NFPA 80 Fire-Rated Door Inspection Checklist for Toronto PMs

Fall is when fire door orders start landing on property managers' desks. Buildings get inspected ahead of winter, and the same handful of door problems show up on order after order: missing labels, gaps outside tolerance, closers that do not close, latches that do not latch. Most of them are visible to anyone who knows where to look.

This checklist walks through the NFPA 80 checks you can run yourself before the inspector arrives, and what to do if an order is already on your desk. It is based on the inspections and re-inspections our crew supports across Toronto, Richmond Hill, Mississauga and the rest of the GTA.

Why Fire Doors Fail Inspection

A fire door is an assembly: door, frame, hinges, closer, latch and any glass, tested and labelled together. In Ontario, fire separations come from OBC Part 3, ongoing maintenance comes under the Ontario Fire Code, and the installation and inspection standard that applies to the door assembly itself is NFPA 80. Change one component with the wrong part and the opening is no longer what the label says it is.

In condos and older office buildings, the failures are almost always small changes made over years. A closer removed because a resident complained. A hold-open hook added for move-in day and never taken down. A new lock installed by drilling through the door. Each one seemed harmless at the time.

The Walk-Through Checklist

Take a phone, a flashlight and a coin. Walk every stairwell door, corridor door and service room door on your rated list.

1. Labels

Look on the hinge edge of the door and the hinge jamb of the frame for a fire label. It should be legible, not painted over and not removed. No label usually means the assembly cannot be verified.

2. Clearances

Check the gap between the door and frame at the head and jambs. Under NFPA 80 the typical maximum is 1/8 inch for steel doors. Check the gap at the bottom as well.

3. Self-closing

Open the door fully and let go. It should close all the way on its own. A missing, disconnected or leaking closer is one of the most common deficiencies.

4. Positive latching

When the door closes, the latch must engage. Push on the closed door. If it opens without operating the hardware, it is not latching.

5. Hold-opens and wedges

Look for kick-down stops, wedges, hooks or anything else that keeps the door open. Hold-open devices on rated doors must release on fire alarm.

6. Holes and modifications

Look for unused screw holes, through-bolts where hardware was removed, or field-cut openings. Holes larger than allowed and unapproved modifications are deficiencies.

7. Glass

Glass in rated doors must be rated glazing with its own marking. Wired glass or ceramic should be intact with no cracks.

8. Hardware

Exit doors in stairwells need fire exit hardware, not standard panic devices with dogging. Hinges, closers and locks should all be rated.

Quick rule of thumb

If a rated door does not close and latch on its own every time, it fails. Start there and you will catch most of what an inspector would.

If You Already Have an Order

A deficiency order comes with a list and a deadline. The fastest way through it:

1. Separate corrections from replacements. Many listed doors only need a new closer, latch or hinge set. Only doors with damaged labels, oversized gaps or unapproved modifications usually need replacing.
2. Get a written scope. It should list every opening on the order, the action for each, and a price range.
3. Plan around the deadline. Labelled assemblies have manufacturer lead times. Order those first and schedule corrections around them.
4. Document everything. Photos of labels, clearance readings and latching checks for every opening make the re-inspection fast.

This spring a Richmond Hill condo board came to us with twelve stair and corridor doors on an order. We separated correctable doors from replacements, installed new 90-minute labelled assemblies on the stair shafts, replaced closers and latching hardware elsewhere, and documented each opening. The order was closed at re-inspection.

What Fire Door Work Costs

Scope	Typical range
Correction: new closer, latch or hinges	Quoted per item, below assembly range
60-minute single door into existing labelled frame	$2,500-$4,000
90-minute stair assembly with new frame and exit device	$4,500-$7,000

These are installed ranges. A technician confirms specs and price at your free on-site measure.

A Note on Who Does the Work

Fire door work is not general handyman work. The installer needs to understand labels, clearances, rated hardware and how not to void an assembly. As a Toronto commercial door contractor, our crew is NFPA 80 trained, and our compliance coordinator documents every opening for the inspector.

Have a fire inspection coming up or an order on your desk? See our fire-rated door installation service, fire exit door replacement, and door closer installation for the most common corrections.