New Houses in St Marys to require Sprinkler System

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czygvtwkr

Guest
I think this is a little on the silly side. First off how many people have died in St Marys because of a house fire?

One of the BOCC's reasoning was to eliminate the costly loss of a fire. Have you ever seen a sprinkler system go off when it wasn't supposed to? I have twice in the last 5 years and it makes quite a mess and for the most part would ruin everything in the house. In this same 5 years I haven't seen a fire. Finally it seems that there are no certified installers in St Marys. Most home fires occur in poorly maintained older houses, but of course they will not have the sprinkler systems.

Don't these guys have something better to do? How about cleaning up the Great Mills Road area?
 

Dougstermd

ORGASM DONOR
I'm with the BOCC on this one. If it saves even one life, then it's worth it. Besides, townhomes have been required to have sprinklers for years now and I haven't read any horror stories or heard of any mishaps...

Would be great if some of the firefighter folks add some comments...

:popcorn:

I had a sprinkler system at my last house it kept the grass nice and green:lmao:
 
Anything to save a life...

Side note - the water STINKS to high heaven in those things when they go off (PHEW!!!) Stale and Stagnent...

Anyhow - I think it is more along the lines of life saving vice property loss... yes, they make a mess... the BOCC thinks of property, but indirectly they are saving lives.

I bet those Fire Fighters in DC wish there were operating sprinklers in that BLDG that went up last week...
 
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spike2763

New Member
I'm with the BOCC on this one. If it saves even one life, then it's worth it. Besides, townhomes have been required to have sprinklers for years now and I haven't read any horror stories or heard of any mishaps...

Would be great if some of the firefighter folks add some comments...

:popcorn:

The Amish are the ones fighting this one.
 
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czygvtwkr

Guest
Anything to save a life...

If their goal is to save lives I think there are other issues they could address that actually have a significant number of deaths attributed to them.

The most likely houses to burn down are older ones or ones that are jam packed with flammable crap. These houses are also the most likely to not have sprinklers in them, not to mention if they did are also the most likely to have a sprinkler system that needs work done to it for it to be reliable.

And both of the instances I saw where sprinklers went off accidently the water was black, stinky, and somewhat like diaraha being rained down.
 

kom526

They call me ... Sarcasmo
New homes on public water will have to have sprinkler systems. Maybe this is an indirect way to to curb new housing developments.:shrug:
 
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czygvtwkr

Guest
:snort:

Which member of the BOCC owns (or has ties to) a plumbing company? :ohwell:


:lmao:


Was thinking the exact same thing.

If I ever buy a house that has one in it, I will be installing a quarter turn valve and turning it off. Insurance companies are more likely to drop you after your house has water damage (due to mold) than if it burns down.
 

Lugnut

I'm Rick James #####!
Was thinking the exact same thing.

If I ever buy a house that has one in it, I will be installing a quarter turn valve and turning it off. Insurance companies are more likely to drop you after your house has water damage (due to mold) than if it burns down.

I know some rental policies specifically exclude damage caused by a malfunctioning sprinkler system, and flood insurance is usually an entirely seperate policy.

I'm curious how a homeowners policy would be worded for this.
 

Dymphna

Loyalty, Friendship, Love
New homes on public water will have to have sprinkler systems. Maybe this is an indirect way to to curb new housing developments.:shrug:
There's your loophole for the Amish...they aren't on public water.

I don't think they are trying to stop development, exactly. It makes more sense to build a development where there is public water, rather than a bunch of little neighborhoods where they are spread out enough so that everyone is on a well.

I think they specify public water for a couple of reasons. The first and most important is to give the Amish that loophole. Amish folks vote and pay taxes and they pay attention to the politics and politicians who affect their lifestyle for good or bad. If they take a dislike to a politician, that politician can kiss his career goodbye.

