Essex · Fire damper testing
Fire Damper Testing in Housham Tye
Fire damper testing in Housham Tye, surveyed first and signed off with a written report and photos. Ask us for a fixed quote.
- Dampers flagged on a fire risk assessment
- Dampers that stick or will not close fully
- Dampers hidden with no access panel or hatch
Between visits
Once we’ve finished, these simple steps help:
- Book the next test before the year runs out
- Store test records alongside the fire risk assessment
- Make sure access panels stay clear and usable
- Keep cables and fixings away from damper blades
Share the results with your fire risk assessor, so the assessment reflects where the dampers stand. Outstanding faults should be dealt with, not left on file.
The simplest way to avoid failures is to test on time, every year. Faults caught early are easier to fix.
Fire damper testing in Housham Tye, done properly
Fire dampers sit inside ductwork where it passes through a fire-resisting wall or floor. A fusible link holds the blade open until heat melts it, and the blade then drops to shut the duct. Drop testing proves that this still happens, and every result is written down, damper by damper. If you have dampers clogged with dust or grease and blades that jam part-way when released, we can help.
In rural areas, conversions, country hotels and care homes can have ductwork crossing fire-resisting walls, and the dampers in them are easily forgotten. The first visit starts by locating each damper.
The report is your system’s health record: a dated account with pictures of everything we did. Grease extract cleans are also certificated to TR19® Grease through the BESCA VHE portal, ready for your insurer.
- Where
- Housham Tye (CM17)
- Wider area
- Essex
- Reporting
- Written report with photos
- Quotes
- A fixed price before work begins
- When we work
- Evenings, overnight and weekends; 24/7 emergencies
- Phone
- 0345 646 2711
- Checked
- 30 October 2026
Your questions about fire damper testing in Housham Tye
Which fire service covers Housham Tye?
Essex County Fire and Rescue Service is the fire and rescue service for Housham Tye. If a fire safety officer audits the building, they may ask for the latest damper test records.
Do you do school damper testing in Housham Tye in the summer holidays?
Yes, out-of-term visits are normal for schools. The FSA’s register shows about 4 schools and colleges with food registrations within roughly a mile and a half of Housham Tye. Send us your term dates when you call us on 0345 646 2711 or drop us a line, and we will fit the work in.
Can you set up regular visits?
Yes, of course. Send details of the systems and how they’re used and we’ll propose a schedule with a fixed quote.
What does TR19 mean?
It’s BESA’s specification and the benchmark insurers, fire officers and EHOs look to. It sets out inspection, cleaning and record keeping and expects a risk-based approach.
Can one contract cover all our sites?
Yes. Send the list of sites and the work at each and you will get one fixed quote.
What if parts of the system cannot be reached?
The report shows them clearly. In ductwork, new access panels are often the answer, and we can fit those.
Do you carry out smoke damper testing?
Yes. We operate each smoke damper from its controls and check it opens and closes fully. Where a controls contractor needs to be involved, we arrange it with you.
Whose job is it to make sure fire dampers are tested?
Under the Fire Safety Order 2005, it’s the responsible person, such as the employer, owner, landlord or managing agent. They must keep fire safety measures, including dampers, in working order.
Also near Housham Tye
What else we do in Housham Tye
In-house cleaning or a specialist?
Day-to-day cleaning is something your team can do: wiping canopies, washing grease filters and recording it in a log. Inside the ducts, risers and fan is specialist work, and that’s where we come in.
When your team notices a problem between visits, such as dripping grease, a noisy fan, a smell or a filter that won’t come clean, it’s best reported rather than tackled in-house. We can diagnose it and quote.
How the job changes from site to site
Offices and retail
Offices and shops often have dampers above ceilings that are rarely opened. Testing can be done outside opening hours to keep disruption down.
Smoke dampers
Testing smoke dampers sometimes needs input from whoever looks after the control system. We plan that with you before the visit.
What affects the cost of fire damper testing
The survey tells us what the work involves. We look at:
- The number of sites or systems
- Whether we need access equipment or extra panels
- Site rules, permits and inductions
- Whether it’s a one-off visit or part of a schedule
The cost depends on the size of the system, the condition it’s in and access to every part of it. You get a fixed price before we start, so you know where you stand.
