When should you start changing all the Electrical wiring in your
Old home
After 25, 50, 75 years?
NFPA is trying to find out
But the answer could be sooner than you think?
By Nick Markowitz Jr.
The NFPA Safety Foundation has begun an ambitious plan to try and figure out when a person should consider changing out all of the old electrical wiring in a home.
Hopefully thru research the codes will ultimately reflect what is found.
But NFPA is looking for a needle in a haystack as far as I see it.
I have already come across 5 year old homes with serious problems as well as 100 year old homes were the wiring is absolutely fine.
What NFPA is going to find out is it all comes down to who wired the home a competent electrician or a poor workmanship electrician or a home owner or handy man. It will also depend on the level of or grade of the material used. $5.00 receptacles versus .50 devices.
Romex vs. BX etc.
The answer is it all depends on each and every individual house and how the people living in it keep their life style.
Does an active family occupy the house or an elderly retired couple or a young couple just starting out? Are they the keep up with the Jones type which has to have every known electrical gadget a hot tub and swimming pool and air conditioner and doing laundry at the same time. Are they a young working couple only home in the evenings relaxing watching TV? And in each case was the house wired with good quality items or cheap.
So by saying every home needs rewired every 25 years on average penalizes those who take care of their homes and do not stress there wiring systems.
One big area that also needs looked at is the main breaker box and associated wiring that comes to it from the outside. This wiring typically wears out long before the inside wiring ever will and is the often most neglected wire on the house because home owners for some reason seem to think the service cable on the home is maintained by the utility company so no mater how bad it starts to look they figure it is up to the local utility to replace it. Wrong. The home I live in and most around it are aprox. 45 years old I replaced the breaker box when I moved in 20+ years ago as water had gotten into it I also put in a ground rod and whole house surge suppresser and still among the small hand full who did and now I will need to replace the service wire and meter base because it is starting to show signs of failure as is every one else’s.
How ever my inside wiring is still in excellent shape I kept it this way by isolating the furnace, kitchen and washer & dryer on to there own dedicated circuits to prevent over stressing the existing wiring. However I know there are homes in my area this was not done and in fact there inside wiring needs replaced. Then you get into a whole different can of worms when you get into homes built 1940 and before and Knob and Tube or open wiring and fuse boxes. Insurance companys refuse to insure these homes and demand the Knob and tube be ripped out even some community’s in Pa. Require it be ripped out and replaced if found instead of safely repaired. How ever they are dong all of us a bad deal in requiring this.
Knob and tube wiring is in fact safer than modern wiring when it has been maintained properly. Fuses are safer than breakers a fuse will never jam it is an always going to work item when a short or overload occurs as it trips with heat and melts In fact the National Electrical code requires them for certain motor high amperage loads were breakers have many moving parts which can and do fail. In fact some breakers have a notorious failure and even catching fire history and are still in service and nothing has been done to encourage there removal. Some power companies in my area after breakers came out still required fused main switches they where so leery of breakers
If after all this research comes out and better code making is the result ho ray for al involved. If it does nothing more than muddle things up then shame on those involved in the muddying up of things.
But what has been shown so far every house studied had bad wiring do to home owner or other inexperienced individual fooling with it.
So what is the lesson here? Call a qualified professional not your brother in law.
Monday, February 14, 2011
THE ADA and common Sense?
Fire Alarm System Strobe Lights
Just one of many things the Americans with Disabilities Act
Has done that actually hurts many people it was intended to help.
By: Nick Markowitz Jr.
A Disabled individual
You’re at a store shopping or maybe attending a performance and they next thing you know off goes the Fire Alarm
The horns screaming loudly and white strobe lights going off kids are grabbing there ears start screaming and everyone starts leaving the building your in.
How ever the very strobe lights designed to allow hearing impaired individual know there is an emergency are causing other individuals confusion and nausea to point they require assistance to get out.
So what’s going on?
When the ADA strobe regulations came out the medical community was worried about the strobes setting off people with epilepsy so they require all strobe lights to be synchronized so it lessons the chance of a Elliptic having an attack. But what they forgot was the many people with Brain Injuries, Vertigo and abnormalities such Dyslexia which the strobe lights affect me being one of those with Dyslexia who gets sick to my stomach and disoriented.
When I have to service and test them. No testing was ever done on any condition other than epilepsy.
Why because as is usual in this country some do gooders wanted to do something to help the disabled a very noble cause but instead of actually studying the problem by talking to those who are disabled and looking at all aspects of disabilities it was left up to a hand full of bureaucrats and manufacturers and special interests to write a code which in many cases is detrimental to those it was intended to help and has caused numerous problems no one wants to talk about.
Take the Strobes for instance. The code has now been changed they must be shut off with the horns because hearing impaired individuals had no idea if it was still urgent for them to leave or not because some genius Fire Marshal said lets turn off the horns and leave the strobes on while we check the building so people know there’s still and emergency ,
And you may not have to evacuate fine and dandy but what about the hearing impaired individual.
Again no one thought to look any further than there own interest. Then you have the problem of smoke in the buildings and with the strobes going it becomes a Disco Hell for those trying to get out and firefighters trying to fight the fire. Not only that but all the noise made by too many horns being installed because too many designers think you need a horn everywhere there’s a strobe prevents firefighters from communication.
During the Columbine Massacre the SWAT Team had a horrendous time dealing with the shooting because all the horns and strobes were going off and not having the code to shut off the fire panel.
So as you can see failure to look forward as to what could and does go wrong was never considered and death and injury has resulted.
Of course this is not the only conflict with the ADA take the Restroom requirements’ where before you would have 2-3 stalls now you have one. No Big Deal right. It allows a person in a wheel chair or walker easier access very true but in mean time what about the person with irritable bowel syndrome or other illness who desperately needs to go and now must wait. I know I have been there going thru Colon Cancer again no one ever thought this thru because restrooms take up valuable rentable floor space so designers make them as small and few stalls as possible.
Again one group is served while everyone else is in convinced and those with IBS etc you’re just plain out of luck.
And how about us tall guys because designers again do not think things thru tall guys end up whacking there knee on the toilet paper dispensers.
How about water fountains’, being hung so low that people with bad backs having to bend down to use them.
Becsue code requires the low one and people will not spend the money for a higher one also.
Yes designers never ever think any thing thru its design a building to meet code and nothing but code, for as cheaply as they possibly can.
I could go on and on about how badly thought thru the ADA code was designed.
I have an elderly In Law I take care of and what my poor wife goes thru trying to get her in and out of handicapped restrooms which are so badly designed. With Higher than average toilets which wheel chairs users find hard to get on and un-comfortable to use.
Again consult the computer and so called ergonomics experts how to design something but never ever talk to the group you intend to serve or think anything thru as to will it hurt others.
Take the case I ran into with a burglar alarm system with LCD display keypads optimal viewing height is 54’ from floor but no the ADA inspector says they have to be at 48” where no one tall can read or properly use them and people in wheel chairs can not operate them because of the dexterity required in your fingers. In this case I had available a special hand control for wheel chair use if there ever was an employee hired who was disabled but No that was no good with the inspector even after it was pointed out he was wrong and I meet the code a different way which is permitted.
So end result an ADA complaint got filed and inspector got disciplined for a bad decision.
His answer to the complaint he was doing his job and following code.
Yes once again it seems like building codes and common sense do not go together and groups like NFPA- National Fire Protection Assoc. get all steamed when there’s bumper stickers on contractors trucks going around that says NFPA stand for Not For Practical Application.
A little common sense is what we need but no one ever wants to use it especially when it comes to building codes.
The end results you can get in convinced , hurt or even killed.
Just one of many things the Americans with Disabilities Act
Has done that actually hurts many people it was intended to help.
By: Nick Markowitz Jr.
A Disabled individual
You’re at a store shopping or maybe attending a performance and they next thing you know off goes the Fire Alarm
The horns screaming loudly and white strobe lights going off kids are grabbing there ears start screaming and everyone starts leaving the building your in.
How ever the very strobe lights designed to allow hearing impaired individual know there is an emergency are causing other individuals confusion and nausea to point they require assistance to get out.
So what’s going on?
