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Fire door closer

Updated: October 2026

A fire door only works if it is shut. A fire door closer pulls the leaf closed from any angle, not a wedge and not a star rating. If you rent a flat, manage a block, or you are the responsible person for a common stair, you need to know which doors must do that. This page follows the Fire Safety (England) Regulations 2022 guidance on GOV.UK. Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland run their own arrangements. Listings in our [door closer comparison](/hub/door-and-window-security/door-closer) are claims, not certificates. Peter F. did not fire-test a closer. A purchase through our links can earn a commission at no extra cost to you.

A fire door only works if it is shut. A fire door closer pulls the leaf closed from any angle, not a wedge and not a star rating.

Our top picks

MARIE MARIE 1403 hydraulic door closer

Best overall

MARIE MARIE 1403 hydraulic door closer
4.4/10about £19.99
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Napoleon Napoleon N-1000 overhead door closer

Rank 2

Napoleon Napoleon N-1000 overhead door closer
7.8/10about £49.90
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Carlisle Brass Carlisle Brass CDG003 overhead door closer

Rank 3

Carlisle Brass Carlisle Brass CDG003 overhead door closer
8.5/10about £15.12
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On this page
  1. 1.Which fire doors have to shut themselves
  2. 2.The two-position shut test
  3. 3.What the closer itself must be
  4. 4.Wedges and mechanical hold-open
  5. 5.When you stop being the fitter

Which fire doors have to shut themselves

Under the England guidance on GOV.UK, flat entrance doors and fire doors in common parts need a self-closer. The door has to shut itself. Internal doors inside a dwelling, and a locked cupboard, are the usual exceptions. A bedroom door is not the door from the flat onto the stair. The Fire Protection Association puts the protection in the shut door, and notes that a wedge can draw enforcement. A chain spring is not compliant because a listing mentions fire doors.

The two-position shut test

Open the door fully and let it go. It should latch. Open it to about 15° and let it go again. It should latch from that angle too. A door that flies shut and then sticks has failed. Look for a leak, a bent arm and loose screws. About 25 seconds for a full close is good practice, not a legal stopwatch, and this glance is not a Fire Door Inspection Scheme survey. Side gaps are treated as an industry practice of no more than 4 mm, except at the bottom. Speed only is adjusted on how to adjust a door closer.
MARIE MARIE 1403 hydraulic door closer

Testsieger

MARIE MARIE 1403 hydraulic door closer
4.4/10about £19.99
View offer

What the closer itself must be

BS EN 1154’s printed classification is a six-digit code. Sizes 1 and 2 are not the fire or smoke grade. Size 3 is about 950 mm and a 60 kg test door. If width and mass disagree, take the higher size. Power, before brand, is in the door closer buying guide. The Carlisle, the comparison’s top pick, names EN 1154 and Certifire. The Napoleon names EN 1154 and EN 1634. Those are claims. One Napoleon buyer said it did not close their fire door. The MARIE hold-open, any angle from 90° to 180°, has no fire-door standard. Leave it off a flat entrance.

Wedges and mechanical hold-open

A wedge, a chair or a hook means the closer never closes the door. A mechanical 90° hold-open is the same failure. VOXVEPHY, JDNOL, TUAKIMCE and MARIE sell that catch. The allowed interruption is electrical, to BS EN 1155, released by the alarm, which the Fire Protection Association ties to BS 7273-4. The Offfay is the best value only for a light non-fire door. Springs and the DODUOS cable do not show a six-digit EN 1154 code. The mechanism is on hydraulic door closer vs spring.

When you stop being the fitter

Stop when the door binds, the evidence is missing, or you are the responsible person and nobody competent has looked. A listing bullet that says fire door is not a declaration. Do not drill a new hole pattern into a fire-door leaf. The England guidance is not the statute in Scotland, Wales or Northern Ireland.

Common questions

Do fire doors in England have to close themselves?
Flat entrance doors and fire doors in common parts need an effective self-closer under the Fire Safety (England) Regulations 2022 guidance on GOV.UK. The door should shut and latch from fully open, and again from about 15°. A closer that only works if someone pulls the door is not doing that job. This England guidance is not the statute in Scotland, Wales or Northern Ireland. Closing from any angle is still what self-closing means.
Does a flat entrance door need a closer if internal doors do not?
Yes. The flat entrance, and fire doors on the common stair, are the doors the England guidance tells you to check. Internal doors inside the dwelling are not the same requirement. A bedroom door that drifts open is a nuisance. The entrance door that stands open onto the stair is the fire door. Do not copy a bedroom spring onto that entrance because both doors are in the same flat.
Can I prop a fire door open with a wedge?
No. A wedge holds the door open, so the closer cannot shut it. The Fire Protection Association notes that wedges can draw enforcement. A chair, a bin or a hook is the same failure. If the door must stay open in normal use, the route is an electrical hold-open to BS EN 1155 that releases on the alarm, considered with BS 7273-4. A wedge is not a temporary version of that device.
Is a mechanical 90° hold-open allowed on a fire door?
No. A catch that parks the door at 90° until someone pulls it off is a manual hold-open. Where a fire door has a hold-open, BS EN 1154’s position is that it is electrical, to BS EN 1155. A 90° feature on a cheap closer is useful on a non-fire door and the wrong feature here. While the catch is engaged, the door fails the let-go-and-it-shuts test.
When do I stop and call a fire-door inspector?
Call a competent person when the door will not latch from both positions, when it binds or the gaps look wrong, when the closer leaks or the arm is bent, or when you cannot find evidence of a BS EN 1154 closer for that leaf. Also stop if you are the responsible person and the common parts have not been inspected. Do not drill a new pattern of holes to try a closer that might fit.

Related pages

Best overhead door closer

Door closer

Door closer buying guide: type, size and paperwork

How to adjust a door closer: sweep, latch and stop

Hydraulic door closer vs spring: checked or tugged

Sources

Public UK guidance and trade sources from the research digest, used for this page in October 2026. Prices, stars and review counts are the amazon.co.uk figures dated 19 October 2026. A listing claim of EN 1154 or Certifire is not treated as a certificate for your door.

  1. GOV.UK: Fire Safety (England) Regulations 2022, fire door guidance (retrieved 19 October 2026)
  2. Approved Document M, volume 2 (2024 amendments) (retrieved 19 October 2026)
  3. Code of Practice: hardware for fire and escape doors (retrieved 19 October 2026)
  4. Hoppe: BS EN 1154 (retrieved 19 October 2026)
  5. GAI door closer safety checklist (retrieved 19 October 2026)
  6. Fire Protection Association: do fire doors need to be self-closing? (retrieved 19 October 2026)
  7. Intertek: EN 1154 (retrieved 19 October 2026)
  8. MB Direct: how to adjust the speed of a door closer (retrieved 19 October 2026)