What Causes a Fire to Spread?
If a fire breaks out on your business premises, it can be hugely damaging.
Not only does it put your and your employees’ lives at risk, but it can also cause devastating damage to your property.
The best way to stop a fire from causing total destruction is to prevent it from spreading. While this is easier said than done, by understanding what causes a fire to spread you give yourself the best chance of containing it.
In this article, the expert commercial fire safety team here at Millennium Fire Protection will outline how a fire can spread.
How does fire spread?
For any fire to start, the three elements of the fire triangle will need to be present
- Oxygen
- Heat
- Fuel
And if a fire is to spread, then it will also require the presence of these three things.
If the fire triangle is complete, then there are four ways that a fire can spread.
This includes:
Convection fire spread
Convection spread is the most dangerous way that a fire will spread through a property. It’s no secret that heat rises – it’s the main reason why the upstairs of properties tend to be hotter than the downstairs.
This phenomenon can be seen with fire, too, as it will naturally rise. In enclosed spaces, like offices, the heat can become trapped and it can then spread horizontally across the room. As this happens, combustible elements can ignite, causing the spread to worsen and engulf the entire space.
Conduction fire spread
Conduction spread is another type of spread that can commonly occur when a fire spreads through another material.
Certain materials are better at conducting heat and fire than others, including metal. The spread of fire through metal pipes is a common type of conduction spread that occurs in commercial properties and this can cause a fire to move from room to room.
Radiation fire spread
This type of fire spread sees heat transferred via electromagnetic waves in the air. Transmitting in every direction of a room, this heat can then be absorbed by combustible objects which will exacerbate the fire.
A radiation fire spread is the main way a fire will spread into neighbouring buildings, and it can also penetrate windows and gain access to adjacent properties.
Direct contact
Another common way that a fire will spread is through direct contact with combustible materials.
Fuel sources of combustible materials in the vicinity of the flames can cause a blaze to quickly spread.
How long does it take for fire to spread?
Fires can spread extremely quickly, which is why they are so dangerous.
Within just 30 seconds, a small fire can turn into a major one and within five minutes an entire property can be engulfed.
This is why it is so important to have commercial fire safety products in place that can compartmentalise a fire and slow the spread.
This includes having quality fire doors installed which can help contain a blaze in one place while you call the emergency services.
At Millennium Fire Protection, we provide businesses and commercial organisations in Harrow, Ealing, Watford and beyond with leading fire safety services. This includes products such as fire doors to prevent the spread of fire, as well as alarms, extinguishers and more. To find out more about what we do, get in touch with our team today.