When the ADA strobe regulations came out the medical community was worried about the strobes setting off people with epilepsy so they require all strobe lights to be synchronized so it lessons the chance of a Elliptic having an attack. But what they forgot was the many people with Brain Injuries, Vertigo and abnormalities such Dyslexia which the strobe lights affect me being one of those with Dyslexia who gets sick to my stomach and disoriented.
When I have to service and test them. No testing was ever done on any condition other than epilepsy.
Why because as is usual in this country some do gooders wanted to do something to help the disabled a very noble cause but instead of actually studying the problem by talking to those who are disabled and looking at all aspects of disabilities it was left up to a hand full of bureaucrats and manufacturers and special interests to write a code which in many cases is detrimental to those it was intended to help and has caused numerous problems no one wants to talk about.
Take the Strobes for instance. The code has now been changed they must be shut off with the horns because hearing impaired individuals had no idea if it was still urgent for them to leave or not because some genius Fire Marshal said lets turn off the horns and leave the strobes on while we check the building so people know there’s still and emergency ,
And you may not have to evacuate fine and dandy but what about the hearing impaired individual.
Again no one thought to look any further than there own interest. Then you have the problem of smoke in the buildings and with the strobes going it becomes a Disco Hell for those trying to get out and firefighters trying to fight the fire. Not only that but all the noise made by too many horns being installed because too many designers think you need a horn everywhere there’s a strobe prevents firefighters from communication.
During the Columbine Massacre the SWAT Team had a horrendous time dealing with the shooting because all the horns and strobes were going off and not having the code to shut off the fire panel.
So as you can see failure to look forward as to what could and does go wrong was never considered and death and injury has resulted.
Of course this is not the only conflict with the ADA take the Restroom requirements’ where before you would have 2-3 stalls now you have one. No Big Deal right. It allows a person in a wheel chair or walker easier access very true but in mean time what about the person with irritable bowel syndrome or other illness who desperately needs to go and now must wait. I know I have been there going thru Colon Cancer again no one ever thought this thru because restrooms take up valuable rentable floor space so designers make them as small and few stalls as possible.
Again one group is served while everyone else is in convinced and those with IBS etc you’re just plain out of luck.
And how about us tall guys because designers again do not think things thru tall guys end up whacking there knee on the toilet paper dispensers.
How about water fountains’, being hung so low that people with bad backs having to bend down to use them.
Becsue code requires the low one and people will not spend the money for a higher one also.
Yes designers never ever think any thing thru its design a building to meet code and nothing but code, for as cheaply as they possibly can.
I could go on and on about how badly thought thru the ADA code was designed.
I have an elderly In Law I take care of and what my poor wife goes thru trying to get her in and out of handicapped restrooms which are so badly designed. With Higher than average toilets which wheel chairs users find hard to get on and un-comfortable to use.
Again consult the computer and so called ergonomics experts how to design something but never ever talk to the group you intend to serve or think anything thru as to will it hurt others.
Take the case I ran into with a burglar alarm system with LCD display keypads optimal viewing height is 54’ from floor but no the ADA inspector says they have to be at 48” where no one tall can read or properly use them and people in wheel chairs can not operate them because of the dexterity required in your fingers. In this case I had available a special hand control for wheel chair use if there ever was an employee hired who was disabled but No that was no good with the inspector even after it was pointed out he was wrong and I meet the code a different way which is permitted.
So end result an ADA complaint got filed and inspector got disciplined for a bad decision.
His answer to the complaint he was doing his job and following code.
Yes once again it seems like building codes and common sense do not go together and groups like NFPA- National Fire Protection Assoc. get all steamed when there’s bumper stickers on contractors trucks going around that says NFPA stand for Not For Practical Application.
A little common sense is what we need but no one ever wants to use it especially when it comes to building codes.
The end results you can get in convinced , hurt or even killed.
Sunday, February 13, 2011
Salad causes a false fire alarm?
THE SALAD BAR CAUSED
THE FALSE FIRE ALARMS ???
Submitted by Nick Markowitz Jr.
This is definitely one of the stranger False Fire Alarm causes I have come across over the years. But a very Large Salad Bowl filled with Ice was the cause for a false fire alarm
At an Elementary School North of Pittsburgh
It seemed like every time they served Salad for lunch at the school the Fire Alarm would trigger an alarm, which would indicate the Anzul Fire suppression system in the kitchen had activated.
We had activation switches changed rewired the actuator control in case the fire wiring was
grounding out etc and still problems.
The Anzul was on it's own ID point as the system was an older factory Engineered Addressable system put in about 10 years ago by a National Company which was always causing problems for the school district so they asked me to take over maintenance and for the most part I have reduced the false's and other problems. The District intends to completely replace this Factory Engineered system in the near future, as they are totally disgusted by the system.
So Ok the alarm goes off again when there serving Salad and enough was enough
We got every one together ABCO who services the Anzul System, The Cafeteria Workers, and Custodian staff and we reduplicated every thing they do on Salad day and
Bang the Alarm goes off about 20 minutes after they move the salad bowl and table.
OK common sense tells you there is no way the Anzul System could be set off this way.
It must be another component in the system causing the Problem and it is possibly misidentified as the Anzul System.
Myself and ABCO's Tech look and we find that the Heat Detectors in the kitchen have been misidentified in the programming. Now there is no way that a Heat Detector in a kitchen is going to be set off by a cold Salad bowl. Kitchens should use only 185 Degree Fixed Point Units, but with further Examination we find the heat detectors are 135 Degree
Rate of Rise Detectors, which trigger when there is a change in air temp of 15 degrees in
5 minutes, which was what was happening when they moved the salad bowl away from under the heat detector on the ceiling, the heat from the Exhaust hood was high enough to cause the heat to exchange fast enough to trip the detector, which would then reset, as 135 degrees was not exceeded. Needless to say a look a the plans showed that 185 degree units were to be installed so this national company got a call to come and replace the units they failed to install properly. Once again we have a case were plans said one thing and the installer did what he was told even though it was improper and all the false Alarm fees and trips by Technicians would have been completely avoided had the Installer done the right thing.
Would licenses and certification have prevented this? Absolutely not.
The Tech who installed the system was certified to install fire alarms.
And again he knew he would get away with it because by the time the problem was figured out he would be long forgotten .What could have prevented this a full and complete inspection by the AHJ and the Architect .Checking to make sure specifications were complied with.
THE FALSE FIRE ALARMS ???
Submitted by Nick Markowitz Jr.
This is definitely one of the stranger False Fire Alarm causes I have come across over the years. But a very Large Salad Bowl filled with Ice was the cause for a false fire alarm
At an Elementary School North of Pittsburgh
It seemed like every time they served Salad for lunch at the school the Fire Alarm would trigger an alarm, which would indicate the Anzul Fire suppression system in the kitchen had activated.
We had activation switches changed rewired the actuator control in case the fire wiring was
grounding out etc and still problems.
The Anzul was on it's own ID point as the system was an older factory Engineered Addressable system put in about 10 years ago by a National Company which was always causing problems for the school district so they asked me to take over maintenance and for the most part I have reduced the false's and other problems. The District intends to completely replace this Factory Engineered system in the near future, as they are totally disgusted by the system.
So Ok the alarm goes off again when there serving Salad and enough was enough
We got every one together ABCO who services the Anzul System, The Cafeteria Workers, and Custodian staff and we reduplicated every thing they do on Salad day and
Bang the Alarm goes off about 20 minutes after they move the salad bowl and table.
OK common sense tells you there is no way the Anzul System could be set off this way.
It must be another component in the system causing the Problem and it is possibly misidentified as the Anzul System.
Myself and ABCO's Tech look and we find that the Heat Detectors in the kitchen have been misidentified in the programming. Now there is no way that a Heat Detector in a kitchen is going to be set off by a cold Salad bowl. Kitchens should use only 185 Degree Fixed Point Units, but with further Examination we find the heat detectors are 135 Degree
Rate of Rise Detectors, which trigger when there is a change in air temp of 15 degrees in
5 minutes, which was what was happening when they moved the salad bowl away from under the heat detector on the ceiling, the heat from the Exhaust hood was high enough to cause the heat to exchange fast enough to trip the detector, which would then reset, as 135 degrees was not exceeded. Needless to say a look a the plans showed that 185 degree units were to be installed so this national company got a call to come and replace the units they failed to install properly. Once again we have a case were plans said one thing and the installer did what he was told even though it was improper and all the false Alarm fees and trips by Technicians would have been completely avoided had the Installer done the right thing.
