FAQs - Fire Suppression

The costs to recharge a discharged or partially discharged fire suppression system depend upon its design. We provide a recharge service and would need to know the type of system installed, the number of cylinders, their location and of course the fire suppression agent require. We would normally carry out a site survey before quoting as part of our risk assessment and method statement.

It is mandatory by law to test a fire suppression system fitted to any building. Within a critical environment like a server room or datacentre we would recommend one to two inspections per year for maintenance and testing. Routine inspection and preventative maintenance will ensure your system is fully operational and ready to help protect your server facility and the people working within it from the risks associated with a fire.

Your server room facility may include sprinkler system components. The sprinkler head will contain a bulb with a coloured liquid inside that acts as a plug to prevent water from escaping. Heat rises and as the temperature increases from the fire, the heat expands the liquid which expands and eventually forces the bulb to burst, releasing the water in the sprinkler system. There are different coloured liquids for different temperature triggers including: orange, red, yellow, green, blue, purple and black. Sprinkler systems cannot be activated by smoke or dust even though the bulbs themselves are designed to be very fragile. Even tampering can set them off.

The noble gases make up a class of chemical elements with similar properties; under standard conditions, they are all y.

Noble gases area class of chemical elements with similar properties and under standard conditions are odourless, colourless, monatomic gases with very low chemical reactivity. In order of their density the Noble gasses are Helium, Neon, Argon, Krypton, Xenon and Radon. Noble gasses are also known as Inert gasses and are used within inert gas fire protection solutions.

Pure Inert gases and the constituents of the blended versions (G-55-IG-541-IG-100) are found naturally in the atmosphere and are environmentally safe, having an ozone depletion potential (ODP) of zero and a global warming potential (GWP) of zero.

Compressed gas cylinders should be hydrostatically tested every 10 years. Test cylinders that fail the test and are not re-certified must be taken out of use and destroyed or recycled using via an environmentally friendly process.

Hydrostatic testing involves filling gas cylinders with water and placing them into a water filled pressure chambe, usually at 5/3 or 3/2 of their working pressure. This causes the water pressure inside the cylinder to increase and the cylinder to subsequently expand. Cylinder expansion of less than 5% is within the regulations limit and allows for recertification. Compliant cylinders are then dried out, stamped with certification and dated along with their test details. The cylinder is then reconditioned and either a refurbished or new valve is fitted before the cylinder is returned into service.

Cylinder Hydrostatic Testing is mandatory and must be performed every 10 years according to the Pressure Equipment Regulations 1999. Associated standards nclude BS EN 1968:2002 and current FIA guidelines. Hydrostatic Testing must be undertaken by individuals or companies accredited to EN ISO 17020.

Intumescent seals are strips of material that are installed and fitted around a doorway. When exposed to heat (such as a fire event), the seal expands closing any gaps around the door to stop the fire spreading, for a period of time.