1996 applies, and a party structure notice must be served at least two months before that work starts. We arrange this through a party wall surveyor.
Fire protection for steel beams near Shrewsbury
- Wellington 9.9 mi
- Telford 12.9 mi
- Loughton 20.6 mi
Fire protection for steel beams in Shrewsbury: your questions
Do you cover Shrewsbury for fire protection for steel beams?
Yes. We carry out fire protection for steel beams in Shrewsbury and the SY1, SY2 and SY3 postcode districts. Book a free survey visit and we will check the wall, arrange the engineer's calculations and send an itemised written quote.
Do you also work near Shrewsbury?
Yes. We also cover nearby towns including Wellington, Telford and Loughton.
My steel beam was fitted years ago without fire protection. What should I do?
Have it looked at and protected to current requirements. Unprotected steel can raise questions when you sell, and if the original work was never approved, a regularisation application to building control may be needed in England and Wales. We can survey the steel and price both the protection and the paperwork route.
Can I put downlights in a boxed-in steel beam?
Only with planning. Cutting holes in fire boarding can weaken its protection, so any lights in or near the boxing need to be designed in, using fire-rated fittings or suitable fire-stopping where the board is pierced. It is far easier to sort this out before the boxing goes up than to adapt it afterwards.
Does a steel beam in a house need fire protection?
Usually, yes. Where a steel beam or column holds up part of the structure, building regulations normally require it to resist fire for a set period, commonly 30 minutes in a typical house. Building control confirms what is needed for your property, and the protection is checked before the work is signed off.
Can you work on older or listed homes in Shrewsbury?
Yes. Older homes often have lime mortar, timber lintels or shallow footings, which the engineer allows for. Listed buildings need listed building consent for internal structural changes as well as building regulations approval, and that must be in place first.