HIGH RISE MANUAL 110-120.pdf

FIRE CONTROL ROOM OVERVIEW ● The Fire Control Room is the “Brains” of the fire protection system ● Depending on the system complexity, firefighters will find either a whole room devoted to the controls, or just a single panel at the entry point ● Inside the control room, firefighters may find the fo...

FIRE CONTROL ROOM OVERVIEW ● The Fire Control Room is the “Brains” of the fire protection system ● Depending on the system complexity, firefighters will find either a whole room devoted to the controls, or just a single panel at the entry point ● Inside the control room, firefighters may find the following: ○ Full Control Annunciator Panel ○ Remote Fire Panel (Typically at the entry point of the building) ○ Elevator Control Panel ○ Smoke Control Panel ○ Building Communication Systems FULL CONTROL ANNUNCIATOR PANEL ● Typically found in more complex systems ● Provides a central location to access the building fire protection system, which can help firefighters accomplish the following tasks: ○ Determine more specific locations of fire alarms ○ Silence alarms and determine the alarm system status, such as “Trouble” ○ Make public address announcements ○ Communicate directly to designated fire phones Annunciator panel with PA and building communications Second Edition 01/11/22 102 REMOTE FIRE PANEL ● Found in basic systems, or near the entry point in complex systems ● Generally, the remote fire panel is for information only ● Controls are locked out to prevent tampering ○ Contact building maintenance or a keyholder for the password, if needed Remote Fire Panel ELEVATOR CONTROL PANEL ● Designed to give information on the elevator status. The system can tell firefighters the following: ○ Location of the floor that the cars are on ○ If the elevator/elevator bank is in service or out of service ○ Ability to control fire service recall Elevator control panel with recall Second Edition 01/11/22 103 SMOKE CONTROL PANEL ● Not very common in Columbus, but they are around ● Gives maintenance/fire department the ability to operate fire control dampers ● Can turn on positive pressure fans for the stairwells to improve conditions ● Allows firefighters to monitor the entire system for performance Example of a Smoke Control Panel Second Edition 01/11/22 104 BUILDING COMMUNICATION ● Built-in public-address systems can be used for the following: ○ Give occupants evacuation or shelter in place orders ○ Tell evacuees which stairwell to use! This is especially important when establishing attack vs evacuation stairwells! ○ Some systems may even have pre-recorded messages ● Fire department handsets (stairwell phones) ○ Used anytime radio communication becomes a problem ○ Can be hardwired or portable ○ Phone boxes or phone jacks located near stairwells ○ Similar to 1940s-1950s party lines ○ Pass out to all group supervisors if portable ○ Must have a member in the fire control room to activate ▪ Lifting the handset in the control room completes the connection ▪ All members on the line will hear each other ▪ Your location will light up on the panel Fire Phone Control Panel Second Edition 01/11/22 Rack of handsets that can be passed out 105 FIRE PUMP ROOM PUMP ROOM OVERVIEW ● Referred to as the “Heart” of the fire protection system ● Can be located in the basement, close to the FDC, or in a specified pump room ● Is connected into the domestic water supply system ● Delivers water under pressure to the fire protection system ● Can be powered by an electric or diesel motor ● The pump room will house the following: ○ Fire Pumps (Multi Zone Systems if the building requires them) ○ Jockey Pumps ○ Pump Controls MULTI ZONE SYSTEMS ● Depending on the size and height of a building, it can have multiple fire pumps for each operating zone ● For example, the Huntington Center downtown operates with two zones ● High zone pump (photo on right) ○ 3 stage pump ○ Discharge pressure is 360 PSI ○ Pumps to floors 19-37 (roof) ● Low zone pump (photo on lower right) ○ Single stage pump ○ Discharge pressure is 240 PSI ○ Pumps from the basement— floor 18 Click here to view Vector Solutions video on the Fire Pump Room Second Edition 01/11/22 106 JOCKEY PUMPS ● Designed to maintain pressure within the standpipe system at all times ● This pressure is calculated based on the year built and the height of the building ● Small drops in pressure trigger the jockey pump to run ● Large drops in pressure will trigger the fire pump to run ● Jockey pumps are not designed to move water; they are just designed to handle pressure drops in the system Low zone Jockey pump Second Edition 01/11/22 107 PUMP CONTROLS ● Monitor the system pressure at all times ● There is an automatic transfer switch that activates the fire pump ● When a significant pressure drop occurs, the automatic controller activates the fire pump ○ The controller will have instructions on how to start the fire pump ○ The controller will have start, stop, and emergency run controls ○ The controller will have emergency power disconnects ▪ If the fire pump malfunctions or activates without cause and does not turn off with the stop switch, use the power disconnects to turn off the pump Pump controller with power transfer switch Second Edition 01/11/22 108 STANDPIPE SYSTEMS STANDPIPE CLASSIFICATIONS • There are three classes of standpipe systems Class 1: Fire Department Use Only • 2 ½” outlets, located in the stairwell Class 2: Civilian or Occupant Use • 1 ½” outlets with 100’ of house hose attached • Located in a hallway cabinet • Limited to 100 GPM flow • Hose is often being removed due to poor maintenance Class 3: Combination of Civilian and Fire Department Use • Has 2 ½” and 1 ½” outlets • Located in a cabinet in the hallways • May have hose in the cabinet, if it has not already been removed Class 2: Civilian or Occupant Use Second Edition 01/11/22 Class 1: Fire Department Use Only Class 3: Combination—Civilian and FD 109 TYPES OF STANDPIPE SYSTEMS Automatic Wet Standpipe System • Water in the riser and piping at all times • Ambient temperature above 40 degrees at all times • Connected to the building's fire pump Automatic Dry Standpipe System • Contains pressurized air in the piping • Ambient temperature above 40 degrees in the water room • Piping and outlets can be in lower temperatures • Connected to the building’s fire pump Manual Wet Standpipe System • Water in the riser and piping at all times • Ambient temperature above 40 degrees at all times • Connected to the domestic water supply (city water pressure) • No fire pump in the system • Requires the fire department to pump the FDC for added pressure Manual Dry Standpipe System • No water in the risers or piping • No water supply from the building • Requires the fire department to establish water supply and pump the FDC • Found in parking garages and other free standing remote buildings Combination Standpipe and Sprinkler System • Found on automatic wet systems • Water for sprinkler piping is taken from the standpipe riser • One FDC connection will supply both systems • Sprinkler isolation valves are on the riser and are easily found Parking garages often have manual dry standpipe systems due to being exposed to the weather. Since there is no water in the riser and no water supply from the building, firefighters must establish a water supply and pump the FDC. Photo from 10TV WBNS Second Edition 01/11/22 110 TYPES OF FDCS Wall Mounted FDC • Dual inlet or multiple inlet • Standpipe (only supplies the standpipe system) • Sprinkler (only supplies the sprinkler system) • Combination (supplies both standpipe and sprinkler systems) Wall mount dual inlet with Knox locks Single Zone or Multi Zone FDC • 2 ½” or 5” inlets • 2 ½” inlets allow for greater pump pressures Wall mount combination system with multiple inlets and two zones Second Edition 01/11/22 111 Low-Rise Buildings • 5” inlets allow for greater volume delivery • Also called wide-rise buildings or high-volume systems 5” LDH Connection Post Mount FDC • Used when wall mounting is not feasible • Limited access to areas around the building • Can also be 2 ½” or 5” inlets Post style FDC Post style FDC with separate sprinkler and standpipe Click here to view YouTube video on Fire Protection Systems featuring Capt. Bill Gustin Second Edition 01/11/22 112