Fire Behaviour

Fire Resistance relates to the period for which an element of construction will resist the passage of flame, remain free from collapse and insulate against an excessive temperature rise on the unexposed face. The property relates to a building element and details of its construction, rather than a particular material.

All Wood Panels generally react to fire in the same manner as natural timber. The rate of burning or charring is similar for equivalent density and they do not shatter or delaminate.

All reconstituted wood panels are combustible. As with natural timber, burning will be limited by charring on the surface but shrinkage will tend to cause failure at joints unless proper consideration has been given to the design. Fire hazard indices for Wood Panels are given in Table 13.

The degree of hazard depends on the type and density of the board and any surface treatment. The ranges tabled cover the variations in board types of a particular product. Early Fire Hazard Indices can be improved by additives to raw material, surface treatments and coatings. For further information contact individual manufacturers.


TABLE 13 FIRE HAZARD INDICES