barriers and incentives related to the installation of home fire sprinklers
TRANSCRIPT
Barriers and Incentives Related to the Installation
of Home Fire Sprinklers
Kathleen Almand- Executive Director
Fire sprinklers reduce fire death risk All model safety and building codes require
fire sprinklers in all new homes Community based barriers Additional benefits of sprinklers - water
conservation Incentives to increase use of fire sprinkler
systems
Introduction
Water usage and water meter performance during residential sprinkler system
actuation in residences and to provide guidance information on this topic in a
format suitable for water utilities and local jurisdictions
Residential Fire Sprinklers and Water Conservation
Study of water consumption during fire events and resulting impacts on water infrastructure demand:1. Estimation of water used per home fire by
responding fire services2. Calculations of the expected water discharged by
fire sprinklers per home fire3. Estimation of the reduced water infrastructure
demand when fire sprinklers are present in all homes within a community
Study Tasks – Water Usage
Water used by fire service:- Average of 3,524 gallons per fire- An approximate 10-times increase when
1. Fire extended beyond the room of origin2. Increase of fire involvement from visible flame and
smoke to fully-involved fire
Water Usage Results
Related studies and results: Scottsdale, AZ –Automatic Sprinklers: A 15-Year
Study -Average 2,935 gallons per fire used by fire services-Sprinkler discharged up to 341 gallons per fire
Available here: http://www.homefiresprinkler.org/FS/FSMunicipalRports.html
FM Global – Environmental Impact of Automatic Fire Sprinklers
-Reduction in water usage by fire sprinkler system could be as much as 91% compared to manual suppression-Approximately 10 times increase - similar to this study
Available here: http://www.fmglobal.com/page.aspx?id=04010300
Water Usage Results
Calculations of the expected water discharged by fire sprinklers per home fire:- hydraulic calculations on fire sprinkler designs for typical one- and two-family homes- calculations assumed a one- or two-sprinkler operation of highest water flow and greatest system pressure demand
Study Tasks – Water Usage
Calculations based on most probable scenario based on actual sprinkler design plans:- single sprinkler operation- average system discharge 28 gpm- exceeds required minimum flow of 18 gpm- system discharge up to 280 gallons per fire
Water Usage Results
Estimation of the reduced water infrastructure demand when fire sprinklers are present in all homes within a community:- projected infrastructure demand is reduced at least 47%
Water Usage Results
Evaluation of the performance of water meters when used to supply residential fire sprinkler systems
Series of experiments on commercial residential water meters under a range of flow conditions to investigate:- pressure loss profiles- metering accuracy- functional integrity
Meter Performance-Study Tasks
Failure of water meter components- Observation of water meter- Failure based on reduction in flow rate and/or pressure- 20 minute test per flow condition
Water Meter Performance
Water Meter Performance
No water meters failed resulting in flow obstruction during any tests
Post test visual inspections indicated no signs of physical water damage to any meter
All tested residential water meters are capable of handling the minimum fire sprinkler flows required by NFPA 13D
All tested meters are capable of handling the expected 28 pgm for single sprinkler operation without failure and with metering accuracy
Meter Performance Results
Incentives for the Use of Residential Fire Sprinkler
Systems in U.S. Communities
Why study incentives? To identify their value To understand the impact of these values To increase the use of fire sprinklers
Important factors: Time specific Single issue Future considerations
Incentives for the Use of Residential Fire Sprinkler
Systems in U.S. Communities
Incentives for the Use of Residential Fire Sprinkler
Systems in U.S. Communities
Research objectives: Identify incentives/types Characterize incentives Estimate the value of incentives
Incentives for the Use of Residential Fire Sprinkler
Systems in U.S. CommunitiesTypes of incentives: Financial trade-offs
- Developer- Builders- Homeowners
On-site design flexibility Off-site design flexibility Indirectvalue
Incentives for the Use of Residential Fire Sprinkler
Systems in U.S. CommunitiesEstimated value of incentives:
Homeowner-Oriented Incentives $145 Builder-Oriented Incentives $1,949 Developer-Oriented Incentives $1,271Typical incentives to home builders offset
33% of system cost
Incentives for the Use of Residential Fire Sprinkler
Systems in U.S. CommunitiesFuture research: Identify the most influential types of
incentives Identify the most impactful stakeholder
group to target with incentives.
Thank you!Questions?
Maria Figueroa – Regional Director Fire Prevention Field Office
[email protected] Hart – Assoc. Engineer
National Fire Protection [email protected]