×
INTELLIGENT WORK FORUMS
FOR ENGINEERING PROFESSIONALS

Log In

Come Join Us!

Are you an
Engineering professional?
Join Eng-Tips Forums!
  • Talk With Other Members
  • Be Notified Of Responses
    To Your Posts
  • Keyword Search
  • One-Click Access To Your
    Favorite Forums
  • Automated Signatures
    On Your Posts
  • Best Of All, It's Free!
  • Students Click Here

*Eng-Tips's functionality depends on members receiving e-mail. By joining you are opting in to receive e-mail.

Posting Guidelines

Promoting, selling, recruiting, coursework and thesis posting is forbidden.

Students Click Here

Jobs

Rural Multi-family residential fire sprinkler system

Rural Multi-family residential fire sprinkler system

Rural Multi-family residential fire sprinkler system

(OP)
I am working on finding the most appropriate fire sprinkler system for a rural 21 residential apartment building complex located in Virginia.  The complex is composed of three buildings with square footages of 1200, 2400, and 12400.  The complex is not served by municipal water.  The closest fire station is just under a mile from the project site.  My research of the IFC and discussions with the local building official have led me to believe that I will need a very large holding tank in conjunction with a pump and automatic generator to satisfy the requirements and may be cost prohibitive.  Can anyone provide any advice and or proper design criteria to follow by which discover an efficient system? Thanks.

RE: Rural Multi-family residential fire sprinkler system

How are the building's supplied with drinking water? What's the available potable water flow rate?

RE: Rural Multi-family residential fire sprinkler system

(OP)
The buildings will be serviced by a series of wells.  We have yet to determine what the available flow rate will be from those wells.

RE: Rural Multi-family residential fire sprinkler system

what is pushing the requirement for sprinklers

1. is it a code issue

2. does the owner want to put them in even though not required.

3. if code requirement is it because of so many units in a building

4 if number three would it be cheaper to do one or two fire walls to subdivide the building below what kicks in the sprinklers

RE: Rural Multi-family residential fire sprinkler system

(OP)
It simply a requirement of the owner and the financing groups to have  the building equipped with automatic sprinklers.

RE: Rural Multi-family residential fire sprinkler system

An interesting conondrum - developers now know the liability of fire protection of multi-family dwelling tenants.

So is the question concerning the ability of the domestic water supply from a well delivering fire protection and potable water based on the required demand? Or is the question specific to the NFPA 13R sprinkler system and potable water supplies?

RE: Rural Multi-family residential fire sprinkler system

(OP)
From talking with the building official, the question is not as much a flow issue (which can be proved after the wells are drilled).  The issue Is one of capacity and how can you prove that the flow rate can be maintained without some measured vessel. ie: a tank and how large a tank

RE: Rural Multi-family residential fire sprinkler system

Your sprinkler demand would be based on NFPA 13R. This isn't that complex of a problem to resolve.

Your real issue is fire flow.

Red Flag This Post

Please let us know here why this post is inappropriate. Reasons such as off-topic, duplicates, flames, illegal, vulgar, or students posting their homework.

Red Flag Submitted

Thank you for helping keep Eng-Tips Forums free from inappropriate posts.
The Eng-Tips staff will check this out and take appropriate action.

Reply To This Thread

Posting in the Eng-Tips forums is a member-only feature.

Click Here to join Eng-Tips and talk with other members!


Resources