Fire Alarm Systems

Hi, sorry to trouble you but can we ask your advice on a fire call point query we have please? We have a large(ish) room (25m x 12m) which is used for places of assembly (village hall). The room adjoins other rooms which then have fire / emergency exit doors. Do we need to have call points adjacent to the doors which leave the big room, or can we have just call points next to the final exits in the other rooms?? I’ve looked up on Google and we’re confused as it says 45m distance is acceptable for a ‘defined’ route, but only 30m for an ‘undefined’ route….but we don’t understand what the difference is between these two types of routes?!! Any help / advi…

Hi, I've bought an office - two floors approx 1700sqft overall. At the moment it has two large rooms and one smaller one, plus staircase and 2 small toilets. I have tenants going in but they intend to install partitioning etc and rework the internals. I gather that they are the Responsible person as regards maintaining fire systems, extinguishers etc as there are no communal areas. I'm confused about fire detection equipment however and have read conflicting information. I don't see how we can install a system and assess risk if we don't know how they are going to lay out the offices, how many people will be in there etc. My original intention was to i…

I have an issue with a fire alarm system. When the fire alarm goes off, all the callpoints come back with no reply which are scattered throughout the loop. After the alarm has been reset and system has been reset everything returns to normal. The system uses bases Sounders. I have checked for circuit overload and everything is in limits. I have checked the callpoint to make sure they are not isolators, which they are not. Any ideas what can cause this?

Hello I will be carrying out a fire alarm upgrade at the end of the month. The site currently has a 4 loop Kentec panel with Apollo XP95 protocol and then several out buildings on conventional TWIN WIRE zones that I would like to move onto the addressable panel via zone monitors. The conventional zones currently have detection and bells on the same circuit. Is there anyway, using a combination of zone monitors, sounder controllers & cause & effect to put the twin wire circuit onto the addressable zone monitor? It would not be cost effective to run new bell circuit cabling back to each out building. A colleague several years ago seemed to have figure…

Can anyone please help. I have been advised that my fire alarm does not comply. It only has one sounder circuit. Is this correct or is there any regulations etc to say I have to have two

Am trying to understand how best to provide Fire and Smoke detection on the Forecourt of an unmanned Petrol Filling Station to allow for remote alarming CCTV viewing etc.

Hi everyone ! I need help, we have a problem and I don't have a clue on how to act. I do apologise in advance for the long post ? We live in a block of flats, the fire alarm was going off all the time for no reason several times a week so when there was a fire earlier this year no one paid attention to it as we were so used to it, until the fire brigade came and told everybody had to leave. Luckily there were no human victims, but the poor doggy in the apartment that fired up died. The alarm kept sounding a lot for months, day and /or night. Since that day our 6 year old started having panick attacks whenever the alarm went off, one of those days she w…

Could you please let me know if a new legislation is in force ? I live in a block of flats only six flats with in the block, they where built in 2007.they use to get checked quarterly or more than , but have been told it needs to be checked once a week due to new legislation . Richard

Good morning, A new purpose built block of flats 4 storeys plus a penthouse so 5 floors in total new build with a total of 7 flats with a stay put policy in place The block has smoke detectors & sounders which also activates the AOV - 1) what would your advise be with regards to the sounders 2) The detection is on the wall rather than centrally placed on the ceiling 3) The fire alarm panel is inside the water riser instead of in the entrance lobby & they wanted to put a note on the water riser stating the alarm panel was inside Looking for thoughts/advise on all three points please Kind regards Eli-…

I'm converting my external garage to a studio and want to install smoke alarm that will be audible from the house. Our house has wired in smoke alarms. Not sure if it would be possible to connect to same circuit? What do you advise? Thanks

What is the requirement for Smoke control systems and their relevant detectors to be linked via interface to the main fire alarm system? Is this complaint installation with laws / regs? It is a new build 4 Storey non-residential premise with stand alone central stair Smoke control system installed. the central stair case is the only fire escape access above G floor in the building and the smoke detectors in this stair case do not go back to main system. the only info I have found.. ADB - "it is essential that detection, alarm and systems required for compliance by Building regs are designed to achieve a high level of reliability".

Hello, just looking for some opinions from professionals, I have recently visited a primary school to see a mate, this school is only single storey, there seems to be minimal fire detectors in there, about 4 spotted and NO red box things to break the glass and make alarm work, surely, in a school with dozens of children you would have the red boxes for raising alarm?? or does the fact its only one level make a difference? the caretaker said some top bod from the council came in and said it all met regs?? I dont remember seeing many places without the red boxes? thanks :) Ian

Can anyone please recommend what’s the best fire alarm panel for a hmo in terms of fault finding and reliability.