Another reason may be water pressure issues. Newer homes are better about it than older homes, but they still require electricity to get the water into the house. If the electric fails, which it will in an electrical fire, the sprinklers won't run for very long. Is it enough to make it worth the effort? :shrug:
 

cartman

New Member
So can your local Fire Department expect the usual donation of Eat $h1t from you again this year? When did the sprinkler issue brought on by the Commissioners turn into a firefighter bashing forum? You better hope you never need one. Wouldn't want you to be impressed.

not meant to bash.... thats why i took it down... the fire hose water will do more damage then the sprinkler....

from
http://www.mvfd.com/content/website/MSFA%20Letterhead%20Fact%20Sheet%202005%5B1%5D.doc

MARYLAND STATE FIREMEN’S ASSOCIATION
Representing the Volunteer Fire, Rescue and Emergency Medical Services Personnel



RESIDENTIAL FIRE SPRINKLERS
Questions and Answers!


Do Sprinklers save lives?
Sprinklers are the most effective fire safety device ever invented. The National Fire Protection Association reports that people with smoke alarms in their home have a 50 percent better chance of surviving a fire. Adding sprinklers and smoke alarms increases your chances of surviving a fire by over 97 percent. Since statewide legislation was passed requiring sprinklers in newly constructed townhomes (1992), there have been no fire fatalities in these occupancies.
Do Sprinklers save property?
Residential fire sprinklers are designed to save lives, but because they control fires so quickly, they also reduce property damage. Fire reports nationwide show that property damage is nine times lower in sprinklered homes.
Are Sprinklers affordable?
Fire sprinklers add about one percent or less to the cost of a new home. This is about the same cost as upgrading carpeting. But carpets often are replaced every ten years, while fire sprinklers last for the life of the home. Compared with the cost of carpeting, fire sprinklers give you peace of mind for a bargain price.
Will sprinklers leak?
No! Sprinklers and their piping are pressure-tested at two to three times higher than your plumbing system, even though they use the same pressure as your plumbing. Therefore, the chance of a leaking sprinkler is practically nil. Like your plumbing pipes, sprinkler pipes are not exposed to cold areas so they are protected from freezing. They do not leak because, unlike faucets and other fixtures that are operated often throughout their lives, fire sprinklers remain closed until needed and thus do not receive the wear and tear of daily use.
Won't all the sprinklers in the room go off at the same time?
Heat from a fire will open the nearest sprinkler. Its water cools the hot fire gases, making it unlikely other sprinklers will open. Thus, in nearly all cases there is not enough heat to open the next nearest sprinkler. In the rare case that the heat is too much for the nearest sprinkler, the next nearest sprinkler will open to overcome the fire. The operation of more than one sprinkler occurs in a small percentage of commercial buildings, but is very unlikely in homes.


Thus, only the sprinklers necessary to stop the fire will operate, and fire records show that it usually takes just one. Why, then, do people think that all of the sprinklers in the room go off at the same time? There are two reasons. First, Hollywood gag writers show all of them going off for comic effect. They have shown this happening from someone merely lighting a cigar or pulling a fire alarm switch. Those actions cannot even make one sprinkler open, let alone all of them.
The second reason is that a lot of people mistakenly think that smoke will open a sprinkler. They have seen smoke spread throughout a room, so they conclude that smoke affects all of the sprinklers in the room. But once people understand that,
Only heat can open a sprinkler (smoke can't melt metal or burst glass) and,
Only a threatening fire can generate enough heat to open a sprinkler,
then they understand that all of the sprinklers won't open at the same time, even in a smoky room.
Aren't they unsightly?
Residential fire sprinklers are much smaller than ones that you see in stores and offices. All residential models come in colors to match popular ceiling and wall colors, and manufacturers will even custom-paint them for you. Many models are partially recessed into the ceiling, and only 1/4"-3/4" is below the ceiling. If you want them completely recessed, these models are also available. The fully recessed models are hidden by a cover plate that is painted to match the ceiling. The cover is held in place by a metallic link that melts in a fire and exposes the sprinkler.
It is common to find that visitors do not notice the sprinklers at all unless you point them out, even the ones that are not recessed into the ceiling.
Won't the water create more damage than the fire?
One of the myths about sprinklers is that they will cause water damage. While this may seem logical (after all, they spray water), fire records show that the reverse is actually true. Here is why. A residential fire sprinkler sprays about only 10-18 gallons of water per minute and operates early in a fire to stop the burning. A hose used by firefighters flows ten times that amount, 175-200 gallons a minute. If sprinklers are not present, fires typically burn for an additional 10-15 minutes until firefighters arrive and begin spraying it with their hoses. Two things happen to cause more damage than sprinklers. First, more of your possessions have burned up before the firefighters intervened, and then you have 10 times more water being sprayed on what is left at a very high pressure.
The combination of the sprinkler's quick response, the smaller water flow and lower pressure significantly reduces water and property damage. Think about it. What is more damaged, a sofa that can be dried off (sprinklered fire) or one that has turned to ashes (manual suppression)? How about an oil painting that was protected by a fine spray (sprinklered fire) or one where all that was left was part of a frame (manual suppression)? Without sprinklers, the heat and smoke from a fire travel very quickly, damaging the furniture and possessions throughout the house. With sprinklers, the sprinkler head nearest the fire will stop it before it can develop the damaging heat and smoke.