Would licenses and certification have prevented this? Absolutely not.
The Tech who installed the system was certified to install fire alarms.
And again he knew he would get away with it because by the time the problem was figured out he would be long forgotten .What could have prevented this a full and complete inspection by the AHJ and the Architect .Checking to make sure specifications were complied with.
Thursday, February 10, 2011
SO WHATS ALL THE URGENCY AND ANXIETY OVER
E.A.S
By Nick Markowitz Jr.
An internet radio host Alex Jones www.infowars.com and others have been making a big fuss over the EAS System or Emergency Alerting System which is found in every terrestrial Radio and TV Station which provides for emergency messages such as severe weather alerts an evacuation message should there be Chemical Release etc.
But the main purpose of EAS was to disseminate and distribute messages of a National Emergency such as an impending Nuclear Attack started in the 1950’s the now famous “your attention please this is test of the Emergency Broadcasting System, this is only a test “was originally started back during the time of the Cuban Missile Crisis
To warn the citizens of an impending attack which thank god never happened.
The original system had certain stations in regions around the country such as KDKA 1020 AM and WQED FM here in Pittsburgh Pa. which upon receiving the encoded signal from Washington D.C. would verify it similar to how nuclear mission pilots do and then they would transmit out to stations like where I am the Broadcast engineer WAVL 910AM in Apollo Pa. where we had 2 radios always tuned into both stations and listening for the signal these radios would be tied to what is known as an Endec Box which upon hearing the tones shuts off the talk or music and would then rebroadcast the message. Or if station has personnel on site the personnel first verify message and then release it which can be up to several minutes for non emergency messages such a storm watch.
The system worked some what because some times the signal from KDKA and WQED would get thru some times not depending on weather etc. The City of Johnstown was one which was often hard pressed to get the message. Since they sit in the Allegheny Mountains
Now remember this was before the internet and small inexpensive satellites’ became widely available. Then with the advent of 9-11 the state of Pennsylvania and others started looking for a better way to get messages across the state in a timely matter and also from various authorized agency’s especially in light of the fact the US Government never issued an emergency broadcast during the events of 9-11 which many thought should have happened in fact there has never been a full nation wide test of the EAS system only a couple of regions have ever tested it.
Pa. chose Em-Net from Comm-labs which is satellite based with internet back up messages can be sent from PEMA Pa. Emergency Management Agency in Harrisburg Pa. instantly and get feed back via the internet of message has been received and transmitted. Also at the radio stations we can send out emergency messages and amber alerts so they can be verified and retransmitted as well all in all things have worked very well.
So now FEMA Federal Emergency Management Agency and HLS Homeland Security for the last few years have been working on an updated EAS and of course all the stations will have to buy updated Endec Boxes so they will be able to receive the new CAP codes which tell the box how to react.
Several vendors are now making units available to stations and they hope everything is in place some time in 2012
The new system will with cooperation of manufacturers allow emergency messages over Cell phones ,I pods and other electronic devices since many people do not listen to or have turned on a terrestrial radio or TV station.
All the various devices would turn on instantly which in theory sounds good but there actually pulling it off will be another thing. Among the new features would be several levels of presidential emergency messages which can warn about potential terrorists’ activity as well and the alerting systems are even being tied into Mass Notifications systems as well. Many large industrial facility’s already have Weather emergency radios tied into the public address systems at there plants to warn workers of potential emergencies and this takes it to the next step.
It’s a very good system and will be able to get messages to all. But of course there are those like Alex Jones who compare this to the days of NAZI Germany where every corner had a speaker and carried Adolf Hitler’s daily Messages and failure to do so could result in death or interment in a concentration camp if you interfered.
Yes this system could do that but like anything electronic its just a matter of hitting a switch pulling a cord and no message So yes it could be used for evil purposes but any thing evil can and will be overcome.
But from every thing I have seen and read on the situation it looks like an excellent use of technology.
You can follow developments just like I do on Radio World Magazines website. http://www.radioworld.com/
And decide for your self.
Here is a sample emergency test message sent by Pa. Em-Net service
Exported EMnet message
From: PA EMnet NC/RC Monitor Mobile (PA.006)
Author: EMnet-PA.006
Originated: 04:17AM Thu 02/17/2011
Originator's Message ID: 31
To: 042000
Priority: 3
Test! This is a State Wide Required Monthly Test originating from the Pennsylvania Emergency Management Agency, Harrisburg. This is Only a Test!
Event duration expressed in local time (Eastern Standard Time):
Starting: Thu 02/17/2011 04:16AM Eastern Standard Time
Ending: Thu 02/17/2011 09:16AM Eastern Standard Time
E.A.S
By Nick Markowitz Jr.
An internet radio host Alex Jones www.infowars.com and others have been making a big fuss over the EAS System or Emergency Alerting System which is found in every terrestrial Radio and TV Station which provides for emergency messages such as severe weather alerts an evacuation message should there be Chemical Release etc.
But the main purpose of EAS was to disseminate and distribute messages of a National Emergency such as an impending Nuclear Attack started in the 1950’s the now famous “your attention please this is test of the Emergency Broadcasting System, this is only a test “was originally started back during the time of the Cuban Missile Crisis
To warn the citizens of an impending attack which thank god never happened.
The original system had certain stations in regions around the country such as KDKA 1020 AM and WQED FM here in Pittsburgh Pa. which upon receiving the encoded signal from Washington D.C. would verify it similar to how nuclear mission pilots do and then they would transmit out to stations like where I am the Broadcast engineer WAVL 910AM in Apollo Pa. where we had 2 radios always tuned into both stations and listening for the signal these radios would be tied to what is known as an Endec Box which upon hearing the tones shuts off the talk or music and would then rebroadcast the message. Or if station has personnel on site the personnel first verify message and then release it which can be up to several minutes for non emergency messages such a storm watch.
The system worked some what because some times the signal from KDKA and WQED would get thru some times not depending on weather etc. The City of Johnstown was one which was often hard pressed to get the message. Since they sit in the Allegheny Mountains
Now remember this was before the internet and small inexpensive satellites’ became widely available. Then with the advent of 9-11 the state of Pennsylvania and others started looking for a better way to get messages across the state in a timely matter and also from various authorized agency’s especially in light of the fact the US Government never issued an emergency broadcast during the events of 9-11 which many thought should have happened in fact there has never been a full nation wide test of the EAS system only a couple of regions have ever tested it.
Pa. chose Em-Net from Comm-labs which is satellite based with internet back up messages can be sent from PEMA Pa. Emergency Management Agency in Harrisburg Pa. instantly and get feed back via the internet of message has been received and transmitted. Also at the radio stations we can send out emergency messages and amber alerts so they can be verified and retransmitted as well all in all things have worked very well.
So now FEMA Federal Emergency Management Agency and HLS Homeland Security for the last few years have been working on an updated EAS and of course all the stations will have to buy updated Endec Boxes so they will be able to receive the new CAP codes which tell the box how to react.
Several vendors are now making units available to stations and they hope everything is in place some time in 2012
The new system will with cooperation of manufacturers allow emergency messages over Cell phones ,I pods and other electronic devices since many people do not listen to or have turned on a terrestrial radio or TV station.
All the various devices would turn on instantly which in theory sounds good but there actually pulling it off will be another thing. Among the new features would be several levels of presidential emergency messages which can warn about potential terrorists’ activity as well and the alerting systems are even being tied into Mass Notifications systems as well. Many large industrial facility’s already have Weather emergency radios tied into the public address systems at there plants to warn workers of potential emergencies and this takes it to the next step.
It’s a very good system and will be able to get messages to all. But of course there are those like Alex Jones who compare this to the days of NAZI Germany where every corner had a speaker and carried Adolf Hitler’s daily Messages and failure to do so could result in death or interment in a concentration camp if you interfered.
Yes this system could do that but like anything electronic its just a matter of hitting a switch pulling a cord and no message So yes it could be used for evil purposes but any thing evil can and will be overcome.
But from every thing I have seen and read on the situation it looks like an excellent use of technology.
You can follow developments just like I do on Radio World Magazines website. http://www.radioworld.com/
And decide for your self.
