EN 14470 is a European standard for fire safety storage cabinets. EN 14470-1 applies to cabinets designed for flammable liquids, while EN 14470-2 applies to cabinets for pressurised gas cylinders. The two parts have different scopes, fire classifications and testing requirements, so the correct standard depends on the materials being stored and the type of cabinet required.
In the UK, the current editions are BS EN 14470-1:2023 for flammable liquid safety cabinets and BS EN 14470-2:2006 for pressurised gas cylinder safety cabinets.
These are product standards for specific types of fire safety cabinets. They should not automatically be applied to every chemical store, external gas cylinder cage, hazardous material storage building or walk-in store.
BS EN 14470-1 specifies performance and testing requirements for fire safety storage cabinets used for flammable liquids.
The current edition is BS EN 14470-1:2023, which replaced BS EN 14470-1:2004.
The standard applies to qualifying fire safety storage cabinets with a total internal volume of no more than 2 m³. It does not apply to brick enclosures or walk-in storage rooms.
The former Type 15 classification was removed when EN 14470-1 was revised in 2023.
The standard also addresses cabinet construction, doors, storage levels, ventilation, spill containment, permitted openings, marking and information supplied by the manufacturer.
Read our full guide to BS EN 14470-1:2023.
Chemstore supplies fire safety storage cabinets designed for flammable liquids, including Type 90 cabinets providing 90 minutes of tested fire resistance.
View our Q90 90 Minute Fire Rated Cabinet.
Chemstore also supplies underbench fire safety cabinets for laboratory and workplace applications where flammable liquids need to be stored closer to the point of use.
View our EN 14470-1 90 Minute Fire Rated Laboratory Cabinets.
Further cabinet options are available through our
Asecos safety cabinet range.
BS EN 14470-2 is the corresponding standard for fire safety cabinets intended for pressurised gas cylinders.
The current edition is BS EN 14470-2:2006.
It applies to qualifying cabinets for pressurised gas cylinders with a combined cylinder volume not exceeding 220 litres.
BS EN 14470-2 includes requirements relating to:
Unlike BS EN 14470-1:2023, where the former Type 15 classification was removed, Type G15 remains part of BS EN 14470-2:2006.
BS EN 14470-2 does not apply to every form of gas cylinder storage. External gas cylinder cages, large purpose-designed stores and walk-in storage rooms are different types of installation and should not automatically be described as BS EN 14470-2 compliant.
Read our full guide to BS EN 14470-2:2006.
Chemstore supplies fire-rated gas cylinder safety cabinets for applications where pressurised gas cylinders need to be located indoors.
Available options include G30 and G90 BS EN 14470-2 cabinets for laboratory, industrial and technical applications.
View our EN 14470-2 G90 fire-rated gas cylinder cabinets.
Chemstore also supplies G30 fire-rated laboratory cabinets for pressurised gas cylinders.
View our EN 14470-2 G30 laboratory gas cylinder cabinets.
The principal difference is the material that the cabinet is designed and tested to accommodate:
The hazards associated with containers of flammable liquid and pressurised gas cylinders are different, so the two parts have different construction, ventilation and testing requirements.
A cabinet designed and tested under one part should not automatically be assumed to meet the requirements of the other.
No. BS EN 14470 is a product standard rather than legislation requiring every workplace to use an EN 14470 cabinet.
In Great Britain, workplace fire and explosion risks involving dangerous substances are principally controlled under the Dangerous Substances and Explosive Atmospheres Regulations 2002 (DSEAR).
HSE guidance recognises BS EN 14470-1 cabinets as providing enhanced tested fire performance, but standards that exceed the minimum requirements of health and safety legislation do not automatically become mandatory simply because they provide a higher standard of protection.
An EN 14470 cabinet may nevertheless be selected because of the workplace risk assessment, customer specification, insurer requirements or an organisation’s own safety standards.
See our
DSEAR Regulations 2002 guide
for more information.
No. EN 14470 applies to specific types of fire safety cabinet within the defined scope of each part of the standard.
Larger quantities of flammable liquids may require a dedicated storeroom, external storage area or purpose-designed hazardous material store.
Similarly, larger gas cylinder inventories may be better suited to secure, well-ventilated external storage.
The correct storage arrangement should be selected according to the substances, quantities, container types, workplace conditions and findings of the site-specific risk assessment.
No. EN 14470 relates to the performance of the cabinet, while DSEAR concerns the wider fire and explosion risks created by dangerous substances in the workplace.
Depending on the application, employers may also need to consider:
A correctly specified EN 14470 cabinet can form part of these control measures but does not make the complete workplace automatically compliant.
HSG51 is HSE guidance covering the storage of flammable liquids in containers, while BS EN 14470-1 is a product standard for fire safety storage cabinets.
HSG51 describes practical arrangements for controlling flammable-liquid storage risks and recognises cabinets manufactured to BS EN 14470-1 as providing enhanced tested fire performance.
See our
HSG51 – Storage of Flammable Liquids in Containers guide
for further information.
Cabinet selection should begin with the materials being stored and the workplace risk assessment rather than choosing a cabinet based only on its fire rating.
Factors to consider include:
The current British editions of EN 14470 are available from the British Standards Institution.
This page provides general information about the EN 14470 family of standards and does not reproduce or replace the standards themselves. The complete British Standards should be obtained from the British Standards Institution where their detailed technical requirements are required.
This information does not replace DSEAR, HSE guidance, COSHH, Safety Data Sheets, a workplace risk assessment or advice from a competent person.
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