FR Cleaning & Treating
NZ Fire-Shield is a division of John Herber Ltd and offers advice and consultancy regarding fire-retardant sprays and treatments, which prolong the life of drapes and curtains. A service is offered for treatment either in-house (suitable for most clients) or at the John Herber Ltd site. (The Inspecta-Shield™ product has an AS1530 pt2 and pt3 certification on draperies).
New Zealand’s Flammability Codes
Governmental building codes all have clauses pertaining to the flame retardant properties of flexible fabrics and materials when used in areas of assembly or egress. Fabric flammability is an important issue, especially for stage drapery and curtains that are used in public spaces such as theatres, cinemas, event venues, halls and sports centres, etc.
View the New Zealand Government’s Building Code Compliance Documents online.
Effects of Cleaning Drapes
When a fabric is designated as ‘permanently fire-retardant’, the flame retardant treatment lasts for the life of the fabric. In the case of fabrics designed as ‘fire retardant’ the flame retardant in the fabric will dissipate over time, especially with repeated cleaning.
Although all fabrics will burn, some are naturally more resistant to fire than others. Those that are more flammable can have their fire resistance drastically improved by treatment with fire retardant chemicals such as Inspecta-Shield™.
On-Going Care of Flame Retardant Items including Drapes
Any flame retardant or resistant item that has had its fire resistant coating removed or has had a flammable coating (including but not limited to airborne dust and flammable paints) applied or adhered to its surface, will have negated its flammability rating and at that point it will no longer comply to its original flame retardant standard.
Over time flammable dust will accumulate on these items and this coating of dust must be removed. During this removal, there is no guarantee of how much flame retardant is also removed from the item. The material must then be retreated again to meet code standard.
Certification of Flame Proofing
NZ Fire-Shield supplies certificates of flame proofing for items that have been treated by one of our certified applicators showing the date, applicator, product used and the relevant standard that it has been treated to. These certificates are valid for a period of 5 years. At which time the product will need to be cleaned and re-treated. A service is offered for treatment either in-house (suitable for most clients) or at the John Herber Ltd site. (The Inspecta-Shield™ product has an AS1530 pt2 and pt3 certification on draperies).
Flame Retardant Sprays & Service Enquiries
For protective sprays, consultation and application services, call us on 0800 No Flame (0800 66 35263). We offer advice on every project to get it done right.