Fireproofing is the popular name for the coatings and methods used to protect paper, plastic, textiles, wood, and other materials against fire. Fire prevention experts, however, consider the term fireproofing misleading because even such noncombustible materials as steel and concrete are affected to some degree by intense fire. Steel can weaken or melt and concrete can crack. Experts instead refer to materials that have been protected against fire as fire resistant or fire retarded. They call the substances that are used to protect such materials fire retardants.