Why Is an Inspection Important?
First and foremost, fire alarm and sprinkler system inspections are essential for protecting your building and its occupants, including employees, residents, visitors, and yourself. Catching defects in fire response systems early allows you to fix or replace them immediately. The worst possible time to identify a broken fire alarm is during an actual fire emergency. Which is why regular testing is critical.
Additionally, having regular inspections and staying current with all applicable building and fire codes and insurance requirements protects you from violations, fines, and lawsuits. For the sake of liability, you should keep all fire system documentation organized. Like service receipts and inspection reports, to ensure you have a dependable track record of your systems.
Finally, sprinkler and fire system inspections are essential for peace of mind. You’ve likely invested a lot into your building or organization, and the thought of losing that is undoubtedly scary. Knowing you have a dependable, operational fire alarm system that will notify you, alert the fire department, and attempt to douse the fire the moment smoke is detected will help keep those concerns at bay.
Testing involves actual physical use of the equipment to verify whether the component is functioning as intended or not.
That is the reason testing is executed at less frequent time intervals than inspections.
Quarterly
It is recommended to execute a physical test on all the mechanical devices of a fire sprinkler system.
Annually
Likewise, and as bracketed under the annual inspection category, a fire sprinkler system must be thoroughly tested, every year, as well.
Technicians must physically check each and every component of the entire unit, from water flow and fire pump to alarm and trip tests of dry pipe, deluge, and pre-action valves.
As you can see, fire sprinkler systems are integral to the safety outlines of numerous residential and corporate structures. Therefore, every individual must ensure to get their system inspected and tested on a regular basis.
Fire systems are incredibly reliable, but as with all mechanical elements, they need routine maintenance and repairs as needed. Many signs can appear to determine whether it is necessary to call for a repair.
The most common signs are:
Broken or loose sprinkler head: Damaged or Loose Sprinkler Head Damaged fire sprinkler heads are a common problem and occure more often than you think. Sprinkler heads can also become loose over time due to pressurized water.
Leaks or standing water: Many issues can cause a leak, such as faulty plumbing, a broken seal in the fire protection system, or a problematic roof issue. Whether there are water marks on walls and ceilings, or standing water around or under fire sprinkler system components, it is important to schedule an appoiment.
False Alarms: Frequent false alarms may can be caused by a variety of issues, from air trapped in pressurized pipes to mechanical failure. It is important to contact us to resolve issues quickly and ensure the system is working properly.