What to send for a quote
To speed up the quote, please include:
- Detail shots of panels, filters and grilles
- The roof, plant room or outside wall the system runs to
- When the site is open and when it’s quiet
- Where the site is and what kind of site it is
Here’s what helps us quote: the address, the type of site and when it’s open, photos of the system and the last certificate or report, if there is one. Once you have those, ring 0345 646 2711, or send details by email.
The process
A visit follows the same order every time: sheeting and protection first, make the system safe, carry out the fire damper testing, tidy up and leave you the report. On site, the work takes a morning or an afternoon for a small number of dampers, longer where there are many. Somewhere as small as Housham Tye, the date and timings are agreed with you well before the day.
- We go through the damper schedule and any previous faults.
- Each damper is found and checked for access.
- We test fire dampers by dropping them and smoke dampers by operating them through the controls.
- Dampers that pass are reset, and failures are logged with what we found.
- The report sets out the results, and we can quote to repair or replace failed dampers.
Preparing for the visit
- Move anything stored near the system
- Agree a time when the area can be out of use
- Dig out any earlier paperwork for the system
Ask for a quote
Some systems can be priced from photos; others need a survey. Larger sites, and anything hidden behind walls, ceilings or floors, are normally surveyed first. Either way, the quote is fixed before any work is booked.
Advice
Why deal with it now?
After any fire, one of the first questions is what maintenance had been done. A damper test log helps show the responsible person kept on top of things, and they only exist if the testing happened. In a place like Housham Tye, ductwork and fans are easy to forget until something goes wrong.
The price reflects the work, not guesswork. That is why every job is surveyed first, and the price is agreed before work begins.
Why book with us
- Work around your opening hours, with 24/7 emergency cover
- Full insurance on every job
- Every visit written up, with pictures
- Fixed quotes, normally within one working day
Fire dampers in Housham Tye buildings
The FSA’s food hygiene register lists about 4 schools, colleges and universities and about 4 caring premises (care homes, nurseries and hospitals) with registered kitchens or food service within 1.5 miles or so of the middle of Housham Tye. Larger buildings like these are often divided into fire compartments, with dampers where ducts pass between them. Essex County Fire and Rescue Service covers Housham Tye. Under the Fire Safety Order, the responsible person has to keep fire safety systems, dampers included, in working order, and the fire authority enforces that in most non-domestic premises. For Housham Tye, the closest hospital is Princess Alexandra Hospital, roughly 4.1 miles west. A hospital is the kind of building where dampers sit on every floor, and clinics, surgeries and care homes need the same annual testing for any they have.
Hospitals such as Princess Alexandra Hospital, about 4.1 miles west, are a good example of buildings with dampers on many floors; if you manage a clinic, surgery or care home near Housham Tye, the same annual testing applies. Historic buildings that have had ventilation added later can hide dampers in awkward places; Barrington Hall, about 4.8 miles north-east, is one of the historic houses in the area around Housham Tye. If you manage a school site such as Mark Hall School, any fire dampers can be tested in the holidays.
Housham Tye is about 3 miles east of Harlow, in Essex. For fire damper testing in and around Housham Tye, please call 0345 646 2711 or email us for a fixed quote. We work across South East England and London, Housham Tye included. Housham Tye is one of 644 places in Essex we cover for fire damper testing. We also work in Chelmsford, about 13 miles from Housham Tye.
Our technicians cover all of the CM17 postcode area for fire damper testing and the roads nearby. We also cover the places around Housham Tye: Matching Tye (1 mile east), Matching (1 mile north-east), Loyter's Green (1 mile south-east), Newman's End (1 mile north-east) and Foster Street (2 miles south-west). We also work in nearby towns such as Chelmsford (13 miles east), Harlow (3 miles west), Brentwood (12 miles south-east), Billericay (15 miles south-east), Loughton (10 miles south-west) and Waltham Abbey (10 miles south-west).
Near you in Housham Tye
We work in commercial kitchens and buildings around Gibberd Garden, among other places. For rail, the closest station is Harlow Mill station, about 2.2 miles west. A little further out are Harlow Mill (2.4 miles west) and Mark Hall Cycle Museum (2.5 miles west). Not far away are Sawbridgeworth Marsh.
Landlords, agents and facilities managers
For anyone managing more than one site, we can schedule visits across all of them on one quote. Every building has its own written report, so each one has its own record.
When the building owner and the occupier are different, it’s worth checking the lease for who maintains the systems. We can quote either party, and the report can go to both.