What You Need to Know About Residential Fire Sprinklers
Fire sprinkler installations are recommended for almost all properties, especially warehouses and office buildings, in order to save lives and protect against excessive fire damage. Having home fire sprinklers installed is the best way to protect your family from the devastating effects of fire, expelling the appropriate amount of water to reduce water damage in the process. Residential sprinklers can be designed and installed to fit your property exactly, taking into consideration your water pressure and supply. But just how important are domestic and residential fire sprinkler systems?
All sprinkler systems must follow the appropriate regulations in order to work effectively and adhere to the standards of fire safety. Here at RAD Fire Sprinklers, we always provide recommendations and guidance when installing your bespoke water sprinkler system, ensuring you and your property’s inhabitants are as safe as possible.
What is a Residential Property?
A residential property is any building this is being used or could be used as a dwelling. Detached, semi-detached and terrace housing, townhouses and farmhouses are all classed as residential properties, and all can support sprinkler heads, systems and pipes. In order to protect the decor, residential properties usually have concealed sprinkler heads that come loose in the event of a fire, ensuring they don’t project below the ceiling level until they are activated.
Like all sprinkler systems, they are designed to detect the heat from the fire and extinguish it at the source, keeping fire and water damage to a minimum. To find out more, you can read our previous blog about residential fire sprinklers here.
British Standard (BS9251) Regulations
All sprinkler systems that are installed in properties must adhere to British Standards (BS) and regulations. For instance, the design, management and use of sprinklers in residential buildings must comply with BS9251. The standards ensure that appropriate fire safety measures have been taken in residential buildings, and that reasonable standards have been met. BS9251 with BS9991:2011 lays out the standards for certain residential properties, especially those of a certain height, those with loft conversions and care homes.
Care homes must be “fully sprinklered” in order to protect both residents and staff within the property. The standards also apply to water mist systems, as it states that they can be deemed as an appropriate fire suppression system, and specific scenario testing may be required to test that the system is fit for purpose.
Facts and Fiction: Residential Fire Sprinkler Systems
There are still some myths surrounding the effectiveness of residential fire sprinklers, which can be quite harmful and stop individuals from investing in one of the most efficacious, cost-effective fire suppression systems available. According to popular culture, once a fire is detected, all the sprinklers in the building will be activated, which is simply not true. Automatic fire sprinkler systems work to detect the source of the fire and expel water from sprinkler heads that would put the fire out. This is so water damage can be kept to a minimum. A typical sprinkler discharges around 55 litres of water per minute, which proves that the water damage caused by sprinklers is significantly lower than potential fire damage.
Sprinklers also have a low chance of being triggered accidentally and can work with your smoke alarm to both warn you of a fire and extinguish it in the process. Sprinklers reduce injury by around 80% and reduce property damage by approximately 90%, and are considered the single most effective method of fighting fires in their early stages. There are simply not enough residential fire sprinklers installed in the UK, possibly due to the many myths that are spread about their effectiveness. By highlighting the many benefits, we can work to reduce the mortality rate of fires, and reduce their devastating effects.
To find out more, or to receive a quote, you can fill out our online form here, and a member of our team will be in touch.
