Does Every Downlight Have To Be Fire Rated

When you faced with choosing recessed downlights for your home, the questions you might ask are do you want fire rated on non-fire rated downlights? Does every downlight have to be fire rated?

Surface mounted downlights don't need a fire rating, only recessed downlights have this requirement.

When a hole is cut into a ceiling to mount a Recessed downlight into, a potential fire hazard is created. In any building where people maybe living or inhabiting above, the ceiling below must be fire rated. Fire rated downlights are used to restore the fire integrity of a ceiling.

And when there is a fire, The fire rated downlights seal off the hole and slow down the spread of fire. Modern fire rated downlights are fitted with an in tumescent pad which swells up when it reaches a certain temperature and blocks the spread of fire. The fire then has to find another way around - delaying its progress.

This delay allows occupants to escape the building or ideally allows additional time for the fire to be extinguished. You will notice that some fire rated downlights are rated at 30, 60 or 90 minutes. This rating depends on the structure of the building and more importantly how many floors it has. The top floor of a block of flats for example would require a 90 or possibly 120 minute fire rating, whilst a ceiling in the bottom floor of a house would be 30 or 60 minutes.