by MacGregor Pierce
In 2015, The United States experienced 113,500 nonresidential structure fires (the latest year for which data on this are available), resulting in 80 civilian deaths and $3.1 billion in property damage. The same year, the country’s commercial buildings consumed approximately $144.8 billion in electricity. Building professionals face the multi-faceted challenge of minimizing all these figures for their clients.
An interesting dynamic in U.S. building codes is the dual requirement for the building envelope to both be energy-efficient and help protect life and property against fire. These two needs intersect clearly in wall-assembly requirements. On one hand, American Society of Heating, Refrigerating, and Air-conditioning Engineers (ASHRAE) 90.1, Energy Standard for Buildings Except Low-rise Residential Buildings, and the International Energy Conservation Code (IECC) require continuous insulation (CI); on the other, rigid-foam insulations commonly used to provide CI must also meet fire-safety requirements. Specifically, National Fire Protection Association (NFPA) 285, Standard Fire Test Method for Evaluation of Fire Propagation Characteristics of Exterior Non-loadbearing Wall Assemblies Containing Combustible Components, requires rigorous testing of foam-plastic insulation within wall assemblies.
This article focuses on rigid-foam CI options that can simplify meeting NFPA 285 requirements.
NFPA 285 overview
At its core, NFPA 285 is intended to evaluate the performance of combustible materials in wall assemblies required to be noncombustible.
Scope
With limited exceptions, International Building Code (IBC) Section 2603.5.5, “Vertical and lateral fire propagation,” requires wall assemblies in Type I, II, III, and IV construction using foam-plastic insulation to pass NFPA 285 testing requirements. Despite the use of ‘non-loadbearing’ in its title, NFPA 285 applies to both non-loadbearing and loadbearing walls.
The NFPA 285 official document scope states:
This test provides a method of determining the flammability characteristics of exterior, non-load-bearing wall assemblies/panels. The test method described is intended to evaluate the inclusion of combustible components within wall assembled/panels of buildings that are required to be of non-combustible construction. It is intended to simulate the tested wall assemblies’ fire performance.
It is important to remember NFPA 285 is an assembly test, not a product-specific test. Although a given component passes the test in one assembly, this does not mean it will be compliant in another. As a result, when designing NFPA 285-compliant wall assemblies, certain combustible components cannot be mixed and matched without engineering evaluation conducted within limits imposed by the IBC.
The test of the assembly is comprehensive and includes everything from the interior drywall to the exterior cladding, along with the structural elements, insulation, and water and air barriers.
Nice article. I am directing my Building Codes class to read the article. I will be looking for samples of the Polyiso product from the contact information.
Very informative article. I was eager to learn the NFPA285 procedure and I think it’s very interesting how they do it and conclude a final “pass” or “fail”.
Great article. I think having the NFPA 285 decide with pass or fail makes it easier and safer for the users.
This is a greatly informative article, it provided insightful details about the NFPA 285 test. The fire testing process is intriguing as well, it would be cool to see the test live & compare the reactions of the many products that undergo the evaluations.
This article really shows how involved and thorough fire testing can be. This seems like a great test to implement to avoid reinspections and redesigns.
Great read! This article was very helpful in understanding the NFPA 285 test.
Interesting article. It was well written and cut to the chase explaining the testing process and making it easy to understand. Hopefully the results from the testing help to cut down unneccasry casulaties from fires.
It is essential to ensure fire safety in building codes. Too many deaths and property damage occur when safety measures are not followed. It is interesting to know that one aspect of the fire inspection can pass; however, it fails in another aspect concerning material.
It best to use the NFPA 285 so that way it can be use on test and no live will be lost due to weak fire structure.
This article gives excellent detail about the whole NFPA 285 test process. This is an efficient way to prevent costly repairs from fire casualties.
Very informative article. I really enjoyed learning about the NFPA 285 and interesting to see how detailed one must be during fire testing.
The article is great and informative. It summarizes NFPA 285 in a way that is easy to understand and learn.
I’ve been trying to push our lab to run more of these types of tests. Not quite to this extent but similar fire-resistant materials. Great read!
Great article! Very informative regarding the NFPA 285’s fire safety procedures on combustible materials taken to reduce the risk of loss of life and property.
Well-written article. The information provided by NFPA 285 evaluation the performance of combustible and noncombustible materials to provide a safe wall assembly. The details of how they accomplish testing and assure safety are well-organized and laid out. Overall, the article gives a general and meaningful explanation of the main safety measures taken to complete a wall assembly.
A well organized article and i am looking froward to pass this article down to someone because it has a lo of valuable information.
great article without these rules and pass or fail many buildings structures and or projects wouldnt be that safe.
It is essential to ensure fire safety in building codes. Too many deaths and property damage occur when safety measures are not followed. It is interesting to know that one aspect of the fire inspection can pass; however, it fails in another aspect concerning material.
This is a fantastic article. The NFPA 285 ensures the safety of our materials while saving lives.
The information provided in this article was very helpful in learning what the NFPA 285 test is, how it was arrived at, and many more details that help us understand what the NFPA 285 test provides.
Thank you for this information, now I know how the wall assemblies’ performance are tested which is by time.
Very insightful article, I did not know that materials were tested in this way.
Great article, It was very useful for the class quiz on the NFPA 285 test.
Great article, it makes it very easy to understand NFPA 285.
This is an amazing article, has some very good key points. These codes are needed to reduce the risk of any issues later on in the future.
This was a very educational piece. I was extremely excited to understand the NFPA285 process since I find it fascinating how they conduct it, and determine if it is a final “pass” or “fail.” These are great articles and informative.
This article was very informative, it does a great way of explaining the NFPA 285 test and how it is vital for building occupant and fire safety.
The article is informative, and discuss NFPA 285 testing plays a crucial role in ensuring the safety and integrity of modern building designs, particularly those employing exterior wall assemblies with combustible components.
The article is well-written. I appreciate the fact that those beginning to learn about building codes and materials can read the article and easily understand the content. It’s amazing to learn about all the ways that building codes are written in order to provide safety and preserve life.
I appreciate this article because it is an excellent example of the effort being put nowadays into testing for fire safety. Further, I like how the article explains how fire safety and sustainability work hand in hand.
This was an amazing article. This has helped me understand some of the building codes.
This article is so informative and well-written. It was informative about the NFPA 285 and their safety procedures.
i think having regulations for types of insulation and foam insulation is critical. i’ve seen older fluffy style insulation in older homes and i know that it would catch fire and burn like a wildfire.
Very informative information on the NFPA 285 and its purpose in providing safety in the building process.
It’s interesting how this test is performed. I wonder how they came to a decision on the standard procedure of the test.
Very detailed article, interesting the way they conduct temperature tests on these materials.