Here is a sample emergency test message sent by Pa. Em-Net service
Exported EMnet message
From: PA EMnet NC/RC Monitor Mobile (PA.006)
Author: EMnet-PA.006
Originated: 04:17AM Thu 02/17/2011
Originator's Message ID: 31
To: 042000
Priority: 3
Test! This is a State Wide Required Monthly Test originating from the Pennsylvania Emergency Management Agency, Harrisburg. This is Only a Test!
Event duration expressed in local time (Eastern Standard Time):
Starting: Thu 02/17/2011 04:16AM Eastern Standard Time
Ending: Thu 02/17/2011 09:16AM Eastern Standard Time
Wednesday, February 9, 2011
Sprinkler System Reliabilty
Fire Protection Sprinklers
Are they nothing more than a Panacea to all our fire safety worries?
A Serious Question
How many systems when called on after 15 or more years in service will work correctly?
Recently while installing a Fire Alarm System at a very high end fancy restaurant we had the ultimate nightmare happen.
Water was left in a Dry Pipe Sprinkler System which froze up and burst 5 days after the restaurant opened. And to make matters worse the Fire Alarm never sounded how ever the Burglar Alarm came to the rescue when the water soaked ceiling tiles fell and where picked up by the Motion Sensors. Why? Because an unsupervised hand valve was turned off to the water flow alarm valve which activates the Fire Alarm system.
Woe! Does not the NFPA 13 which governs how sprinkler systems prohibit having any valve in the path to a flow switch unless it is supervised? Yes this is a code requirement that was completely ignored by the sprinkler pipe installers and the technicians who serviced it and the Code enforcement inspector who inspected it.
But wait a minute are not all of these people involved in this sprinkler system suppose to be certified, licensed or otherwise qualified to work on and inspect these system? Yes this is also correct.
So how did this happen well let’s look at how the story started? It starts about 2005 a new restaurant brew pub was built in a very high end community North of Pittsburgh just before the new Pa. Uniform Construction Code UCC came into effect.
The fire system and sprinkler system where installed and passed how ever even back then the systems never should have passed code. Why?
To begin with the Fire system was improperly wired to allow 120 volts ac power to mix with the 24volts dc power of the fire alarm. This happened when a 120 volt bell was installed on the outside of the restaurant to warn passersby the sprinkler system had activated. Incase the phone lines failed.
The restaurant was only open couple years when all of a sudden it closed and went bankrupt. When this happened because improper maintenance of the dry pipe part of the sprinkler system which requires at a minimum of every 2 months have its Drum Drips emptied of condensate where allowed to fill up and they froze. Because of the wiring flaw
The fire system got 120 volt dead short across it and the fire system died the bell never came on and it was not till ice was flowing out the restaurants front door was the problem found.
Fast forward to 2010 A new owner decides to clean and fix up property and build a new 5 star fine dining type restaurant. In doing so all the old problems with fire system and sprinkler system are found and corrected a totally new fire system is installed and all the bad pipes etc in the sprinkler system are corrected and all new inspections including plans are sent for review and approval the township wanting to put behind it that its previous regime of inspectors allowed such bad work to go on in the community.
Well it appears the new ICC certified inspectors and plan reviewers are no better as we now have the newest catastrophe to deal with
How can an ICC Certified Code Enforcement Officer and a Certified Plan reviewer allow this to happen? It is easier than you think.
It comes back to lack of practical hands on experience. Anyone can pick up an ICC book read all the rules and regulations and take the test to become certified with absolutely never putting an eye or hand on a fire system or sprinkler system.
Well what about the hands on experience again just like fire alarms it is taught by those who in too many cases where never taught correctly in the first place.
So as you can see I have an inspected sprinkler system that never should have passed due to the hand valve but that’s not the only problem. As it is missing a critical gate valve to properly do a Back flow preventer test or to be able to properly remove and service it as well as wrong pipe and fittings on dry system in the attic and many other things a normal sprinkler inspector would not do yet there it sits certified and passed.
Well then one would have to ask is this an isolated incident in one community? Unfortunately the answer is no it goes on all the time fire and sprinkler systems being approved with major flaws in them.
A multi million dollar judgment was just paid out by a large national fire/security company after its system failed to protect a large warehouse complex.
So just how dependable will that sprinkler system going to be when called upon. ? Well that requires how well it was designed and maintained.
Sprinkler advocates constantly ballyhoo the fact there has never been a multi fatality in a properly maintained and sprinklered structure of course they do not want to talk about the women who was killed in here homes kitchen when the sprinkler system went off and killed her from the explosion it caused by improperly mixed antifreeze in her system .
This tragedy has been researched and there is now a ban in using antifreeze in residential sprinklers.
First let’s look at how a sprinkler system works and is designed.
While there are several different designs including specialty sprinklers for valuable items storage etc.
The 2 most common water based systems you will find is a Wet Pipe and Dry Pipe system.
In a Wet Pipe System steel or special PVC piping is run thru a structure and the water is held back by special sprinkler pendants which melt and release the water at around 165 Degrees of heat.
Simple enough 1 or more heads will open to douse the fire out completely or hold it a bay till firefighters arrive and can Finnish the job. When the head activates and water starts moving a special paddle switch moves and activates the fire signal be it one bell or a complete fire system. Older systems employed a motorized water gong which sounded on the outside of the building to warn water is moving and are still sometimes utilized but most outside bells are now Horn Strobes attached to the fire system.
In a dry pipe system dry air from a compressor or nitrogen tank is pumped into the piping which looks exactly like the wet system but a special valve is deployed to keep the water in the stem where it comes into the building so that pipes
Will not freeze generally only the small sprinkler room needs heated and where the drum drips are located that catch the condensation which forms in the pipes.
When there is a fire a pendant opens and air is let out and since compressor can not keep up with the water pressure coming in water flows thru the pipes to the fire. These systems are favored in cold climates and can be stand alone or used in conjunction with wet pipe systems. When water rushes thru the pipes some of the water is diverted into a small pipe which contains a plunger type switch which activates when it sees the pressure from the water activating the outside bell or fire system.
So as you can see pretty simple yet for there simplicity they have there problems when not maintained properly and one of the biggest problems is corrosion of the pipes even in a dry system .There is also the problem of algae and slime
When water sits in pipes depending on its acidity level the corrosion can take several years to a couple decades.
Annual testing which checks the flow valves and helps bring fresh water into a system however does not thoroughly change out the water in all of the branches and this is where problems begin.
After this water has been sitting out in the branches of the system it can become so thick to the point it is like syrup I have seen where sprinkler lines have been opened up and it took a coat hanger being shoved by a sprinkler tech up into the pipe to get the excess water left when a system has been drained to be worked on.
Well you would have to ask .Are there not rules and techniques as to how systems are to be maintained to prevent this?
Yes there is there are anti slime and anti rust additives which can be added there are anti corrosion systems as well but ultimately it comes down to the building owner as to the system being properly maintained and the local fire inspectors to check to make sure tests are being done. That said I have customers buildings where a fire inspector has not been in to inspect in over 20years or more.
In some cases risk managers for insurance company’s will come in and demand testing etc. be done
But often Sprinkler systems can and do sit for many years and are never tested or maintained and this is where the problems begin. Even when a system is being maintained it comes down to the sprinkler techs to do so properly which again some do it right many do not look at what happened at the High End Restaurant
Less means more?
One of the very bad practices of building codes has been the fact that a sprinkler system are more often being used to protect people and property instead of a properly maintained Firewall and Fire Doors.
With in the code you are allowed to use a sprinkler system to protect an area instead of making the construction fire proof or resistant. This is all fine and well if the sprinkler system comes on. But what if it does not?
Yes sprinkler systems have failed several times with in the last decade sprinkle head pendants have been recalled due to not opening and allowing water out after heat melted out the element which holds the water back. There are also cases where sprinkler systems have been shut off and no one knows this ended up costing several NY City firefighters there life in an apartment building fire after maintenance personnel shut off sprinklers after a break and never fixed it.
Sprinklers Shut Off? How?
Sprinkler systems like all piping systems have a set of valves to turn the water on ad off. In some areas building codes only require a lock and chain to supervise the valves’ position. Any one with a key or chain cutter can remove the lock and chain shut them off and no body knows unless the system is inspected and it happens all the time.
More than once I have walked into job sites and found sprinklers totally turned off because there was a break or leak and the systems where never fixed I found just this situation at a shopping center once.
