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The Underwriters Laboratories (UL) 723 Surface Burning Characteristic of Building Materials test is a United States fire safety standard which determines the burning characteristics, or fire resistance, of building materials that may be exposed to flames.
The results of this test are used to determine whether interior finish materials for wall and ceiling applications in commercial facilities are acceptable. The scope of testing exposes specimens to a test fire and evaluates the flame spread across the specimen’s surface as well as the density of smoke produced.
A 5/8 inch (approximately 16mm) thick sheet of standard, untreated, plywood was painted with a 1.3mm coat of Zenova FP fire protection paint and exposed to flame by Intertek, in accordance with the appropriate testing criteria.
Although the plywood substrate was highly flammable, the test concluded that the addition of Zenova FP fire protection paint greatly reduced flame spread and does not contribute significantly to smoke development.
Also known as thermofoaming paint or Intumescent Paint, ZENOVA FP Fire Protection Paint is a fire-resistant water-based paint that prevents the ignition and spread of fire.
As a result of being exposed to heat, the intumescent paint swells and creates a light char foam, increasing in volume and decreasing in density. The heat transfer from the flames to the substrate is thereby greatly diminished. Treated materials become isolated from elements that maintain fire combustion since the paint turns into an insulating protective membrane.
Zenova FP high temp test
B&TT carried out a real-world test of the Zenova WB and FP products. 2 identical scaled sets were built, each set then had a fire set inside them and left to propagate.
A side by side demonstration on how Zenova FP protects even polystyrene a highly combustable material as demonstrated in this short video
Two kitchens were set on fire. The walls and ceiling of one kitchen were painted with Zenova FP fire protection paint. The benefits are clear.
A like for like test with a large global brand of fire retardent paint clearly shows a significant differance in performance.
Zenova FP Fire Protection Paint test, showing treated versus untreated timber
See how our Intumescent Paint swells and creates protects the covered surface
This side-by-side demonstration clearly shows the effectiveness of our Zenova FP Fire Protection Paint when applied on any substrate.
This side-by-side demonstration clearly shows the effectiveness of our Zenova FP Fire Protection Paint when applied on any substrate.
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