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How to Give Your Family a Fighting Chance against a Household Fire
Fire Protection More Affordable and Reliable Today
(ARA) - According to the National Fire Protection Association, fire will claim
the lives of nearly 5,000 people per year and injure another 28,000. In
addition, the cost of related property damage will exceed $8 billion in any
given year.
But there is an effective, proven solution. Current industry reports show that
the installation of a home fire sprinkler system can prevent as much as 97
percent of the property damage and loss of life.
One system in particular, the BlazeMasterfire sprinkler system, has been shown
to be especially effective. Approved for more applications than any other
nonmetallic fire sprinkler system, it performs when it counts most -- under fire
conditions.
Why are sprinklers so effective? Mainly because they do not rely on human
factors such as a quick, calm response and a familiarity with proper escape
procedures. They operate automatically and immediately at the place where the
fire begins to help prevent the fast developing blazes of intense heat and smoke
which are capable of trapping and killing occupants.
Is there a problem with sprinklers discharging accidentally? Loss records of
Factory Mutual Research indicate that the probability of a sprinkler discharging
accidentally is one in 16 million. And despite current misconceptions, cigarette
smoke will not cause a fire sprinkler system to go off. It is only when the heat
of a fire raises the sprinkler temperature to its operating point of
approximately 165 degrees that the sprinkler will engage.
Can sprinklers cause more property damage than the fire itself? Automatic fire
sprinklers are individually heat-activated and tied into a network of piping
with water under pressure. As a result, sprinklers spray water only in the
immediate area of the fire -- usually requiring only one sprinkler to extinguish
the fire. The amount of water used by a fire department to extinguish a fire in
a building without sprinklers is nearly always tens to hundreds of times more
than what would be discharged by a home sprinkler system.
What about problems with smoke? As a by-product of fire, smoke causes more
fatalities than the fire itself. A minimal amount of smoke is produced as
sprinklers extinguish the fire, but the amount is considerably less than what is
produced by a fire that is permitted to grow without sprinklers.
Are sprinkler systems ugly? Sprinklers today are often concealed, out of sight
until needed. If they are seen, they are available in a range of colours and can
be mounted flush with walls and ceilings to blend into the room.
Are sprinklers expensive? For the amount of money it would cost to upgrade your
carpeting or cabinets, you could protect your family and possibly your home and
its contents from a fire. In new construction, the cost to install a home fire
sprinkler system is usually 1 to1.5 percent of the total building cost.
Are all sprinkler systems the same? No, and technology has changed that.
BlazeMaster fire sprinkler systems, for example, are made from chlorinated
polyvinyl chloride (CPVC), a revolutionary, high-temperature specialty material
for use in fire sprinkler pipe and fittings. Lightweight, easy to install, and
less expensive than most metallic systems, BlazeMaster CPVC fire sprinkler
systems are quickly becoming the product of choice for safety-conscious
homeowners and landlords.
To learn more about how a fire sprinkler system can help protect your family,
visit www.blazemaster.com or contact your local fire sprinkler contractor.
Courtesy of ARA Content |
