R'BULL Pro 13 fire test: side by side with a competitor

Flame retardant is a word, not a value

On a supplier's data sheet, the words flame retardant say nothing measurable. There is no threshold behind them. What does exist is a reaction to fire classification established in a laboratory under EN 13501-1, with a letter, a smoke index and a droplet index. A product with no written classification can be sold as flame retardant without anyone quite lying.

What a comparison at equal conditions shows

Both samples get the same flame, in the same place, for the same length of time, and the camera does not cut. That is the only set-up that allows a conclusion. A test where each product gets its own treatment compares nothing at all.

Three questions worth asking a supplier

What is the full classification, letter and both indices, not only the letter. Which laboratory established it and on exactly which reference, because a range can have several versions. And on what date, because a reformulation changes the result.

R'BULL Pro 13 is classified B-s1,d0 under EN 13501-1. The installation conditions that classification allows, building by building, are set out on our fire regulations page. The product sheet is on the R'BULL Pro 13 page.

The real cost of cheaper insulation

The price gap between two thin insulation products is counted in cents per square metre. The gap in consequences, if there is a fire, is counted in insurance, rehousing and structural repair. It is one of the few items on a job where the economic calculation is not made on the purchase price.