Part M and apartments - internal door widths

Charlie-Bravo

Just looking through Part M 2000 for an existing building built in mid-00's - I am noticing apartments are a little different to dwellings in the way they're set-out in the document for door clear-widths. The approach to both types of buildings (dwellings and buildings other than dwellings) needs a door clear-width of 775mm in both cases - that's fine. But what I'm looking for is clear widths of internal doors and in particular, circulation within an apartment unit.

Internal doors in say, Common Areas would be satisfactory with a minimum clear-width 750mm (par 1.9a), this would mean that an apartment access door from a common area would only need to have a minimum clear-width of 750mm - this is also fine. But when you get into the apartment, there is no regs specifying what the circulation dimensions should be. I am struggling to find where in the guidance document it would mention that you treat an apartment like a dwelling so that section 1.28 covers the apartment. What I want to know is if the corridor has a width of 900mm, that the internal door needs to be 800mm!

I know there are newer regs since but I am looking at an existing apartment which would have to have complied with Part M 2000 - Would anybody have any insight on dealing with apartments and the application of Part M?

BryanF

I have NOT got the regs in front of me but IMO its 750 clear widthfor internal doors in flats

Are you buying this gaff? Are you not getting it visually surveyed to check on building regs etc? In flats/ apartments, I'd be more concerned about door closers, fire protection/ distances , safety and access etc. then secondly ventilation and heating and so on..

Can you summarise the actual problem?

BryanF

There may be some overlap here with part B, worth checking

Charlie-Bravo

Cheers BryanF - I was double checking part M as part of a survey of an apartment - I did pick up a handful of other things which are straight forward to resolve. I didn't like the fact that the corridor was 900mm wide with access to rooms at 90degrees and only a 750mm clear width door. Hence me looking through Part M 2000. Kinda costs to put in larger internal doors but if it doesn't explicitly say apartments, then maybe Part B might through something up!