How Sprinklers Work
- Fire Sprinklers are simple devices that are individually operated directly by the heat from a fire.
- When a fire starts a plume of hot gases rise to the ceiling. If a sprinkler is present, a glass bulb or solder link gets hot and at a specific temperature (typically 68 degC) breaks releasing a cap and allowing water to flow onto a specially desinged diffuser.
- The diffuser breaks up the water flow into carefully controlled droplets, which penetrate the fire plume and coll the burning material below its ignition point, thus putting out the fire.
- Only sprinkler/s directly over the fire are operated.
- The sprinklers are connected to pipework, usually filled with water, which is supplied either from the water mains or from a storage tank via a pump.
- When a sprinkler operates the flow of water in the pipework operates a flow switch, which in turn operates an alarm system.
- The flow of water is small, usually less than 1/100th the water used by the Fire Brigade.
- Sprinklers do not go off accidentally and are only triggered by real fires.
ARC Fire Sprinklers Ltd
Domestic and Residential Fire Sprinkler Specialists.
