Question for fire alarm guys

[plantpot]

Hi
As well as a spark I am in charge of the local fire station .we got called to the local school tonight with the fire alarm sounding.the reason was a smoke machine been used in the hall for a private party.
I spoke to the maintenance guy who said that shouldn't have happened as he had turned detectors to heat only.
The detector looked like a smoke and due to the height we couldn't get close to look just saw the led lit.
Don't do fire alarm systems (except domestic)so can anyone explain what he meant?.
Sorry never got make off panel .also going out today so can't answer questions till later.

Thanks for your time answering

 

[Nolnoc]

I have seen this been done before. Depends on panel and protocol. They are called multisensors. One thing I would check is the spacing. A smoke wI'll cover 100 square metres but a heat only 50. I did them in a church. Have them on a timer and keyswitch for a funeral etc.

 

[Darkwood]

Just fitted a load of similar, they can be set to fixed etc, rising heat and or smoke as well has having integrated sounders, like has already been mentioned, what the caretaker can do and has access to I suspect has all been approved as its not common to have the detectors selectable by the user as they are usually programmed on commisioning.

If you cannot see the LED lamp then I suspect as the caretaker was there that the unit had been silenced and reset whether he forgot to change its use and is covering his own back is another thing, If you genuinely cannot view the LED on the detector due to the height then I would recommend the detectors effected have remote indicators fitted, it may be a good point to raise with the school.

 

[plantpot]

Thanks for your replies.
we could see the led on the detector activated .The smoke machine had filled the room with "smoke" and no extreme heat was present.
As said i think he had forgot to switch over to heat and flicked it over when fire engine arrived.

 

[Nolnoc]

It happens so many times. You'd wish they'd just come clean and hold there hands up.

 

[Swcfisher]

did you check the log on the panel if available?

 

[Darkwood]

Locally the fire service can issue a fine for false callouts, as a caretaker trying to explain to the school why they have a financial penalty is always going to create a jackanory story, on one occasion I caused a callout and I had to show the firebrigade the signal relay had failed to isolate when they turned up at a school I was working at, I was asked to show them why they had been called so we rung through to ignore all alarms and isolated the panels dial card and set it off, it still went through even though it showed up as isolated, thus I avoided a fine and we had to get Gent out to service the panel.

 

[Nolnoc]

They do charge in Ireland too but you don't have to pay it believe it or not. It's a public service and paid through general taxation.

If your neighbours chimney was on fire say, would you call the brigade and run the risk of paying for it.
Might be different though on commercial property though.

 

[Nolnoc]

Locally the fire service can issue a fine for false callouts, as a caretaker trying to explain to the school why they have a financial penalty is always going to create a jackanory story, on one occasion I caused a callout and I had to show the firebrigade the signal relay had failed to isolate when they turned up at a school I was working at, I was asked to show them why they had been called so we rung through to ignore all alarms and isolated the panels dial card and set it off, it still went through even though it showed up as isolated, thus I avoided a fine and we had to get Gent out to service the panel.

Happened me one in a shopping centre in Dublin. I could see 3 appliances rushing towards me and I praying they would drive by. Unfortunately not. It's not my fault if the monitoring staction can't understand basic English though is It?...

 

[High Tower]

We do this regularly, i am a trained Gent engineer and install and commission some big systems. Gent heads are optical smoke and heat and can be switched through the cause and effects programming in the panel. this can be done be either programming, so as to say a cause and effect can be written that they change state at different timed of the day, and in clubs and pubs we put in an addressable key switch, which on the turn of the key changes the state manually.