Yes valves can be electrically supervised where they are tied to a fire system and a signal is sent to supervising central stations it is logged and noted when system is on or off. But when it comes to open Yoke and Stem valves often the switch mechanism can get shifted and not pick up the valve being closed.
The OYS valve just has a simple notch the trigger arm sits in which can slip out of adjustment and never get triggered.
There needs to be a better system for OYS valves but again the manufacturers are not listening as usual.
Even if there is supervision and the trouble signal is sent it still takes some one to come out and check it again the building owner can ignore it or service tech bypass it.
It is amazing how many buildings I walk into there fire system has a trouble on it and it is still there 6 months to a year later when I visit again. I notify local Fire Authorities when I see fire and sprinkler systems not maintained and again some react immediately and go after the problems and others do not.
So knowing all the problems there are with sprinkler systems and fire system not being installed and maintained properly just how safe do you feel?
Are they nothing more than a Panacea to all our fire safety worries?
A Serious Question
How many systems when called on after 15 or more years in service will work correctly?
Recently while installing a Fire Alarm System at a very high end fancy restaurant we had the ultimate nightmare happen.
Water was left in a Dry Pipe Sprinkler System which froze up and burst 5 days after the restaurant opened. And to make matters worse the Fire Alarm never sounded how ever the Burglar Alarm came to the rescue when the water soaked ceiling tiles fell and where picked up by the Motion Sensors. Why? Because an unsupervised hand valve was turned off to the water flow alarm valve which activates the Fire Alarm system.
Woe! Does not the NFPA 13 which governs how sprinkler systems prohibit having any valve in the path to a flow switch unless it is supervised? Yes this is a code requirement that was completely ignored by the sprinkler pipe installers and the technicians who serviced it and the Code enforcement inspector who inspected it.
But wait a minute are not all of these people involved in this sprinkler system suppose to be certified, licensed or otherwise qualified to work on and inspect these system? Yes this is also correct.
So how did this happen well let’s look at how the story started? It starts about 2005 a new restaurant brew pub was built in a very high end community North of Pittsburgh just before the new Pa. Uniform Construction Code UCC came into effect.
The fire system and sprinkler system where installed and passed how ever even back then the systems never should have passed code. Why?
To begin with the Fire system was improperly wired to allow 120 volts ac power to mix with the 24volts dc power of the fire alarm. This happened when a 120 volt bell was installed on the outside of the restaurant to warn passersby the sprinkler system had activated. Incase the phone lines failed.
The restaurant was only open couple years when all of a sudden it closed and went bankrupt. When this happened because improper maintenance of the dry pipe part of the sprinkler system which requires at a minimum of every 2 months have its Drum Drips emptied of condensate where allowed to fill up and they froze. Because of the wiring flaw
The fire system got 120 volt dead short across it and the fire system died the bell never came on and it was not till ice was flowing out the restaurants front door was the problem found.
Fast forward to 2010 A new owner decides to clean and fix up property and build a new 5 star fine dining type restaurant. In doing so all the old problems with fire system and sprinkler system are found and corrected a totally new fire system is installed and all the bad pipes etc in the sprinkler system are corrected and all new inspections including plans are sent for review and approval the township wanting to put behind it that its previous regime of inspectors allowed such bad work to go on in the community.
Well it appears the new ICC certified inspectors and plan reviewers are no better as we now have the newest catastrophe to deal with
How can an ICC Certified Code Enforcement Officer and a Certified Plan reviewer allow this to happen? It is easier than you think.
It comes back to lack of practical hands on experience. Anyone can pick up an ICC book read all the rules and regulations and take the test to become certified with absolutely never putting an eye or hand on a fire system or sprinkler system.
Well what about the hands on experience again just like fire alarms it is taught by those who in too many cases where never taught correctly in the first place.
So as you can see I have an inspected sprinkler system that never should have passed due to the hand valve but that’s not the only problem. As it is missing a critical gate valve to properly do a Back flow preventer test or to be able to properly remove and service it as well as wrong pipe and fittings on dry system in the attic and many other things a normal sprinkler inspector would not do yet there it sits certified and passed.
Well then one would have to ask is this an isolated incident in one community? Unfortunately the answer is no it goes on all the time fire and sprinkler systems being approved with major flaws in them.
A multi million dollar judgment was just paid out by a large national fire/security company after its system failed to protect a large warehouse complex.
So just how dependable will that sprinkler system going to be when called upon. ? Well that requires how well it was designed and maintained.
Sprinkler advocates constantly ballyhoo the fact there has never been a multi fatality in a properly maintained and sprinklered structure of course they do not want to talk about the women who was killed in here homes kitchen when the sprinkler system went off and killed her from the explosion it caused by improperly mixed antifreeze in her system .
This tragedy has been researched and there is now a ban in using antifreeze in residential sprinklers.
First let’s look at how a sprinkler system works and is designed.
While there are several different designs including specialty sprinklers for valuable items storage etc.
The 2 most common water based systems you will find is a Wet Pipe and Dry Pipe system.
In a Wet Pipe System steel or special PVC piping is run thru a structure and the water is held back by special sprinkler pendants which melt and release the water at around 165 Degrees of heat.
Simple enough 1 or more heads will open to douse the fire out completely or hold it a bay till firefighters arrive and can Finnish the job. When the head activates and water starts moving a special paddle switch moves and activates the fire signal be it one bell or a complete fire system. Older systems employed a motorized water gong which sounded on the outside of the building to warn water is moving and are still sometimes utilized but most outside bells are now Horn Strobes attached to the fire system.
In a dry pipe system dry air from a compressor or nitrogen tank is pumped into the piping which looks exactly like the wet system but a special valve is deployed to keep the water in the stem where it comes into the building so that pipes
Will not freeze generally only the small sprinkler room needs heated and where the drum drips are located that catch the condensation which forms in the pipes.
When there is a fire a pendant opens and air is let out and since compressor can not keep up with the water pressure coming in water flows thru the pipes to the fire. These systems are favored in cold climates and can be stand alone or used in conjunction with wet pipe systems. When water rushes thru the pipes some of the water is diverted into a small pipe which contains a plunger type switch which activates when it sees the pressure from the water activating the outside bell or fire system.
So as you can see pretty simple yet for there simplicity they have there problems when not maintained properly and one of the biggest problems is corrosion of the pipes even in a dry system .There is also the problem of algae and slime
When water sits in pipes depending on its acidity level the corrosion can take several years to a couple decades.
Annual testing which checks the flow valves and helps bring fresh water into a system however does not thoroughly change out the water in all of the branches and this is where problems begin.
After this water has been sitting out in the branches of the system it can become so thick to the point it is like syrup I have seen where sprinkler lines have been opened up and it took a coat hanger being shoved by a sprinkler tech up into the pipe to get the excess water left when a system has been drained to be worked on.
Well you would have to ask .Are there not rules and techniques as to how systems are to be maintained to prevent this?
Yes there is there are anti slime and anti rust additives which can be added there are anti corrosion systems as well but ultimately it comes down to the building owner as to the system being properly maintained and the local fire inspectors to check to make sure tests are being done. That said I have customers buildings where a fire inspector has not been in to inspect in over 20years or more.
In some cases risk managers for insurance company’s will come in and demand testing etc. be done
But often Sprinkler systems can and do sit for many years and are never tested or maintained and this is where the problems begin. Even when a system is being maintained it comes down to the sprinkler techs to do so properly which again some do it right many do not look at what happened at the High End Restaurant
Less means more?
One of the very bad practices of building codes has been the fact that a sprinkler system are more often being used to protect people and property instead of a properly maintained Firewall and Fire Doors.
With in the code you are allowed to use a sprinkler system to protect an area instead of making the construction fire proof or resistant. This is all fine and well if the sprinkler system comes on. But what if it does not?
Yes sprinkler systems have failed several times with in the last decade sprinkle head pendants have been recalled due to not opening and allowing water out after heat melted out the element which holds the water back. There are also cases where sprinkler systems have been shut off and no one knows this ended up costing several NY City firefighters there life in an apartment building fire after maintenance personnel shut off sprinklers after a break and never fixed it.
Sprinklers Shut Off? How?
Sprinkler systems like all piping systems have a set of valves to turn the water on ad off. In some areas building codes only require a lock and chain to supervise the valves’ position. Any one with a key or chain cutter can remove the lock and chain shut them off and no body knows unless the system is inspected and it happens all the time.
