Sprinkler Systems explained - Facts and Myths

Sprinklers can:

• Reduce death and injury from fire
• Reduce the risks to fire fighters
• Protect property and heritage
• Reduce the effects of arson
• Reduce the impact of fire on the environment
• Reduce fire costs and the disruption to the community and business
• Automatic sprinkler systems have enjoyed an enviable record of protecting life and property for over 150 years.
• Sprinklers reduce injuries by at least 80 per cent, reduce property damage by 90 per cent and substantially reduce damage to the environment from fire.
• More than 70 million sprinkler heads are installed worldwide each year …
• Fire sprinklers are widely recognised as the single most effective method for fighting the spread of fires in their early stages.
• Sprinklers protect the lives of firefighters and are fully supported by fire services.
• The installation of fire sprinklers could virtually eliminate fire deaths

Sprinklers are completely automatic. They work by themselves and can stop heat and smoke from trapping people.

This will depend on the size and layout of your property, however a useful comparison for an average house is that sprinklers will cost approximately the same as fully fitted carpets.

Fire sprinklers are individually heat-activated and connected to a network of water pipes. When the heat from the fire plumes hot gases reach the sprinkler and at a specific temperature (usually about 68 deg. C) that sprinkler activates delivering water directly to the source of the heat.

A fire starts small. If detected and tackled early enough a fire can be controlled with very little water. Fire sprinklers operate automatically even if you are not at home releasing water directly over the source of the fire and sounding the alarm.

Wrong. Each head is independent and only the head(s) adjacent to the fire go off.

Wrong. A Typical sprinkler discharges 55 litres per minute. A firefighting hose discharges up to 750 litres per minute. Reports of water damage from fires in buildings with sprinklers are often exaggerated. Only the sprinklers over a fire open. All the others stay shut. A sprinkler opening by accident is almost unheard of. If there is a fire the water from one or two sprinklers is a small price to pay for saving a complete building, its contents or even a life.

Wrong. Records show that the chance of an accidental discharge from a sprinkler is in the region of 16 million to one.

Wrong: Smoke detectors save lives by providing a warning system but can do nothing to extinguish a growing fire or protect those physically unable to escape on their own. Too often, battery operated smoke detectors fail to function because the batteries are dead or have been removed.

Wrong. Sprinklers attack the fire quickly and directly so less water is needed. As they also operate the fire alarm, the flow can be quickly turned off when the fire is out.

Wrong. Modern sprinklers are specially designed to meet the needs of architects in offices, hotels, shops, hospitals and prestige buildings. They are compact and elegant. In most buildings the public are usually unaware that sprinklers are fitted.

Concealed sprinklers are recessed and covered by a flat plate flush with the ceiling. They are unobtrusive and almost invisible. 

from the devastating effects of fire, and the catastrophic impact on our lives and those of our loved ones.