For more information contact the Office of the State Fire Marshal: 800-525-3124
 
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C

czygvtwkr

Guest
Actually prevention would be the most efficient fire safety device......
ounce of prevention....pound of cure
 

ServiceGuy

New Member
This story is not unlike many others the more you turn it around the more sides it has. Sprinklers good vs. sprinklers bad. There was a fire just this past week in Loveville when having sprinklers would have been a good thing. As for just adding sprinklers to new houses, look around a lot of the houses in the county are new (5-10 yrs or less) a house built today will be 20 yrs old if we wait another 20 yrs to make it required that all single family homes have sprinklers. We must start at some point. Just like seatbelts in cars, in the 50’s cars didn’t have seatbelts and now you can be ticketed for not wearing one, but if you own a 55 Chevy or any other older model car you do not have to have them installed.

And why is it that people always make comments about St Mary’s Co being backwards and then when an idea comes along that would make this area equal with other areas all of a sudden its not a good idea?
 

kom526

They call me ... Sarcasmo
This story is not unlike many others the more you turn it around the more sides it has. Sprinklers good vs. sprinklers bad. There was a fire just this past week in Loveville when having sprinklers would have been a good thing. As for just adding sprinklers to new houses, look around a lot of the houses in the county are new (5-10 yrs or less) a house built today will be 20 yrs old if we wait another 20 yrs to make it required that all single family homes have sprinklers. We must start at some point. Just like seatbelts in cars, in the 50’s cars didn’t have seatbelts and now you can be ticketed for not wearing one, but if you own a 55 Chevy or any other older model car you do not have to have them installed.

And why is it that people always make comments about St Mary’s Co being backwards and then when an idea comes along that would make this area equal with other areas all of a sudden its not a good idea?
Under the provisions that the BOCC put in, the house in Loveville would NOT have been required to have sprinklers unless it was was on PUBLIC WATER and I'm pretty sure that homes on Pincushion Road are all on well water so I may be wrong. Supposedly the homeowner is to receive a tax credit for a couple of years to offset (what is bound to be) a huge increase in the price of the build.

Does anybody have any data on surrounding jurisdictions and mandatory sprinkler installation in single family homes?
 

ServiceGuy

New Member
Under the provisions that the BOCC put in, the house in Loveville would NOT have been required to have sprinklers unless it was was on PUBLIC WATER and I'm pretty sure that homes on Pincushion Road are all on well water so I may be wrong. Supposedly the homeowner is to receive a tax credit for a couple of years to offset (what is bound to be) a huge increase in the price of the build.

Does anybody have any data on surrounding jurisdictions and mandatory sprinkler installation in single family homes?

There is not public water in that area, my point was that sprinklers would/could have helped in that case.
 

cartman

New Member
it will save you a #### load on homeowners insurance... the early investment will be offset over the long run..
 

Dougstermd

ORGASM DONOR
it will save you a #### load on homeowners insurance... the early investment will be offset over the long run..

what do you consider a #### load. I do not believe you will see much savings. Plus the maintanence will be additional cost.
 

cartman

New Member
or you can loose everything you worked your life for when your house is gone due to the fire is burned out of control while you wait for the fire department to arrive.

I'm sure your insurance company will be able to give you back everything you lost in a house fire if the house is out if control before anyone see it burning....
 
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