I live in Brampton, Ontario and own a 1937 600 sq ft house. I have added a 350 sq ft second floor and am working on a 400 sq ft addition at the back. The rear addition is going to be mostly kitchen with a powder room, pantry, hallway to a side entrance and another room off the kitchen. There are lots of windows looking over our 160 ft lot with mature trees.
My question is this: I want to install residential fire ssprinklers in the rear addition. I have the heads (thread onto 1/2 inch adapters, sweat to copper). My plumbing inspector said to make sure I install back flow preventors on the lines to them. That part is OK. What I need is info on the location of the heads, etc. They go in the ceiling, therefore the water pipe will be on an exterior surface.
If anybody in my area has any thoughts, such as a good scource of info, etc, I would much apreciate it.
Thanks,
stem reno
Replies
They go in the ceiling, therefore the water pipe will be on an exterior surface.
No authority here, just thinking out loud.
Have you looked at dry systems vs. wet ? If the above the ceiling location is an attic space a dry system would not freeze, while a wet system could if not heat traced and insulated.
That was fast....
I haven't really looked into a dry system, but thought about it a bit, don't know much about them, though
Wouldn't there have to some sort of electrical system to activate it?
Stemreno
Dry systems use compressed air to hold a valve closed. We have dedicated compressors for the dry systems we have, but a CO2 bottle andand the proper regulator could be used on a small system. Alarms are wired to a flow switch on the wet side of the system.
I'm not sure that wet type heads would be compatable with a dry system.
A wet system can work in a freezing environment if the pipe is heat traced and wraped with insulation.
There's a lot of information contained in NFPA 13, 13R, and 13D. Yet, I'm never comfortable in using a code book as a design manual.
See if you can get information from the sprinkler head manufacturer. Heck, see if you can get heads that are designed to be mounted on the walls!
If you're using heads that were salvaged from a commercial site, they are typically spaced so as to cover a 12' x 12' area. More than one head on a line, and you're sure to need to go to 3/4" pipe.
Besides a backflow preventer, you'll also want to tie some sort of alarm into the system.
The easiest way to 'get it right' is to hire the proper contractor.
I already bought the heads, they are 1/2 inch and design for the home. They are usually used in the furnace room in houses with basement apts to meet the fire seperation rules of multiple dwellings.
.I'm in Ontario, Canada, and looking for info or advice as it pertains to our Ontario building code. I have a copy of the code book, but it seems vague in regards to sprinklers in the house.
I still am curious about the pipes in the ceiling. I know they have to be kept on the warm side of the vapour barrier. It seems like I have answered my own questions, but any advice would be apreciated.
All the residential systems that I have installed required engineering concerning water service size, water pressure, pipe size, etc. They can't be connected to the domestic system, they are independent. Fire department inspection and approval required. This may not apply if you are just installing a couple of heads on your own.
John
I have the rough in for a wet system in my shop.
I was able to use my domestic water service, but we have really high pressure, and a 1" service.
What the inspector made me do was place the shut off valve in front of everything. Pressure regulator, backflow, check valves, everything is down stream of the shut off. His logic was that if I damaged a head, I couldn't just shut off the sprinkler system and not shut down the domestic water too. I would have to fix anything broken in the wet system just to have domestic water.
I'm not sure he inspects many sprinkler system, but I got the green stricker after doing it his way.
Now I just need to have my friend that works for a sprinkler company do the rest of the install. The owner is giving me the heads and the stamped design because I did some free work for him several years ago.
Are insurance companies in your state required to give discounts for domestic sprinkler systems? They don't here, but do across the river (IN)
Sorry, I haver no knowledge of the insurance benefits. Seems logical, but that doesn't always apply.John
Insurance is kinda funny. Ya will not see much if any savings for installing sprinklers.
If a head or 2 goes off, the occupants will be saved and the fire may be put out. But now ya got a house with water damage.
If no-one is home and there is not an alarm (either a exterior bell loud enough to cause the neighbors to call the FD or an auto-dialer) can you imagine how much water could flow out.
Just remember the intent of sprinklers is to protect lives not buildings. IE a sprinkler gives more time for evacutation and slows down fire growth making the FDs job easier and therefor safer.
If a head or 2 goes off, the occupants will be saved and the fire may be put out. But now ya got a house with water damage.
The residential structure fire problem represented 81% of all fire deaths and 79% of the injuries to civilians in 2006. between 1997 and 2006, an average of 3,090 civilians lost thier lives and another 15,340 were injuried annually as a results of residential structure fires. (U.S. Fire Administration// FEMA)
Water damage?
I've heard that argument before, from insurance people.
Knowone has yet explained how much water damage it takes to become equivalent to the cost of a human life.
Edited 3/10/2008 6:21 am ET by DaveRicheson