More than once I have walked into job sites and found sprinklers totally turned off because there was a break or leak and the systems where never fixed I found just this situation at a shopping center once.
Yes valves can be electrically supervised where they are tied to a fire system and a signal is sent to supervising central stations it is logged and noted when system is on or off. But when it comes to open Yoke and Stem valves often the switch mechanism can get shifted and not pick up the valve being closed.
The OYS valve just has a simple notch the trigger arm sits in which can slip out of adjustment and never get triggered.
There needs to be a better system for OYS valves but again the manufacturers are not listening as usual.
Even if there is supervision and the trouble signal is sent it still takes some one to come out and check it again the building owner can ignore it or service tech bypass it.
It is amazing how many buildings I walk into there fire system has a trouble on it and it is still there 6 months to a year later when I visit again. I notify local Fire Authorities when I see fire and sprinkler systems not maintained and again some react immediately and go after the problems and others do not.
So knowing all the problems there are with sprinkler systems and fire system not being installed and maintained properly just how safe do you feel?
Tuesday, February 8, 2011
Whats wrong with this picture?
WHAT IS WRONG WITH THIS PICTURE?
A Fire Alarm System installed and approved 6 months ago fails to operate during a fire.
WHY ?
The Answers will shock you.
Hard to believe but a brand new Fire alarm system can be installed completely wrong yet be tested and approved by the fire Inspector as properly working and installed. This also includes Sprinkler systems
So how can this be? It begins with the very way how we train or not even train individuals to install them and how we train the individuals who inspect them.
Even a small fire system of 20 devices should take approximately 2 hours to test and inspect everything correctly and a large system should take all day to up to 3 days to test. But it is rarely done this way.
Instead the fact the system is properly installed to code is left up to the person installing and programming it the lead technician who in too many cases does not have the correct training to even know he has not installed the system correctly.
So how does this happen in the first place?
It starts because Fire alarm Systems are complex and require the following of several major building code sections which includes NFPA 72 Fire Alarms and Signaling Systems. NFPA 70 National Electrical code IFC International fire Code which is part of the ICC International Code Commission which is followed in many states. The ADA The Americans with Disabilities Act. And local and state codes.
This means to be able to properly install a Fire System you need knowledge of all of them and to be taught all of them as they pertain to Fire Alarm systems, and unfortunately there is not one school or class which totally covers the complete installation of a fire system from conception to Finnish. To fully understand how to install and service fire systems you need the knowledge of being an electrician and an electronics technician. But
most learning is on the job from people who have not been trained properly to begin with.
Just because you know how to wire a smoke detector does not mean you know how to properly run wiring and conduit to meet the Electrical Code, and this is where the problem begins with most of the schools you sit in class and watch the presentation but the hands on skills are not tested it being instead lead up to the people in the field teaching it who in many cases are not doing it right to begin with.
So now you can have a tech or installer with every license and certification card in his pocket and every class he can take and still has absolutely no idea how to properly install a fire system. I see it every day.
For beginners
Not once in any fire alarm class I have ever attended was the National Electrical Codes for fire alarms ever discussed or shown so you can wire a system totally wrong and unless an Electrical Inspector has checked it for accuracy you will never know it and neither will the Fire Inspector. Fire alarms should have an Electrical Inspection by an Electrical Inspector to make sure all wiring and piping complies with code and then is followed up by a fire system inspection to insure devices work.
But it does not work this way. Then you have electrical inspectors who want nothing to do with fire systems also because they consider it low voltage, which is fewer than 50 volts. And so what you have is a bunch of people running around saying they are certified technicians with cards which are totally worthless.
I challenge any code making or certifying organization of fire alarms to prove me wrong.
Of course they never will because they know what I am writing is the truth.
So should only Electricians install and electronics’ techs service and program well that’s what many in the industry suggest because there are very few individuals like myself who are cross trained in both electrical and electronics.
I estimate up to as many as 70+ % of fire alarms systems are improperly installed .Based on what I have observed in the 30 + years of work experience I have working as a trouble shooter.
So what about the Fire Inspectors same thing there not electricians or techs they know how to pull a manual station and make sure horns sound but they do not have the knowledge to know what goes on inside the system unless they have taken an interest and been shown by some one like myself what to look for.
Only 2 times in 2 communities did I see a comprehensive inspection the one I live in Penn Hills and in Wilkinsburg Pa.
The other day I caught a very large mid regional integration company that used orange extension cord wire inside a wall to power a fire system at a residential facility for at risk youth and when the individuals who installed it came down with the installation manager he tried to tell me it was OK to use this type of wire. I then pulled out the NEC code book I keep in my truck and showed him why it was wrong and he tried to tell me since fire alarms are class II wiring systems Fire alarms do not follow NEC . Wrong.
But there you go the lead guy in charge of a multimillion dollar integration company who has no idea what he does are how to install a fire alarm yet they are installing every day in Schools, Malls, hospitals, colleges etc.
Feel safe I would not be.
There are so many things that can and do go wrong when Fire systems are installed it would curl your hair.
But until the tragedy happens and a full investigation is conducted it is too late.
So what is the industry doing to make sure everyone is properly trained ? Not a dam thing.
So we keep turning out certified individuals who have absolutely no idea there installing incorrectly.
And leave it up to the courts and experts to fight it out when the lawsuits get filed.
What could be done to correct it.
To begin with incorporate all the extra codes sections you need into one code book instead of having to reference 5 different books and make the code readable at a 12th grade or lower level not in engineering language. And make the codes affordable. I would also insist on electrical inspections as well.
But of course until more people die nothing will be done and major court awards will continue.
In my next article I will talk about sprinkler systems and the total panacea for 100% public safety the fire service is trying to make them out for which they are not.
I will discuss a $4million dollar restaurant where a sprinkler system was inspected passed and then failed and $250,000. in damage resulted Sprinklers have big issues too.
And this is another case where a system never should have been passed and inspectors need to loose there jobs..
A Fire Alarm System installed and approved 6 months ago fails to operate during a fire.
WHY ?
The Answers will shock you.
Hard to believe but a brand new Fire alarm system can be installed completely wrong yet be tested and approved by the fire Inspector as properly working and installed. This also includes Sprinkler systems
So how can this be? It begins with the very way how we train or not even train individuals to install them and how we train the individuals who inspect them.
Even a small fire system of 20 devices should take approximately 2 hours to test and inspect everything correctly and a large system should take all day to up to 3 days to test. But it is rarely done this way.
Instead the fact the system is properly installed to code is left up to the person installing and programming it the lead technician who in too many cases does not have the correct training to even know he has not installed the system correctly.
So how does this happen in the first place?
It starts because Fire alarm Systems are complex and require the following of several major building code sections which includes NFPA 72 Fire Alarms and Signaling Systems. NFPA 70 National Electrical code IFC International fire Code which is part of the ICC International Code Commission which is followed in many states. The ADA The Americans with Disabilities Act. And local and state codes.
This means to be able to properly install a Fire System you need knowledge of all of them and to be taught all of them as they pertain to Fire Alarm systems, and unfortunately there is not one school or class which totally covers the complete installation of a fire system from conception to Finnish. To fully understand how to install and service fire systems you need the knowledge of being an electrician and an electronics technician. But
most learning is on the job from people who have not been trained properly to begin with.
Just because you know how to wire a smoke detector does not mean you know how to properly run wiring and conduit to meet the Electrical Code, and this is where the problem begins with most of the schools you sit in class and watch the presentation but the hands on skills are not tested it being instead lead up to the people in the field teaching it who in many cases are not doing it right to begin with.
So now you can have a tech or installer with every license and certification card in his pocket and every class he can take and still has absolutely no idea how to properly install a fire system. I see it every day.
For beginners
Not once in any fire alarm class I have ever attended was the National Electrical Codes for fire alarms ever discussed or shown so you can wire a system totally wrong and unless an Electrical Inspector has checked it for accuracy you will never know it and neither will the Fire Inspector. Fire alarms should have an Electrical Inspection by an Electrical Inspector to make sure all wiring and piping complies with code and then is followed up by a fire system inspection to insure devices work.
But it does not work this way. Then you have electrical inspectors who want nothing to do with fire systems also because they consider it low voltage, which is fewer than 50 volts. And so what you have is a bunch of people running around saying they are certified technicians with cards which are totally worthless.
