At National Firestopping Solutions, we’re often asked what role firestopping really plays in building safety. Many facilities leaders assume that once detection, alarms, and suppression systems are installed, they’re fully protected. Firestopping is the critical layer that ensures those systems work together.
For National Preparedness Month, we sat down with two of our firestopping experts, Brandon Geer and Alex Cartier, to answer the firestopping questions they hear most often from facilities directors and others during site visits and industry events.
Firestopping isn’t just about code compliance, it’s about saving lives, protecting assets, and minimizing your facilities’ physical, regulatory, and financial risks.
Here are the top 10 questions we’re asked, along with answers from our experts.
1. Why should I worry about firestopping if my building already has a fire plan and meets code?
Brandon: Meeting code is like passing a driver’s test. It proves you understand the basics, but it does not guarantee safety in the real world. Firestopping is what keeps fire and smoke from spreading through walls, floors, and ceilings. Surveyors do more than review paperwork; they survey your facility. If they find gaps, penetrations, or poorly installed firestopping, you will likely be cited for non-compliant conditions leading to conditional accreditation. This avoidable situation places the organization at risk regarding hospital licensure, patient volumes, and ultimately CMS reimbursements.
2. With limited budgets and growing infrastructure challenges is firestopping really a good use facility spending?
Brandon: Firestopping is one of the most cost-effective safety measures, typically accounting for less than one percent of a project’s cost. Compare that to the cost of a failed survey, potential lawsuits, or loss of CMS reimbursement. A modest investment now can prevent significant financial consequences later.
3. If a fire happens, won’t alarms and sprinklers do the job?
Brandon: Alarms alert occupants and sprinklers buy valuable time, but neither prevent smoke from moving through unsealed openings. Smoke, not flames, is the leading cause of fire-related deaths. Proper firestopping creates compartmentation, slowing smoke migration and allowing people more time to evacuate safely.
4. Can’t my in-house team just handle repairs & installations?
Brandon: That approach is risky. Firestopping is not simply filling holes with caulk. It requires installations in compliance with tested & listed approved systems which have been designed by engineers and tested in a burn lab. If done incorrectly, the rated barrier will not perform as intended, and liability falls on the facility. Inspectors will not accept do-it-yourself solutions. Ultimately, you will need trained, qualified installers to perform the work correctly.
5. What’s the real-world difference firestopping makes?
Brandon: Picture an electrical fire starting in a patient room. Without firestopping, smoke and flames could spread into corridors and adjoining rooms within minutes. With properly installed firestopping, the fire remains contained in that room of origin for an hour or more. This extra time allows for safer evacuations, appropriate firefighter response, and better outcomes for everyone involved.
6. Why are scab patches no longer compliant?
Alex: Scab patches, blowout patches, or hot patches, although the terminology varies by region, are only compliant if specifically approved by your AHJ. This is becoming a more widely recognized issue as AHJs and surveyors gain greater awareness of proper practices.
The practice of screwing a new layer of gypsum board over an existing one to cover a hole or opening is not an approved method of repair. When small holes are created in rated barriers the Gypsum Association recommends following the procedures outlined in their publication GA-225-2025.pdf
Additionally, NFPA 1 12.3.3.2 states that any breach in a rated assembly be repaired and reconstructed to match the original tested design of the wall. In other words, the wall must be restored to its original fire-rated design, not simply patched over.
7. What’s the difference between a smoke barrier and a smoke partition?
Alex: A smoke partition is designed to resist the passage of cold smoke, but it is not tested to stop a fire. A smoke barrier, on the other hand, carries both a fire rating and an L rating. Fire ratings stop the spread of fire from one compartment to another for a set period. The L Rating measures air leakage. That test is designed to measure how much air will get through a wall or opening.
Both have important roles however; smoke barriers provide a higher level of protection. For specifics, refer to NFPA Chapter 19.
8. Does it matter if I have different firestop manufacturers’ products in the same barrier?
Alex: Using products from different manufacturers in the same wall or floor is acceptable, provided they are not combined in a single opening. Penetrations and openings must be firestopped using tested and listed firestopping systems, or an approved Engineering Judgment. Mixing materials within one opening can invalidate compliance and compromise performance.
9. My building is fully-sprinkled. Why does firestopping still matter?
Alex: Firestopping and sprinklers work together to provide complete protection. When water is applied to a fire, it often creates smoke. Firestopping prevents smoke from traveling while sprinklers suppress the flames. One system does not replace the other and both are essential.
10. Are you a competitor of Hilti, STI or 3M?
Alex: No. Hilti, STI and 3M are manufacturers of firestop materials and products. National Firestopping Solutions does not manufacture firestop systems. We install them. Our role is to ensure those products are applied correctly in accordance with tested and listed systems and code requirements. In other words, we partner with manufacturers by using their products to deliver safe, compliant, and effective firestopping solutions for our clients.
Final Thoughts
Every facility leader is responsible for ensuring safe environments, responsible cost management, and risk management. Firestopping is one of the few investments impacting all three. It protects people, reduces risk, and saves money in the long run. The question is not whether you can afford to do firestopping, it is whether you can afford not to.
This National Preparedness Month is the perfect time to evaluate your firestopping strategy. If you are unsure about compliance or want an expert evaluation, our team is ready to help you protect your people, your property, and your bottom line.