Flammable liquids, such as gasoline, paint thinner, degreaser, and other solvents, are often stored in a garage. A car in the garage can leak gasoline onto the floor, and the gas itself or its vapor is easily ignitable by a spark. Also, the carbon monoxide fumes generated by a car left running in the garage are deadly if allowed to seep into the home. So, for all these reasons, the International Residential Code (IRC) and Residential Edition of the Florida Building Code (FBC R302.5) have safety standards for a door that separates the garage from the house interior.

Interior Garage Door Code Standards

    The door cannot open directly onto a room used for sleeping purposes (bedroom) and must be one of the following types:

1. Solid wood door not less than 1-3/8” thick.
2. Steel door, with a solid of honeycomb core, not less than 1-3/8” thick.
3. A door with a 20-minute fire-rating.

    Here are examples we see during our inspections of when the safety standard has not been met:

•  An opening has been cut into the bottom of an otherwise acceptable door to install a pet door.
•  A steel door with a fixed glass panel that is not fire-rated has been installed. We check the “bug” on the glass and it is usually safety glass, but have yet to find one with glass that is fire-rated. The door shown below is an example. 
• A remodeler doing a “flip” house changes out all the doors in the home to update the interior, and replaces the old door to the garage with a hollow-core interior door.

       We recommend that the door between garage and residence should be equipped with a self-closing device, although no longer required by the IRC and FBC. Every few years there is a news story in Florida about someone, usually an older person, asphyxiated by carbon monoxide fumes because they left the door to garage open with their car running while they rushed into the house on a quick errand, then became distracted and stayed in the house, while forgetting to turn off the car or close the door.

    For details of the other fire separation requirements between garage and house, see our blog post What are the code requirements for fire separation between an attached garage and the house? It is further worth noting that a carport is required to have a minimum of two open sides by the IRC. If a third side is closed, it must be treated as a garage. See What is the difference between a carport and a garage? for more on this.

    Also, we suggest Can a bedroom door open into the garage?

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  To learn more about doors and windows, see these other blog posts:

• What causes sweating (condensation) on the inside of windows in the winter? 

• Is every exterior door of a house required to have a landing outside? 

• What are the small slots at the bottom of the outside of my window? 

• Why does condensation form on the outside of some windows and not others in the morning? 

• Why is the garage door track a white tube? 

• What is the raised metal plate on the floor under the garage door?

• Why do I have to hold down the button to close the garage door? 

• What is "low-E" window glass? 

• What does ANSI 297.1 on glass mean?

• Why is a double cylinder deadbolt lock on an exterior door a safety hazard? 

• How can I check my garage door to make sure it is safe?  

• What are the common problems you find inspecting windows?

• What is causing a foggy haze on my windows? 

• What do those numbers on the manufacturer's stickers in new windows mean?

• Do I need to have two exterior exit doors in my house? 

• When is safety glass required for windows at stairs and stair landings?

   Visit our DOORS AND WINDOWS page for other related blog posts on this subject, or go to the INDEX for a complete listing of all our articles.