I challenge any code making or certifying organization of fire alarms to prove me wrong.
Of course they never will because they know what I am writing is the truth.
So should only Electricians install and electronics’ techs service and program well that’s what many in the industry suggest because there are very few individuals like myself who are cross trained in both electrical and electronics.
I estimate up to as many as 70+ % of fire alarms systems are improperly installed .Based on what I have observed in the 30 + years of work experience I have working as a trouble shooter.
So what about the Fire Inspectors same thing there not electricians or techs they know how to pull a manual station and make sure horns sound but they do not have the knowledge to know what goes on inside the system unless they have taken an interest and been shown by some one like myself what to look for.
Only 2 times in 2 communities did I see a comprehensive inspection the one I live in Penn Hills and in Wilkinsburg Pa.
The other day I caught a very large mid regional integration company that used orange extension cord wire inside a wall to power a fire system at a residential facility for at risk youth and when the individuals who installed it came down with the installation manager he tried to tell me it was OK to use this type of wire. I then pulled out the NEC code book I keep in my truck and showed him why it was wrong and he tried to tell me since fire alarms are class II wiring systems Fire alarms do not follow NEC . Wrong.
But there you go the lead guy in charge of a multimillion dollar integration company who has no idea what he does are how to install a fire alarm yet they are installing every day in Schools, Malls, hospitals, colleges etc.
Feel safe I would not be.
There are so many things that can and do go wrong when Fire systems are installed it would curl your hair.
But until the tragedy happens and a full investigation is conducted it is too late.
So what is the industry doing to make sure everyone is properly trained ? Not a dam thing.
So we keep turning out certified individuals who have absolutely no idea there installing incorrectly.
And leave it up to the courts and experts to fight it out when the lawsuits get filed.
What could be done to correct it.
To begin with incorporate all the extra codes sections you need into one code book instead of having to reference 5 different books and make the code readable at a 12th grade or lower level not in engineering language. And make the codes affordable. I would also insist on electrical inspections as well.
But of course until more people die nothing will be done and major court awards will continue.
In my next article I will talk about sprinkler systems and the total panacea for 100% public safety the fire service is trying to make them out for which they are not.
I will discuss a $4million dollar restaurant where a sprinkler system was inspected passed and then failed and $250,000. in damage resulted Sprinklers have big issues too.
And this is another case where a system never should have been passed and inspectors need to loose there jobs..
Where did the fire start?
That’s where the fire would have started but that’s not what caused it.
By Nick Markowitz Jr.
I ran into an unusual situation the other day where a fire could have started but where investigators might easily miss the actual cause of the fire.
One of the services I provide to my alarm customers is keeping an eye on there properties during the winter when there closed. Several of my customers are in summer time business and or also are what we call Snow Birds up here where they like to take off for warmer climate areas during the winter.
Well one of these stores fronts I watch in the New Castle Pa. area sells swimming pools and the store is vacant all winter and heat is turned off and store winterized including putting a 120 vac electric heat tape around the water meter piping.
The owner calls me and asks me to check the store the other day because a contractor has some work to do in there as there getting ready for some remodeling and the heat did not come on correctly. No problem the next morning I head up there and when I walk into the store to shut off the burglar alarm I hear a loud hissing noise from the back. Yea I got a broken water pipe no doubt about it. Just what kind of mess was I going to find and do I have to cut power was my worry.
I look in the back storage room where I hear the leak and find that water is spraying a fine mist out just thru the main shut off valve onto both walls. One stroke of luck though is there is a floor drain catching most of it. The one bad thing is it is spraying directly on an electrical outlet where the heat tape is plugged in and I can smell something burning.
I quickly shut off power call 911 as I do not know who the water supplier for the store is but I will need them to shut it off at the street box. They notify Water Company for me and firefighters came to the store non emergency response and they helped me get the water under control till Water Company arrives.
We set up some dikes and eliminated the water spray on the walls.
The water Company arrives and luckily even with the snow on the ground they know where to look and quickly turn off the water.
Tragedy averted and only one room to clean up.
But what if I had not gotten there in time what if the water caused the outlet to catch fire
The walls where covered with dark paneling and there was a 7 foot ceiling Flexible Fiberglas drop in panels and a wooden deck above it used for storage the room measured aprox 8x8 feet .
If the outlet would have ignited the wall chances are the entire wall would burn down to the studs and just burnt copper wire and a box would be hanging with the extension cord plugged in.
So you arrive on scene and start the investigation it would look pretty conclusive the fire started at the outlet do to a malfunction the water running could be explained away by either the room getting hot enough to loosen solder on pipes and cause the leak or that a firefighter inadvertently damaged during attempts to put it out .
A forensic investigation of the valve might prove it was the culprit if it could be determined the damage was pre not post fire but only if you would run the scenario the piping was even involved because this is one of those fires where it would be very easy due to all the electrical activity at the outlet to say that’s where it started. Plus if the fire was basically kept to just that area how hard would it even be looked at when it appears obvious what happened.
This once again proves out that Fire Science and Investigation is not 100% perfect. And why as an investigator you must weigh all options. Or as in this case could happen the wrong party could be held liable.
By Nick Markowitz Jr.
I ran into an unusual situation the other day where a fire could have started but where investigators might easily miss the actual cause of the fire.
One of the services I provide to my alarm customers is keeping an eye on there properties during the winter when there closed. Several of my customers are in summer time business and or also are what we call Snow Birds up here where they like to take off for warmer climate areas during the winter.
Well one of these stores fronts I watch in the New Castle Pa. area sells swimming pools and the store is vacant all winter and heat is turned off and store winterized including putting a 120 vac electric heat tape around the water meter piping.
The owner calls me and asks me to check the store the other day because a contractor has some work to do in there as there getting ready for some remodeling and the heat did not come on correctly. No problem the next morning I head up there and when I walk into the store to shut off the burglar alarm I hear a loud hissing noise from the back. Yea I got a broken water pipe no doubt about it. Just what kind of mess was I going to find and do I have to cut power was my worry.
I look in the back storage room where I hear the leak and find that water is spraying a fine mist out just thru the main shut off valve onto both walls. One stroke of luck though is there is a floor drain catching most of it. The one bad thing is it is spraying directly on an electrical outlet where the heat tape is plugged in and I can smell something burning.
I quickly shut off power call 911 as I do not know who the water supplier for the store is but I will need them to shut it off at the street box. They notify Water Company for me and firefighters came to the store non emergency response and they helped me get the water under control till Water Company arrives.
We set up some dikes and eliminated the water spray on the walls.
The water Company arrives and luckily even with the snow on the ground they know where to look and quickly turn off the water.
Tragedy averted and only one room to clean up.
But what if I had not gotten there in time what if the water caused the outlet to catch fire
The walls where covered with dark paneling and there was a 7 foot ceiling Flexible Fiberglas drop in panels and a wooden deck above it used for storage the room measured aprox 8x8 feet .
If the outlet would have ignited the wall chances are the entire wall would burn down to the studs and just burnt copper wire and a box would be hanging with the extension cord plugged in.
So you arrive on scene and start the investigation it would look pretty conclusive the fire started at the outlet do to a malfunction the water running could be explained away by either the room getting hot enough to loosen solder on pipes and cause the leak or that a firefighter inadvertently damaged during attempts to put it out .
A forensic investigation of the valve might prove it was the culprit if it could be determined the damage was pre not post fire but only if you would run the scenario the piping was even involved because this is one of those fires where it would be very easy due to all the electrical activity at the outlet to say that’s where it started. Plus if the fire was basically kept to just that area how hard would it even be looked at when it appears obvious what happened.
This once again proves out that Fire Science and Investigation is not 100% perfect. And why as an investigator you must weigh all options. Or as in this case could happen the wrong party could be held liable.
Sunday, October 24, 2010
Fire Investigation and Junk Science
Why you could find yourself a criminal suspect or civilly liable if you’re involved with a fire.
by Nick Markowitz, Jr.
Everyday there are people who are charged with arson when a fire has taken place in their home or place of business. How many times charges are warranted is a subject being hotly debated in the fire community today.
