Fire Suppression System Inspections and Maintenance | Is Your Tulsa or OKC Business Safe?

For a new building, a fundamental part of new construction is completing all the fire safety requirements for the new building. To open for business, buildings must comply with all fire codes for that area. But what happens months or years after the new building is constructed?  How regular is maintenance kept up, especially on fire protection systems?

As is the case with various types of maintenance, Tulsa and OKC fire suppression system maintenance can sometimes get put off because of seemingly more important daily matters.  But consistent fire safety as well as regular maintenance on a building is essential for life safety.

In an article on this subject, Gregory Havel of fireengineering.com wrote that some  people might advise buildings can even be “maintenance-free” for possibly even years, but this isn’t actually the case.
“Unfortunately, if property owners and managers do not begin to care for their buildings while they are still new,” he noted, “they will begin to deteriorate, hardware wear out, and life safety issues can develop.”

Many understand the wisdom in this advice of appropriately maintaining and inspecting even new property to keep it looking new, but at the same time, it can be very easy to forget or overlook when other everyday issues come up. But, some of these repetitious maintenance issues are closely connected to fire code compliance and thus life safety.

In his article, Havel noted that the National Fire Protection Association (NFPA) Life Safety Code requires that doors in hotel rooms and hotel corridors have self-closing devices and that they have a minimum 1 hour fire protection rating. Many of the doors in one hotel that he found needed to be physically closed, which meant the self-closing feature on these doors was worn out. This seemingly minor maintenance issue could thus be very hazardous in the event of a fire. Of course, consistent maintenance and testing should be done on Tulsa and OKC fire suppression system parts like fire sprinklers.

According to the NFPA 25, fire sprinklers should be inspected annually, Havel noted, for “corrosion, foreign materials, paint, and physical damage” as well as to ensure the sprinkler head is oriented correctly. In the hotel he inspected, Havel noted that a sidewall sprinkler head in a corridor had a “significant amount of dust, lint, and other debris accumulated on and around the thermal sensor.” Regular maintenance, and even possibly regular cleaning, could dramatically affect the fire suppression system and ultimately life safety.

Another aspect of a fire suppression system that can be overlooked for maintenance and inspection is the water storage tank. According to the NFPA 25, these tanks should be extensively inspected at least every 5 years, depending on the type of tank. Regular inspection of fire extinguishers in commercial and residential buildings is also vital to life safety.

Mac Systems in Tulsa and OKC offers a total array of fire suppression system inspections and maintenance services. These skilled inspectors are NICET certified and factory trained to identify any deficiencies in the system. They can inspect and service any type of system or brand.

Other parts of construction fire safety that must be considered involve after construction is complete or during renovation. Havel noted that some aspects of pipe and conduit that are finished after a project is done are sometimes completed by maintenance staff that may not realize the fire safety measures that need to be met. And during renovation, construction, and demolition there is a greater risk of a fire because of the wide diversity of ignition sources, the magazine Fire Protection Engineering noted.

Thus, fire safety and fire suppression system maintenance must be a primary part of your management plan during all phases of your building project and well after the project is completed. Really, fire safety maintenance planning has to be a regular part of your daily management to be effective in saving lives and property.