Can I Reconnect Out-of-Service Sprinkler System?

10/18/2021

I purchased a house with fire sprinkler system that is 30 years old. The previous owner had the sprinkler disconnected about 10 years ago when a furnace repairman stepped on one of the sprinkler pipes. The damage was repaired but the water line to the sprinkler system was not reconnected (not sure why).

I was wondering if it would be okay to have it reconnected now?

It is a 30-year old system and has been inactive for 10 years.

Do the pipes become brittle are there other concerns in reconnecting?

Thanks for you help.

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10 Comments

Alex

10/18/2021 06:52:18 am

Hi Anonymous,

A few things: Does the house require a sprinkler system? If the system is turned off at the moment, you first want to weight the pros and cons of having a system installed/operating. Pros being life safety and lower property insurance. Cons being the upkeep of the system.

NFPA 25 outlines the inspection, testing, and maintenance of a water-based fire protection system. Many components within the system have to be inspected and tested yearly. For that reason, I would hire an outside company to come take a look at the system as a whole and turn the system on.

Sprinkler pipes are prone to corrosion leading to pinholes. It will be important to test your system at working pressure once activated to ensure the system is maintaining pressure and no leaks are occurring.

Best of luck with the new home!
Alex

Dan Wilder

10/18/2021 07:53:09 am

There are a fair amount of assumptions below but thing to note:
NFPA 13D system?
What is your system piping (likely CPVC) maybe copper?
Does the local bell work (if installed)?
What type of sprinklers are installed (are they recalled)? Are they painted?
Yes the pipe does get brittle, especially as it has likely sat empty, but the old school CPVC holds up a lot better than the new stuff. Try to match MFG's for any pipe replacements.

At a minimum (my recommendations):

Without knowing what/how it was disconnected (hopefully just the brass connections), this is a simple pressfit/shark tooth fix (solder if you so feel).
Replace the sprinklers with a similar K-Factor (as allowed).
Pressure test the system with the new sprinklers installed to your high static conditions in your area. If there is an FDC on the system, it "should" be retested to a minimum 50PSI over static or up to 200PSI (I would not recommend)
Verify you have a working pressure relief valve.
Verify you have a working flow switch.
Verify you have a working local bell.
Put that thing back into service!

Chapter 12 of the current 13D (2019 Edition) gives you guidance on ITM, NFPA 25 does not apply to 13D systems unless you are running a board or care facility.

Anthony

10/18/2021 08:14:16 am

If it passes an NFPA 25 inspection it should be good to go. It should be air tested and hydrostatically tested for recommissioning.

You should have a sprinkler designer go over the system and ensure that it is code compliant and if you'd like it to function as modern system should. Otherwise it will only function to the spec it was designed to. Should be a placard on the riser that says how it was designed.

If it holds pressure I think it should be fine as long as the sprinkler heads are still in operational condition. Any leaks behind dry wall will not be easy to see until you have water damage.

All that said, if it was my house and it needed sprinklers for a 3rd floor occupancy or otherwise I'd install cpvc new knowing it was new and designed to work.

Martin Moffitt

10/18/2021 08:25:41 am

Good morning to all a lot of good answers but that is a lot of info for someone who knows nothing about this stuff(if in fact this is the case)

Have a professional come out and look at what you have and go from there. Best of luck to you Sir

Jesse

10/18/2021 08:43:42 am

At the risk of making assumptions, it sounds like 13D is the design criteria. So I'm curious if the system is in CPVC or PEX. Either are easily repairable.

I'd recommend you find a licensed sprinkler contractor in your area to hydrotest the system and ensure proper design.

Sandy

10/18/2021 12:37:54 pm

I would recommend you contact a licensed fire sprinkler contractor to do an inspection and pressure test the pipe. If it passes, definitely reconnect and keep that residential sprinkler system operational. You'll be happy you did if you ever have a fire in your house!

Jack G

10/18/2021 04:17:41 pm

Personally, I would spend the money to rip out and re install in the same place. All brand new stuff.

Martin Moffitt

10/19/2021 08:46:29 am

"Roger that"

Jon link

10/18/2021 06:37:50 pm

For a very old system, it's quite obvious that corrosion has already taken place on the pipe network. I would recommend to hire a professional sprinkler installer and let it tested per NFPA 25.

Steve Schwartz

10/22/2021 04:17:06 pm

Hello All,

I posted this question. I did have two licensed contractors come out and they gave me a couple of different opinions on how to re-connect. One said to test with high pressure air. The second one told me a high pressure air test would likely cause damage to the system. I feel much more comfortable making a decision after getting responses from the forum. I really appreciate the input and think this is a great resource!

Steve

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Can I Reconnect Out-of-Service Sprinkler System?

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