Unthreaded
Sep 7, 2017 at 12:45 AM | tomo
Water sprayed in ships may damage fixtures and fittings, but won't be absorbed by the fabric of the ship, requiring months to dry out before it can be redecorated and used. As you are aware, Fire Fighting is part of seafarers training, as you can't simply evacuate everytime an alarm goes off.
More "intelligent" and zoned sprinkler systems are now available, but the cost resulting from accidental activation and more likely, deliberate abuse in multiple occupancy buildings frightens accountants and insurers.
golf charlie
Sep 7, 2017 at 12:22 AM | Pcar
I think you are correct, it is the toothed whales rather than baleen whales. The larger baleens have little incentive to get into shallow water?
golf charlie
gc
There are different working modes / principles - but the overwhelming majority I've encountered (on ships) have *heat activated* single heads where the water flow is triggered by melting a pellet of fusible alloy and only the hot area is misted or sprinkled. Where vibration isn't an issue a cheaper glass phial filled with alcohol does the deed - again on an individual basis at I believe about 75 Celcius - higher temps are specced for kitchens and machinery areas.
The Hollywood thing of drenching an entire building by holding a cigarette lighter under single sprinkler head is mostly utter bollocks - but believed by most people.... One housing association in my area was/is looking to remove sprinklers from their properties citing "maintenance costs" (and the Legionella bogey) - even though several likely fatalities had actually been prevented - the fire brigade are still trying to dissuade them......
tomo
Whales beaching:
Is it predominantly toothed hunter-killer whales like Dolphins, Orcas etc rather than filter-feeder whales?
Pcar
tomo, how many times will a buildings owners/occupiers/insurers put up with the cost and disruption of sprinkler systems activating when there is no fire?
golf charlie
stewgreen
twice I have had fairly intemperate bust-ups with corporate HSE people on the sprinkler issue. There are far too many of them that hear the word "RISK" and listen no further and make precious little effort to acquaint themselves with the topic to hand.
The fact that there has been no recorded incident will only gee the f-wits up even further into declaring that they're not going to be the first case....
Anyway - at least the Scandis acknowledge the good indoor air quality issue and do something to address it while simultaneously hanging on to some of the energy used to heat a building.
Back to the insulation game that the blobsters are trying to push - there are many, many buildings that will never be able to be insulated to the standards possible in recent builds. Lower cost methods of heating are out there (GSHP comes to mind although CHP is viable for schools and offices) and they save that precious carbon - but they aren't in vogue with the nitwits who hold the subsidy purse strings. In many cases these eco initiatives aren't about saving carbon but are about ill informed obsessions, prevailing fashion and vested interests (umm... see Grenfell Tower)
One green group near me was given a very expensive thermal imaging camera and software (by DECC I think) - I expected them to be offering energy audits and heat leak detection for local community assets, OAPs and so on. Not one investigation has been put up on their web site - not a single case study .....
tomo
There may be a small risk to engineering and maintenance staff; this can be entirely eliminated by proper maintenance of the system.
Sep 6, 2017 at 8:59 PM | stewgreen
This small risk would be eliminated by chlorination, with household bleach.
I agree with Fire and Rescue Services, fear of Legionnaires is not a valid reason to avoid fitting sprinkers. It will be interesting to hear what the Grenfell Tower Inquiry concludes.
golf charlie
Quoting : Tyne and Wear Fire and Rescue Service
Is there a risk of Legionnaire’s disease from sprinklers?
Research carried out by the Fire Protection Association and the Loss Prevention Council has shown that there is no realistic chance of a member of the public contacting Legionella pestis from a sprinkler system when it operates.
There may be a small risk to engineering and maintenance staff; this can be entirely eliminated by proper maintenance of the system.
There has been no recorded case of Legionnaire’s Disease being contracted from any fire protection system anywhere in the world.
stewgreen
Sep 6, 2017 at 5:59 PM | tomo
The concentration of chlorine (domestic bleach, sodium hypochlorite) in a swimming pool, is sufficient to kill legionella, and the water remains safe to swim in, and drink. If the pipework supplying sprinklers could circulate water and "chlorinate" it periodically, the Legionnaires risk would be cancelled out.
golf charlie
Unprecedented is a silly word.
https://shawglobalnews.files.wordpress.com/2009/08/noaa-hurricane-tracker.jpg