The problem is a general lack of training for some investigators. There's even an on going debate among trained investigators as to the cause of these fires. All of this has unfortunately lead to people being arrested and eventually convicted of arson. Many are found civilly liable for causing a fire that they may not have had anything to do with. In one case a Texas man may have even been executed for the crime of arson when he may not have done it.
Now you say to yourself, “WOW! How can this happen in a modern world with DNA and advanced investigative techniques?” Well, it does, and it happens easier than you think. The worst part is trying to right a wrong in court after you've been convicted. It can take decades to be exonerated.
At any one time in this country there are various innocence-type organizations that are fighting for wrongly-convicted people. This includes not only rapists and murderers, but arsonists, too. There are excellent organizations like the IAAI (International Association of Arson Investigators) that provides standards for the training and certification of fire investigators. This includes the prestigious CFI certification. While it is not mandatory in some states to have this or any other type of certification in order to investigate fires, many states, including my own, does not even require that you be certified as private investigator.
While fire investigators are required to follow the Guidelines of NFPA 921 on fire and explosion investigations, which bases its standards on the Scientific Method, this manual is often looked at as a guide, sometimes even scoffed at. And yet many investigators don't even own a copy.
While it is true that public sector investigators, such as fire marshals, arson investigators, etc., must be certified to do their jobs under the rules of ICC (International Code Commission), in states which follow ICC Codes many don't even know they are required to carry this certification. This includes lawyers as well.
An entire case brought by a fire marshal against an individual for arson could be thrown out of court
if he is not certified by ICC. This is due to a rule generally referred to as as “Fruit of the poison tree” where if one thing is wrong, everything is wrong. Think tree fruit and roots... yet it is allowed to go on.
Then, when it comes down to the court case, it becomes a battle of the experts and who has more initials behind his or her name as well as bravado.
Even learned experts disagree. And when you're a little guy trying to claim something happened a certain way, you can forget it. Since you are an unimportant person, you are nothing even if you are right. Because 921 or an expert says it happened this way and this way only, it's over before it begins.
A General Lack of Open Minds
There are very few open minds in learned professionals because the science tells them otherwise.
Experts as I have found do not want to listen to technical people like myself who are out in the field everyday. I have 30+ years as an electrician, a troubleshooting electrician at that. In addition I also have heavy electronics experience and I often see and observe things before they entirely burn up completely whereas experts in many cases only know what happened afterwards.
When they investigate a claim they do not have the day-to-day dealings that a troubleshooter or someone of a lower caliber in their opinion has. So they take it off to the lab and if it can not be duplicated, then it could not have happened that way--period.
As anyone of a low caliber, as I have been called in court and fire blogs, can tell you, when you work in the field and see something that can not be 100% duplicated in the lab, it needs recorded as it is happening in the field. This is what I have been trying to introduce into fire investigation, that sometimes statistics and instruments are not enough. Sometimes they are not accurate because of who is doing the work.
In actuality, only a relatively small percentage of fires are ever investigated. Many times if a fire is small enough, no one ever comes to investigate. The home or building owner, knowing they have a deductible, just handles it and that's the end of the story. Sometimes that damage is negligible or it's easily explained and so it's determined that an investigation is not warranted. But yet because so many of these so-called small change fires are not investigated, patterns and trends can be completely missed. Even potential serial arsonists could be at work and no one knows.
The fact is, small fires can teach us big lessons, but hardly anyone looks at them--they're written up and maybe reported on the state statistical site and that's it. This is why I have, for several years now, worked with and submitted new and different findings to investigators, engineers, and CPSC agents when I go to do my job as a troubleshooter.
Using the Scientific method along with Forensic Techniques, I carefully and thoroughly document a situation, Where I can carefully remove a burned up item I do so and I provide it to others who might be interested in examining it. How many times I have brought in a burned up electrical items and you hear an expert say, “Well, that shouldn’t have happened.” Well, it did happen and we need to carefully document it and add hat we learn to the collective storehouse of knowledge.
I have found working as an electrician and/or fire photographer that the story I get when I go and repair something and the story an investigator gets is often two different things. When I have been at fires taking photos and I afterwords hand the disc to the fire marshal at his office the next morning and I compare notes with him, the story I get as to what someone saw and what the fire marshal was told is often times totally different. When people talk to me, they’re talking to Nick the photographer, not Nick the official who they may or may not be in trouble with.
I see this all the time as a troubleshooter. People are careful when they talk to an investigator about fires and accidents because they feel they may be blamed and their insurance will not cover it.
Case in Point
A typical matter is the one I had earlier in the spring at a customers fabricating business. The client has several 5-ton, overhead cranes they use in the facility. A couple times now I have had to go down and reset the overload system. Well this time the crane stopped for good. The owner, someone official in people’s eyes who can get them fired, walks in and wants to know whatin the sam hill caused the crane to stop working. The workers tell him, “Well boss, the cranes are old and cranky and probably just died from old age.”
When I walk in and start working on the cranes and ask questions as Nick the electrician—a working guy just like them--I get the real story. The shop foreman mentioned to me that one of the new guys used the crane to pull a piece of steel out of the rack. I asked him whether anyone told him not to do that and the reply I got was, “No, I was not here when it took place.” I walked over to the employee and explained to him what I found, that the crane motor control blew up from abuse, not old age. I also told him that someone should have used the tow motor instead of the crane to do what they did. He told me that no one showed him how to use one and he was too embarrassed to admit it.
Well that afternoon The foreman had everyone qualify for there tow motor license and things were smoothed out because the new guy did not feel like he was being singled out for training. The boss also was happy because the problem was solved and he did not have to fire anyone as the workers handled it internally. He figured all along they where lying to him but he likes them and their good workers. So as you can see there are often two different story's and this is especially true when horseplay on a job site is involved. When this occurs, things can go very bad, very quickly.
Reflecting on Lessons Learned
My dad, a retired electrician/steel worker, and. one of his buddies from where they retired stopped by my home one day. We talked about a bad accident at a plant down river from us. His friend told us a story about something that had taken place down at the Coke Facility where he worked.
As a joke on the boss’ birthday, they took a prophylactic and blew it up to a huge size with flammable Coke Gas and then they placed it under his office, which was couple feet off the ground on stilts. They then took a long stick with a hot poker on the end and set the prophylactic off. It naturally shook his office and when he came out all mad and ready to fire everyone, they had this huge birthday cake setup for him. It was then that he realized they where just playing a game with him.
Now lets face it, had this joke gone terribly bad, do you think any of these grown men when questioned by OSHA or a fire investigator would ever admit to what had actually taken place? It’s for sure there would not be a trace of a prophylactic.
The fact is, poor training is just the tip of the iceberg. There are many fire investigators out there using testimony and methods which have been proven as junk science. Like spaling concrete or gator-looking marks on wood are a sure sign of a poured accelerant. But courts except it. Why? Because attorneys do not know to challenge it with a Daubert hearing to prove the theory. Once something is excepted in court, that’s it for ever. It becomes allowable testimony for a long time unless it happens to be challenged.
This is what got the gentleman in Texas executed, and now, after numerous court reviews, it has brought a rebuke of the courts for allowing bad investigation methods to be used as fact. Well, you can see what the issues are and why cases both criminal and civil can go bad.
Once I was accused of stealing from a school where I worked. Now, the detective should have done his job and found out that I am an Eagle Scout and a general stand-up kind of guy. Instead, he was a hard guy detective who was bound and determined to try and convict me for something I did not do--all because he didn’t like my answers. He ended up tying up valuable taxpayer money, he got egg on his face, and the real criminal, a temporary cleaner, was finally caught and fired--after three months of stealing things.
Conclusion
Unfortunately too many investigators get it in their minds “this is how something went down” and “this is how it has to be.” They refuse to take two seconds to sit back and say to themselves, “Well, maybe the guy is right after all.”
Luckily the bell has gone off and some have now taken a second look. Some of them have learned that things where wrong with what they thought and they consequently stop cases in progress. Sadly, others. Continue to follow blindly and do whatever they do badly.
Everyday in this world new and completely different results are found. But when it comes to the fire investigation community, unfortunately, if you have a new look at something, it’s like the Spanish Inquisition or the questioning of Galileo concerning whether the Earth is actually flat. Now, I am sure we’ll hear from a few of these learned professionals on the subject.
This is my blog, so speak and make your point and let the readers decide. Who is believable--the guy with 30 + years to the grind stone or a “learned opinion”?
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