Is James Hardie Siding Fire Rated

For homes that have a fireplace or live in areas vulnerable to wildfires an investment of james hardie siding could literally save lives.

Is james hardie siding fire rated.

Fibre cement cladding from james hardie has a fire rating of a2 s1 d0 which is the highest possible fire rating for a coloured cladding board. Read more about fire resistant cladding here. Of course wood siding is rather vulnerable to fire due to its nature and building material. A homeowner cannot get any better fire safety quality than that.

Because of this the product itself is not 1 hour fire rated. Think of jh products as a pan used for cooking. Ul 263 fire tests of building construction and materials. The astm rating for james hardie siding classifies it as non combustible.

While jameshardie products will not ignite when exposed to direct flame or contribute fuel to a fire heat will transfer through them. It is not 1 hour fire rated but it is still classified for use in certain 1 hour fire rated warnock hersey and ul assemblies. Ubc 7 1 94 uniform building code standard. James hardie fiber cement siding is fire resistant which is a huge advantage compared to wood or vinyl siding.

Designs listed are minimum construction requirements to achieve fire rating. This means that it is a non combustible cladding and will not ignite when exposed to direct flame or extreme heat nor will it contribute fuel to a fire. A fiber cement product simply does not burn. All james hardie siding and trim materials from hardieplank lap siding to hardiepanel vertical siding to straight and staggered edge hardieshingle siding are rated as non combustible based on astm fire resistance tests.

That said while james hardieplank siding won t allow fire to penetrate your home s interior it does allow heat to transfer. However they do qualify for use in certain 1 hour fire rated warnock hersey and ul assemblies. While vinyl siding is technically non flammable it does warp and melt when close to flames. James hardie siding products will not combust or spread flame and can be installed as part of a 1 hour fire resistance rated wall assembly which can help buy critical time for the homeowners to evacuate and fire professionals to extinguish flames a main reason it.

It does not provide a good barrier for flames.