IMPORTANT
INFORMATION ABOUT FIRE RETARDANT COATINGS
FIRE RETARDANT COATINGS ARE AN IMPORTANT
LIFE SAFETY BUILDING PRODUCT.
Professional building and fire inspectors
will know that they reduce the flammability
of interior or exterior surfaces to meet
building or fire code requirements.
If the coatings are not properly applied,
they can not provide the necessary protection
and very often, the coatings are not applied
to the required thickness or are substituted
with other coatings.
The following questions and answers will
help to determine if the coatings are suitable
and have been properly applied.
Q 
How can I confirm that the coating will
perform as required ?
A
Underwriters’ Laboratories are a preferred
test facility because they provide a label
service which indicates information such
as Flame Spread Rating on the can
label. The
coating manufacturer pays a fee for these
labels, and this is important for inspectors
as the label provides on-site proof that
the coating will give the required protection
if applied correctly.
Q
Is the product in the can the product that
was tested ?
A
ULC, for example, carry out on-going regular
plant inspections and product examination
to ensure that the product is formulated
as originally tested. Labels are printed
under license and are audited by ULC to
confirm that labels are being applied to
tested product only.
Q
How much of the coating must be applied
to provide the required protection ?
A
Obviously, the coating must be applied at
the thickness at which it was tested in
order to provide the rated fire protection.
Refer to the test information shown on the
ULC label to determine the amount of coating
required. NOTE; It may not be possible
to apply the required thickness in one coat
and two or more coats may be necessary to
build the required coating thickness.
Q
How can I confirm that the coating has been
applied correctly ?
A
Establish the total square feet of area
to be coated and divide this by the required
square feet per gallon (spread rate) as
indicated on the test report, to obtain
the number of gallons required.
Example 1: The
area to be coated is 1200 square ft and
the spread rate indicated on the label is
two coats at 300 sq. ft. per gallon per
coat. Then 1200 divided by 300 = 4 gallons
per coat x 2 coats = 8 gallons.
Example 2: Some
coatings may not indicate the number of
coats, but only the required spread rate,
i.e. 100 sq.ft. per gallon - then 1200 square
feet divided by 100 = 12 gallons.
Q
How must the coating be applied ?
A
Many fire retardant coatings may be applied
by any paint contractor or the property
owner, but some coatings may require a licensed
applicator.
Q
Can fire retardant coatings be top coated
to increase their durability ?
A
Yes, but top coats must be as designated
in the test information on the can label.
Note that many conventional coatings, used
as topcoats, are inherently flammable or
may interfere with the performance of the
fire retardant coating. Do
not confuse top coats with fire retardant
coatings.
CERTIFICATE OF APPLICATION: Use
of a Certificate of Application as attached,
signed by the coating supplier and the applicator,
will provide the inspector with confirmation
that the proper type and amount of coating
has been purchased and used on the project.
The certificate can be retained as a permanent
record for future reference.
Please contact us
if you wish more copies of this bulletin
or more information on fire retardant coatings.
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