Thoughts on Fire Suppression

[tnjwinters]

I have an O81c with four columns. The switch room doesn't have any fire suppression and something needs to be installed. I was interested in thoughts towards either sprinkler or FM and arguments for or against each.

 

[GHTROUT]

While I'm not qualified enough to back up one way or another, I did spend a few years helping a Facilities Dept at a very large data center. Put it this way, 50,000 sq ft building in Wisconsin was heated by curculating the glycol the IBM mainframe used as coolant.

Anyway, I saw quite a few demonstrations of "Incipient Fire Detection". Search on that phrase. Here's what I remember:

In one demo, we had the detector on one end of a 30 x 12 ft room. 30 ft away, a match is lit and immediatly snuffed. In less than 1.5 seconds (really), the system could detect the smoke.

The system is "beyond" the definitiion of early warning... it can detect a chip on a circuit pack overheating before it fails (and that was mentioned as a 'preventitive maintenance' routine some gov't agency performed by rolling a unit up and down aisles lined with critical systems, hoping to spot components overheating - maybe weeks before they failed.

The benefit of course, is you will have early notice. But, if there is a fire - there is a fire...and your question is still tough...

As for sprinkler systems - I remember two types: Wet systems havew water pressure on the sprinkler head at all times. Dry systems are immune to "leaking heads" so to speak. The sprinkler water is let loose when an "event" triggers it, then the frangible link or gladd bulb on the sprinler is the second requirement for water to pour into the room.

I'd guess you would bve able to eliminate sprinklers as an option if you didn't have any in your building today - the cost may be more than hiring a guard with a fire extinguisher to sit in the switchroom 365 days/year.






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[johnpoole]

i've always perfered halon.. a sprinkler would do almost much damage as heat.. i've only had one fire in a switchroom itself, the firedept did more switch damage then the small fire. halon would have saved the switch in that case. but when the mgm had there big fire the switch was in the basement, it was under water and people i know worked on the recovery crew. the switch was saved, i don't know how dependable it was.

john poole
bellsouth business
columbia,sc

 

[newbietech01]

I have to agree with John here. I've been a Fire Fighter for 7 years and we are pretty good at damaging things. Halon or FM-200 would probably be the route you want to go. FM-200 is, by many, considered to be the standard anymore as it accomplishes the same waterless fire suppression, but is safer then halon. Halon systems usually require a delay as to make sure people are able to exit safely. People still inside a data center of switch room when a halon system goes off are likely to suffocate as halon immediately removes all the oxygen from the air. FM-200 on the other hand removes heat energy and stops the chemical chain that fire needs to burn.

Joe Baxter
IT Specialist
TransCare, Inc

 

[tnjwinters]

I am going to have to make an argument with management for whatever kind of system seems to be the most appropriate. What is the likely hood of a switch being salvageable with an FM system vs. a Wet system and if the PBX has to be replaced, what do you think the turnaround time would be?

 

[pbxn]

We had an FM mishap one year at a call center I worked at, 81C. The switch hummed along like nothing. Water I don't think the switch would be too kind to a wet system, water and power don't play nice

 

[acewarlock]

Halon or FM-200 cause's no damage to equipment, water cause's short circuit's and rust. Only company's that have alot of money or don't really need there phone system to work should have a sprinkler system WET or DRY.

 

[GHTROUT]

I agree water does not help yor PBX at all.

I have always been curious why it is used in as many computer rooms as it is. A wastebasket fire would probably not break the link in the sprinkler head until it was too late - but Halon type supressent only has one chance to extinguish a fire - after that it is beyond saving the equipment and about saving the building itself... thats where water becomes a choice again.



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