1. Are there any insurance savings if I have a sprinkler system in my house?
Typically the answer is yes. In some cases the savings can be as much as 30%, it depends on the insurance underwriter. You should check with your insurance agent to determine if your underwriter recognizes sprinkler systems.
2. Do all of the sprinklers spray water at once like shown in the movies?
There are systems that will, but these are only used to protect extremely flammable or dangerous materials such as chemicals, etc. The normal sprinkler system will only discharge water from the activated sprinkler, and each sprinkler is individually activated.
3. Are sprinkler systems really effective?
Data gathered and reported on the National Fire Sprinkler Associations website indicated that more than 96% of fires in sprinkled buildings are either extinguished or controlled by the sprinkler system, before fire department arrival.
4. How do the sprinklers operate?
Each sprinkler has it's own mechanical element that releases when a specified temperature is reached. The activation of one sprinkler does not prevent nor cause other sprinklers to operate. In the vast majority of sprinkler activations, only one or two sprinklers are all that ever activate, and they still extinguished or contained the fire.
5. Aren't sprinklers ugly?
Beauty is in the eye of the beholder. However, there are many decorative sprinklers available and they come in different colors, or can be custom painted by the manufacturer.
6. I've heard that the sprinklers sometimes just activate for no reason, is that true?
No it really isn't true. Data gathered by Factory Mutual Research indicate that only 1 of every 16,000,000 sprinklers accidentally activate due to some kind of manufacturer's defect.
7. Don't sprinklers create a lot of water damage?
A typical sprinkler in an office building will most likely discharge around 15 to 23 gallons per minute. The majority of activations are only or two sprinklers, so you have a total of about 50 gallons per minute being discharged. A typical 2-1/2" attack hose used by the fire department will discharge around 500 gallons per minute.
It's important to remember that sprinkler systems are like anything else we own. They work best when they are well maintained. Regardless of which contractor you use, it is highly recommended you have your system check at a minimum of annually by a licensed reputable contractor.
For more information on fire sprinkler systems try the following websites:
www.nfsa.org National Fire Sprinkler Association
www.nfpa.org National Fire Protection Association
www.firesprinkler.org American Fire Sprinkler Association
