13 Changes to NFPA 13

As the newest edition of NFPA 13 is set to be presented next month, NFPA has published some of the notable changes to this document:

1. CPVC compatibility - where corrosion inhibitors are used in combination systems that include coated steel pipe and CPVC pipe, the coating must be tested for compatibility with CPVC.
2. Freeze protection requirements - tentative interim amendments regarding antifreeze solution to prevent the freezing of water in sprinkler pipes has been formally adopted into the standard
3. Sprinkler requirements for elevator spaces and hoistways - allows fire sprinklers to be omitted from elevator machine rooms, elevator machinery spaces, control spaces, or hoistways of traction elevators where a number of conditions are met, and brings the standard in alignment with other model building codes
4. Title change to NFPA 13R - Standard for the Installation of Sprinkler Systems in Low-Rise Residential Occupancies
5. Sprinkler protection in small bathrooms - Apartment buildings with bathrooms less than 55 square feet (5 square meters) must now have sprinkler protection where they were not  previously required to do so.
6. Shadow areas -  shadow areas are permitted in the protection area of a sprinkler as long as they do not exceed 15 square feet per sprinkler.
7. 
   "Sprinkler system" definition - modified to describe a system as an integrated network of piping that includes a water supply source, a water control valve, a water flow alarm, and a drain; this largely effects the requirements of NFPA 25.
8. Backflow preventer requirements - a forward flow test will now be required on all NFPA 13/13R installations.
9. Storage chapter - newly added; allows for an alternative design approach.
10. Sloped ceilings - provides five common ceiling arrangements that allow for hydraulic calculations
11. Water mist systems - refers users to NFPA 750.
12. Cloud ceilings - protection to follow the use of obstruction rules.
13. ESFR and CMSA sprinklers - these will now be permitted to protect light and ordinary hazard areas.
    
    
    
    

What in the HDPE is going on? - REVISITED

After the original post, What in the HDPE is going on?, I received several comments and some other useful information.

A practice that I have started is to make any contractor that submits plans utilizing HDPE for fire service undergrounds, to also submit cut sheets for the exact brand/type of HDPE beign utilized.  A recent submittal by Sim-Oak Mechanical produced a wealth of information. 

• HDPE approved for fire mains is black with a red stripe.
• HDPE approved for fire mains needs to be DR-9, as DR-9 is rated for the NFPA 24 required 200psi pressure test.
• HDPE approved for fire mains should comply with AWWA C906 or ASTM D3035 or NSF/ANSI 61

Here are some reader comments, via Linked In:

Dominick Kasmauskas • If it meets the NFPA Standards for Fire Protection and is allowed by your local or state codes and standards, plus the underground contractors are trained and/or certified (if there exists a certification) for using the process, the item in question will generally be supported by the fire sprinkler industry.


ALBERT MIGNONE • HDPE [high density poly ethylene] can do many things but cross-linked LDPE [low density poly ethylene] might be better. It does almost everything the HDPE can do but with a better coeficient of friction. [You can bet more water through the same diameter tubing.]

Pex and/or Fire Pex are good alternatives and are making headways into sprinkler systems in the central and western parts of the country. The Pex materials carry warranties that other pipes and tubing do not have. They also are less likely to fail in some freeze situations because of how they are installed.I would like to see some data on success or failures and real cost numbers for installations.