During a fire, the greatest danger is smoke. Even if a person is not injured by fire, he can be poisoned by carbon monoxide and poisons that are contained in the smoke. To prevent this, smoke removal systems are used in enterprises and public institutions. However, from time to time they also need regular inspection and repair. There is a specific regulation for servicing smoke exhaust systems. Let's look at it.
What are smoke exhaust systems?
Smoke ventilation system is necessary in order to remove combustion products during a fire and supply clean air to the room. This is used to successfully evacuate people, because they can breathe smoke and undermine their health.
Therefore, this system must always be operational. For this, when installing it, a contract for the maintenance of the smoke removal system is compulsorily developed. Thus, you provide regular inspections and repairs of equipment, which eliminates the malfunction at the most inopportune moment.
What are they made of?
Each such device contains the following components:
- fans for exhausting smoke from the premises into the street;
- fans of air inlet, which create pressure and prevent the penetration of smoke into the exhausted place;
- air ducts with smoke exhaust valves;
- fire retardant valves;
- ventilation duct networks for removing smoke from rooms;
- automatic control system, which includes the shield and control panel, cable routes.
Principle of operation
Fire ventilation starts automatically when there is a fire alarm. Then the following actions occur:
- The system includes a smoke exhaust fan.
- In the place of smoke opening special smoke exhaust valves.
- Valves that hold fire, in contrast, close.
- The dispatch console receives information on the progress of work.
If the smoke exhaust system devices are out of order, this is also fed to the control room. In this case, urgent measures must be taken.
Also, in case of a malfunction in the automation of the system, manual control of smoke removal systems is also provided. They can operate either in conjunction with a central fire safety system, or separately.
Types of systems
As we have already indicated above, fire ventilation devices can be automatic or manual. You can also see both of these species in one enterprise. For example, a manual smoke removal system in a multi-story building “insures” an automatic one. If the latter malfunctions, people can use another to save their lives.
Systems are also divided into dynamic and static depending on how they work. For example, static ones simply turn off all fans, the smoke itself moves towards natural ventilation under the ceiling. They cost, of course, cheaper, but do not provide the necessary security. They may be approved for installation in small enterprises.
Dynamic, in turn, has special exhaust fans and air handling stations. They themselves remove smoke and combustion products, provide fresh air to the premises. These systems are the most efficient, but they are also much more expensive.
Smoke exhaust system maintenance
The life and health of people depend on the proper functioning of fire ventilation. Therefore, they are subject to constant monitoring and scheduled inspections. Competent specialists must deal with this issue. It is simply impossible, and forbidden to independently monitor the serviceability of smoke exhaust systems.
Specialists in this field can offer you such a list of their services:
- assessment of the condition of the room and natural ventilation;
- design of the system and its components;
- installation and control of all elements;
- prevention of device malfunctions;
- equipment health check at least once a month;
- change sets of obsolete items;
- repair work;
- records management.
Periodicity
The frequency of inspections and repairs is agreed upon at the stage of design and installation of equipment. In this case, the Resolution of the Russian Government (No. 390 of 04.25.2012) is taken into account. It spells out the holding of such events at least once a quarter, that is, every 3 months. In this regard, the maintenance system of smoke removal systems is divided into monthly and quarterly work.
Monthly inspections of fire ventilation systems include the following:
- checking installed equipment (sensors, devices, fasteners, valves, etc.) with their diagnostics;
- general system check for operation;
- troubleshooting, replacement or repair of equipment and mechanisms.
The quarterly diagnostics of fire extinguishing and smoke removal devices includes the following actions:
- cleaning, diagnostics and adjustment of the existing fire ventilation system;
- diagnostics of the system if it is connected to backup power sources;
- correction of malfunctions, change or repair of equipment and mechanisms;
- Verification diagnostics and device startup after troubleshooting
- Carrying out adjustments and adjustments of equipment if necessary.
The smoke removal system maintenance system includes entries in a special journal and related documents. They should indicate what work was carried out, what was diagnosed as a result of the inspection, what malfunctions, breakdowns or malfunctions were found, as well as the timing of their elimination. It should also indicate which organization conducted the audit, its contacts, and a license from the Ministry of Emergencies. In case of failure to comply with these recommendations on time, the company may be sanctioned.
What are they paying attention to?
The smoke removal system maintenance system involves evaluating the following points:
- all elements of the duct system and fans must not be damaged;
- all electrical components must be carefully insulated;
- automatic systems must be operational;
- smoke hatches and mounts must be kept intact.
It takes a long time to cover all the aspects that need to be addressed. The scope of work extends from the study of sound alerts in case of fire to the inspection of electric motors that provide cleaning of the room from smoke, dust, soot, ash and burning.
During the verification process, special attention is paid to the individual consideration of each system node.
Types of service
Maintenance of the smoke exhaust system is of 2 types:
- Service (technical). It happens once and periodically. The latter is more productive because it constantly monitors the health of the system. If you contact the same organization to verify the system, then the documentation is issued once after the initial verification. Further checks do not require such a long red tape with documents.
- Warranty This type of maintenance is provided by the company that sold and installed your fire ventilation device. Usually this species has a term. It is prescribed in the contract along with a list of services provided. Often, such an agreement is designed for 1 year, during which the service will be free of charge.
Repair work
Any system needs repair from time to time. The smoke removal system maintenance system includes 3 types of repair work.
- Current, or preventative. The frequency of this type of repair work is usually set in advance. During it, workers clean the system of accumulated dust, replace the filters, check the operation of all components of the system. The functionality of the automation is also checked and the necessary preventive measures are carried out.
- Urgent. This type of repair is needed when, in the case of an extraordinary check, a breakdown or malfunction in the system was detected. In this case, equipment diagnostics are carried out, the localization of the breakdown is determined and eliminated as soon as possible. All this needs to be done quickly so that the enterprise does not remain for long without fire ventilation. After the manipulations, the correctness and speed of the smoke exhaust system is checked.
- Capital. It implies a complete replacement of the system. This is necessary if there is an out-of-date fire-fighting system at the enterprise or in a residential building. In this situation, a new system is being designed.