Fire Alarm Systems

Components/ Devices of fire alarm system

Smoke Detector

A smoke detector is a device that senses smoke, typically as an indicator of fire. Commercial security devices issue a signal to a fire alarm control panel as part of a fire alarm system

Heat Detector

A heat detector is a fire alarm device designed to respond when the convected thermal energy of a fire increases the temperature of a heat sensitive element. The thermal mass and conductivity of the element regulate the rate flow of heat into the element. All heat detectors have this thermal lag. Heat detectors have two main classifications of operation, "rate-of-rise" and "fixed temperature." The Heat detector is used to help in the reduction of damaged property. It is triggered when temperature increases.

Beam Detector

An optical beam smoke detector is a device that uses a projected beam of light to detect smoke across large areas, typically as an indicator of fire. They are used to detect fires in buildings where standard point smoke detectors would either be uneconomical or restricted for use by the height of the building.

Manual Alarm Call Points

Manual alarm call points are designed for the purpose of raising an alarm manually once verification of a fire or emergency condition exists, by operating the push button or break glass the alarm signal can be raised

Strobe / Siren

Outdoor sirens and strobe sirens are often overlooked in favor of Fire alarm systems. Yet, the very point of an alarm is to make an emergency situation known. ... Mounting an siren and strobeserves Alerts the people to know that there is a fire .

Types of Fire Alarm Systems

Conventional Fire System

Conventional system, there is no way of pinpointing the exact location of the fire. However, by wiring your building into different zones, you can get a general idea of where the fire is. For instance, if you have two floors, you could wire the first as 'zone 1' and the second as zone 2. So if a fire occurs in zone 1, you know that the fire is somewhere on the first floor.

  Wiring

Conventional system alarm, each device will be connected to the control panel via its own wire, rather than a shared one. One end of the wire will be touching the device, and another touching the control panel.

Addressable Fire System

Every device connected to the addressable system has its own unique address. When a fire is detected, the device's address shows up on the main control panel, telling you exactly which device has been activated. This will enable you to find the exact location of a fire and extinguish them quickly.

  Wiring

Addressable alarm systems connect devices using a loop. This is where one wire connects all devices to the control panel. Both ends of the wire loop connect to the control panel.

Vesda panel

VESDA Systems are aspirating smoke detection used for early warning applications where response to a fire is critical. VESDA® works by continually drawing air into the pipe network via a high efficiency aspirator. A sample of this air is then passed through a dual stage filter.

Which is the cheaper option for you?

Conventional alarm panels cost a lot less to buy but are more expensive to install. This is because each device that is being connected needs its own wire. With addressable systems, one wire loop will connect several devices. This means conventional systems require more wire and more man hours during the installation phase.

Additionally, addressable systems have a range of other facilities that can help save money. For instance, addressable alarm panels monitor the air flow through smoke detectors to prevent the occurrence of false alarms, which can be costly to a business.