Fire Sprinkler System Flow Testing

During a complete fire sprinkler system test the technician should perform physical checks on all parts of your fire sprinkler system.

Fire sprinkler system flow testing. Backflow in sprinkler systems can be a serious problem because a large volume of water never moves when it sits in a building s sprinkler system unless it s flowing during a sprinkler test a fire activates it or a sprinkler line breaks. When installation of all pipe and fittings is complete a flow test is recommended to insure the system supplies enough water for proper fire sprinkler operation. The 2016 edition of nfpa 13 standard for the installation of sprinkler systems section a 24 2 2 in the testing of water supply section also covers the basics of conducting a hydrant flow test but refers to nfpa 291 for specifics. Residential fire sprinkler system flow test instructions.

Read more from capitol fire sprinkler a service provider in nyc. Sure testing is performed to comply with nfpa regulations insurance requirements and to keep you out of trouble with the fire department ahem violations. The nfpa 13d installation standard does not require flow verification. Fire flow is formally defined as the flow rate of a water supply measured at 20 psi 138 kpa that is available for fire fighting.

When a system lacks an adequate water supply under enough pressure it may be considered impaired under the guidelines of nfpa 25. If you are designing a fire sprinkler system use this test residual hydrant separate downstream flow hydrant. Protection systems published by the national fire protection association nfpa requires that the main drain of an automatic sprinkler system should be tested at least annually and more often for special conditions as noted in table 13 1 1 2 of nfpa 25. A main drain test is used to identify major reductions in water flow for the system under.

Fire flow is not the volume of water required for the fire sprinkler system. If you have a fire sprinkler system you don t actually need to test it right. This article will cover the basics of conducting a fire flow test to reduce the chances of a poor result or having. Inspection testing and maintenance of water based fire protection systems.

I couldn t count the number of projects where fire flow has been assumed to be sprinkler related. But how much flow and pressure does a sprinkler system need.