By Henry Nazar P.E. — Nazar Engineering P.C.
NFPA 72 10.15* Protection of Fire Alarm System. In areas that are not continuously occupied, automatic smoke detection shall be
provided at the location of each fire alarm control unit(s), notification appliance circuit power extenders, and supervising station transmitting equipment to provide notification of fire at that location.
The idea behind requiring smoke detection above a fire alarm control panel or other equipment described above is to allow the equipment to initiate a fire alarm condition prior to be destroyed or affected by a fire. If we image a fire condition within the vicinity of the Fire Alarm Control Panel or Booster Power Supply, if a smoke detector wasn’t present above that equipment, the fire will destroy the equipment, and the equipment would not activate it’s intended ‘output’ function; such as activate the building alarm notification appliances (horns, strobes or speakers) or transmit a signal to the Central Office Monitoring Company.
There is a misconception by some installers that believe this requirement requires a smoke detector above any electrical panel (circuit-breaker panel). This is incorrect. NFPA 72 10.15 (and NYC Building Code 907.4.1) only requires the smoke detector be placed directly above fire alarm equipment, for the reasons described above. Below are two images portraying this requirement. The first shows a smoke detector above the fire alarm control panel in a lo-rise residential apartment building in Queens. The second image, is in a medical office space in The Bronx. A smoke detector can be seen directly above the fire alarm control unit and booster power supply; in the event that a fire originates within the area or room where each of the equipment is located, the smoke detector will initiate an alarm condition allowing emergency response or building occupants to be notified before the system is incapacitated by the fire.
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