When there is a fire do all the sprinkler heads go off at once?

No. Each head is independent and only the head(s) adjacent to the fire go off.

Isn’t water damage just as bad as the fire damage?

Not really. A Typical sprinkler discharges 55 litres per minute. A firefighting hose discharges over 600 litres per minute. You can expect a sprinkler to discharge less than 5% of the water used by the fire service.

I’ve heard that sprinklers can go off accidentally.

Records show that the chance of an accidental discharge from a sprinkler is in the region of 16 million to one. You have more chance of winning the lottery.

Aren't sprinkler systems expensive?

It is estimated that the costs of a sprinkler system can be recovered over a period of about 10 years. Installed in a new building a sprinkler system should not cost more than 1-2% of the total build cost. It could work out to be less than £10 a month on mortgage payments.

Currently the average price of a sprinkler system in the USA is $1.61 per square foot. Price data in the UK is hard to find given that it is a relatively new industry.

My smoke alarm provides enough protection.

Smoke alarms can warn you about a fire, but can not fight it or prevent it from spreading. There is also the risk that a smoke alarm might not work either because it has no battery life or simply because it has been neglected by the occupant. There is also the risk that a smoke alarm may not be loud enough to wake you up at night.

Sprinklers are ugly and will stand out.

In a domestic and residential property we use the latest technology to conceal the sprinkler heads into the ceiling. They can be aesthetically pleasing and you will not even notice that they are there.

How reliable are they?

Studies show that they are 96% effective. In the UK there has never been a fire death in a sprinklered protected property. The survival rate is estimated to be 80% (per 1000).

What is a domestic sprinkler system?

A domestic property is defined as “an individual dwelling for use as a single-family unit.”

A sprinkler system must be designed to discharge 60 litres of water per minute for 10 minutes through a single head. The design criteria should allow for two heads to activate.

What is a residential sprinkler systems?

A residential property is defined as “multiple occupancies such as apartments, residential homes, aged persons homes, nursing homes, boarding houses, blocks of flats and houses in multiple occupation.”

A sprinkler system must be designed to discharge 60 litres of water per minute for 30 minutes through a single head. The system must be designed to discharge 4 heads for a minimum of 30 minutes.

What is a water mist (sometimes called a low-flow) system?

Water mist (or ‘Low Flow') systems are almost identical in installation to a conventional sprinkler system, however in operation they discharge much smaller quantities of water and as a result is used much more effectively. Dividing water into smaller droplets increases its surface area and consequently, the rate at which it absorbs heat also increases. This causes the fire zone to become cooler sooner.

24 Hour Call: 08451 800339 E-mail: info@ultrasafe.org.uk

FACT: If a fire occurs in a room with a sprinkler, fire damage can be as little as 3%