A fitted fire door is not just a door. The price covers a certified FD30 or FD60 leaf, a matching frame, intumescent strips, fire rated hinges and a closer, all installed to the manufacturer's instructions so the door actually holds back fire and smoke. This guide sets out what South London homeowners and landlords typically pay, and why two quotes for the same doorway can differ by hundreds of pounds.
For a standard internal FD30 door supplied and fitted in a house or flat, most people in the Croydon area should budget somewhere between £450 and £900 per door. That usually covers a plain or panelled certified door leaf, a new frame or lining if needed, intumescent and cold smoke seals, three fire rated hinges, a suitable closer and the labour to hang and adjust it.
An FD60 door, a glazed fire door, or a front door to a flat opening onto a shared corridor tends to sit higher, often £900 to £1,800 fitted. Flat entrance doors need a letter plate, viewer, thumb turn lock and a heavier closer that all carry their own fire test evidence, and that hardware adds up quickly.
If you have several doors done in one visit, the price per door usually falls because the set up, delivery and site time are shared. A landlord converting a three storey house in Thornton Heath or South Norwood to meet HMO requirements might see £400 to £650 per door across six or eight doors, depending on the state of the existing openings.
The door leaf itself is often the smallest part of the bill. A basic primed FD30 blank costs the trade £80 to £150, while a veneered or painted flush door with a matching frame can be three or four times that. Glazing is a big one: a fire rated vision panel needs specialist glass, a tested glazing system and often a certified door supplier to cut the aperture, so glazed doors carry a real premium.
The condition of the opening matters just as much. Fire doors need a frame of the right thickness fixed solidly to the wall, with gaps of no more than about 3 to 4mm around the top and sides. In older Croydon terraces and converted Victorian houses the openings are frequently out of square, the walls are lath and plaster, and the existing lining is too thin. Packing, replacing the lining and making good the plaster all add labour time.
Hardware is the third factor. Every hinge, closer, lock and letter plate on a fire door should have its own test evidence for that door type. Cheap unrated ironmongery is a common reason a door fails an inspection even when the leaf is fine.
A fire door only works as a complete assembly, so be wary of a quote that is dramatically cheaper than the others. It often means the installer is reusing an unsuitable frame, skipping the cold smoke seals, or fitting a closer that will not reliably shut the door from any angle.
Ask what is written on the quotation. It should list the door's certification, the frame or lining specification, the seals, the hinges, the closer and any locks or letter plates, and state that the installation follows the manufacturer's fitting instructions. For rented property, block entrance doors or HMOs, a written record of what was fitted is what a fire risk assessor or the council will want to see.
Not every doorway needs a new door. If an existing fire door is sound but has worn seals, missing intumescent strips, oversized gaps or a broken closer, a remedial visit costing around £120 to £300 per door can bring it back to standard. This is common in purpose built flats where the original doors are fine but have never been maintained.
Upgrading an ordinary panelled door with paint on treatments or added seals is rarely a good use of money for a homeowner. The result has no test evidence behind it and most assessors will not accept it. Where a door is warped, delaminated, has been cut down, or has decorative glass that is not fire rated, replacement is almost always the cheaper route once you count the time spent trying to make an unsuitable door comply.
For a single family house, Building Regulations require fire doors between an integral garage and the house, and on rooms opening onto the stairs in houses with three or more storeys, including many loft conversions. Flats, HMOs and any shared building have additional duties under the Fire Safety Order, and the front door of a flat usually has to be a fire door.
Yes, and it can save money, but check that the leaf, frame and hardware are all compatible with the door's certificate before buying. Many self bought doors arrive with no frame, no seals and no test evidence for the hinges, which leaves the installer having to source the rest anyway.
A straightforward replacement into a sound opening takes a competent installer about half a day. Doors that need a new lining, wall repairs or a full hardware set for a flat entrance can take a full day, and multi door jobs are normally spread over one or two days.
Tell us what you've got, whether a single door, a block of flats or a commercial building, and we'll arrange a survey and give you a straight, written quote.
Tell us about the doors or the building and we'll come back to you with a straight answer.