Hello, heres a conundrum, how do you achieve fire detection on a building site that is part of a live site. Organisation is having the builders in to totally refurb the kitchen areas, place is being gutted BUT all around the other parts/outside the refurb area of the building are still occupied. Fire detection in the building part is being disconnected because ceilings are coming down, what if a fire occurs outside of hours when the builders are not there but the occupiers are in their part?

I just have a query regarding call point testing. I have a fire alarm that is connected to 4 flats within a block. The alarm is located in a public hallway where there is 1 call point. There are other call points but they are located within the flats. 2 flats use this hallway and 2 flats are located around the back of the building and have their own individual entrances. I just wanted to know where I stand with the weekly call point testing and also gaining access to tenants accommodation which they don't always give.

Hi, Wondering if anyone can help. BS5839-1 states over a 12 month period: "k) All fire alarm devices should be checked for correct operation. It should be confirmed that visual fire alarm devices are not obstructed from view and that their lenses are clean. NOTE 9 This test is intended to ensure that every fire alarm device operates in response to a fire alarm signal. It is not intended that sound pressure level measurements are made." The majority of engineers i know, will simply activate the sounders at the panel, hear them, switch them off, and deem this as a test. On an addressable system, this would suffice, As it would report a fault back. But…

Hi My problem is as follows. I am currently selling my flat which is leasehold and has a management company which all flat owners are directors of. My flat is ground floor and has its own entrances but the bedroom window in our flat is not fire resistant and is partly under a concrete stair case which is the entrance/escape route to three flats. My question is does the bedroom window need to have fire proof glass? If so the flat is in a conservation area and has stain glass windows at the top so how can I replace them? Look forward to your response.

Hi all. Just a question here. iv'e spent a while on the net researching what system we need, id really appreciate if someone on here could advise me. We have a ground floor shop with a main entrance area and 4 other rooms leading of it. Are a regular interlinked smoke detectors sufficient?

Hi, new member seeking advice, we recently took over the lease at a industrial property that has an existing fire alarm system. I have started doing weekly call point tests which we carried out successfully, however when we tried triggering call point 6 no sounders triggered but on the alarm panel it showed a general fault. When I reset the call point the fault disappeared. Can any body help?

Hi, seeking some advise, we have recently moved into a new industrial property, I have stated doing a weekly test on the fire system , a different call point each week. I have come to call point 6, I trigger the alarm using the test key but nothing happens apart form a general fault on the panel. Usually the sounders go off and the zone flash red, Can any body help with this?

Hi there, Quick question, we're a house that's been converted into three flats with a communal corridor/stairs leading to the three flats. We manage the property and had a Fire Risk Assessment done when one of the flats was sold last year. There were a few recommendations like fit fire alarms, emergency lighting and replacing a worn carpet on the stairs. We've taken those on board and have fitted fire alarms, emergency lights and a new carpet in the communal area. The company that did the Fire Risk Assessment has just sent me an email stating .. "It is important you review your fire risk assessment annually to ensure your compliance with the Regulatory Reform (Fire …

APOLLO ALARMSENSE PANEL HELP !! i've got 2 apollo alarmsense fire alarm panels with the alarmsense smoke detectors and sounder beacon bases but when i switch the panel on it just activates the sounder beacon bases ... I've tried the 2 panels but they both do the same, its giving out 24 Volts when i switch the panel on which straight away makes the sounder beacon bases activate . There is no fire or the leds dont come on smoke detectors which indicates theres no smoke activating the smoke detectors .so i dont know what the problem is ive read the website and it says it should give out 24 volts when theres a fire but its giving 24 volts out when i switch th…

An agricultural barn on the site of a once working farm (no livestock there now), is now the workplace of three members of staff, based in a mezzanine office within the barn, which houses tools and equipment used in land-management. There are suitable containers storing chainsaws etc and an external fuel store, which provides correct flam-bank storage for the small amount of diesel stored on site <20L. Must they have a bell, manual call point or some means of raising the alarm (there are neighbouring traders, a car repair workshop, carpentry workshop each side of the barn) or will it suffice that they 'shout' a warning?

Hi What is the difference between a bs5839-1 L1 system and a Grade A: LD1 system?

I have recently moved into a self contained ground floor flat in a Victorian house converted into flats in the 70s. Flats 2 and 3 have their own passageway and front door with communal area behind. I cannot access this area as I am disabled but also because there is nothing of mine there. There are three flat owners who share the freehold and leasehold. The top two flats are rented out. Flat 2 may be an hMO put in place before I arrived contravening the lease and which was hidden from me before I bought my flat. The council are saying we are all responsible to put in a joined alarm system . Is this my responsibility or that of the landlords?