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• Smoke particles may be blown away from
detectors by air outlets.
• Smoke particles may be drawn into air returns
before reaching the detector.
The amount of "smoke" present may be
insufficient to alarm smoke detectors. Smoke
detectors are designed to alarm at various levels
of smoke density. If such density levels are not
created by a developing fire at the location of
detectors, the detectors will not go into alarm.
Smoke detectors, even when working properly,
have sensing limitations. Detectors that have
photo-electronic sensing chambers tend to detect
smoldering fires better than flaming fires, which
have little visible smoke. Detectors that have
ionizing-type sensing chambers tend to detect
fast-flaming fires better than smoldering fires.
Because fires develop in different ways and are
often unpredictable in their growth, neither type of
detector is necessarily best and a given type of
detector may not provide adequate warning of a
fire.
Smoke detectors cannot be expected to provide
adequate warning of fires caused by arson,
children playing with matches (especially in
bedrooms),
smoking
in
explosions (caused by escaping gas, improper
storage of flammable materials, etc.).
Heat detectors do not sense particles of
combustion and alarm only when heat on their
sensors increases at a predetermined rate or
reaches a predetermined level. Rate-of-rise heat
detectors may be subject to reduced sensitivity
over time. For this reason, the rate-of-rise feature
of each detector should be tested at least once
per year by a qualified fire protection specialist.
Heat detectors are designed to protect property,
not life.
IMPORTANT!
Smoke
installed in the same room as the control panel
and in rooms used by the system for the
connection
of
alarm
communications, signaling, and/or power. If
detectors are not so located, a developing fire
may damage the alarm system, crippling its
ability to report a fire.
Audible warning devices such as bells may not
alert people if these devices are located on the
other side of closed or partly open doors or are
located on another floor of a building. Any
warning device may fail to alert people with a
disability or those who have recently consumed
drugs, alcohol or medication. Please note that:
Strobes can, under certain circumstances, cause
seizures in people with conditions such as
epilepsy.
Studies have shown that certain people, even
when they hear a fire alarm signal, do not
respond or comprehend the meaning of the
9000-0447 Rev. I
bed,
and
violent
detectors
must
be
transmission
wiring,
signal. It is the property owner's responsibility to
conduct fire drills and other training exercise to
make people aware of fire alarm signals and
instruct them on the proper reaction to alarm
signals. In rare instances, the sounding of a
warning
device
can
permanent hearing loss.
A fire alarm system will not operate without any
electrical power. If AC power fails, the system will
operate from standby batteries only for a
specified time and only if the batteries have been
properly maintained and replaced regularly.
Equipment used in the system may not be
technically compatible with the control panel. It is
essential to use only equipment listed for service
with your control panel.
Telephone lines needed to transmit alarm
signals from a premise to a central monitoring
station may be out of service or temporarily
disabled. For added protection against telephone
line failure, backup radio transmission systems
are recommended.
The most common cause of fire alarm
malfunction is inadequate maintenance. To keep
the entire fire alarm system in excellent working
order, ongoing maintenance is required per the
manufacturer's recommendations, and UL and
NFPA
standards.
requirements of NFPA 72 -2002-1999 shall be
followed. Environments with large amounts of
dust, dirt or high air velocity require more
frequent maintenance. A maintenance agreement
should
be
arranged
manufacturer's
representative.
should be scheduled monthly or as required by
National and/or local fire codes and should be
performed by authorized professional fire alarm
installers only. Adequate written records of all
inspections should be kept.
While installing a fire alarm system may make the
owner eligible for a lower insurance rate, a fire
alarm system is not a substitute for insurance.
Property owners should continue to act prudently
in protecting the premises and the people in the
premises and should properly insure life and
property and buy sufficient amounts of liability
insurance to meet their needs.
Limit-C-9-2005
iii
cause
temporary
or
At
a
minimum,
the
through
the
local
Maintenance
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