How to Size Dedicated Fire Sprinkler Riser Room?

4/18/2024

Hello everyone, I am currently working on a project where 5 deluge valves will be installed in a dedicate riser room. The room will only contain the deluge valves (5), the foam tank and air compressors.

How would you recommend I give dimensional requirements for this room to the architect?

What's your thought process, or lessons learned, for sizing rooms like this?

Thanks in advance - much appreciated.

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10 Comments

Dan Wilder

4/18/2024 07:26:36 am

Without knowing sizing...

Foam tank considerations (not sure on your tank size)
The new foams have such a high viscosity that the foam system valves will be very close to the tank
Horizontal - Align with the DOUBLE doors (minimum) for bladder replacement or provide enough working clearance at the end of the tank. Doesn't have to be inline, but not too far offset
Vertical - Again, clearance for service/replacement. A hoist beam comes in handy, again based on tank size

Valves (on a manifold) - pending size, 36" on center would be nice, it can be closer. Allow for test piping (from valves to exterior) in the height of the room.

Testing outlets to the exterior - provide enough wall space to get outlets and valves. Drain locations need to be addressed for floor planning, my experience is 2 drains located closer to walls vs one in the middle of the room. Release panels, foam concentrate storage, backflows, strainers will all take up space as well.

I'm sure there will be lots of considerations added from everyone else.

Glenn Berger

4/18/2024 08:06:49 am

Best thing to do is to layout the equipment to determine the minimum dimensions required. Include clear space required and required doors. This will give the architectures some confidence that you are giving them a real requirement.

Mike Morey

4/18/2024 08:10:03 am

Dan as always makes a lot of great points. If you're a CAD person you can draw a layout of the header pretty easily. Almost every manufacturer has extensive 2d and 3d cad details of their valves. If not you can still take dimensions out of the cut sheets to draw something up using graph paper or similar and scale it out. Typically I'd look at the width of the valve including trim etc and then space them far enough apart to have room to service, 8-12" minimum typically from edge of one to the next. Typically we provide 12" behind and 36" in front of the header as well. Once the header and any backflow/proportioning etc equipment is all laid out I typically work backwards to fill in the tank, compressors, panels, etc. Depending on how long the header gets you may need to wrap it around a corner in an L to keep the room something approaching a square. If you have a backflow for example I'd put the tank on that side as it requires less interaction and has less small fiddly parts someone has to work in a corner to fix etc. I like to pull a fitter in and talk concept and show them a final sketch whenever possible since the good ones can visualize working on the thing/building it in real space.

jody aycock link

4/18/2024 08:19:51 am

The best way I've found is to actually lay all the equipment out in the room to scale. You have to ensure everything is to scale and the correct length. When you have this completed, there's no more guesswork, you can, with confidence show them exactly how much room you need, and you can also tell if the equipment will fit in the space that's provided, if you run into that in the future. It takes a few minutes to do, but it will ensure that you are telling them what you actually need and not just guessing at it.

Anthony

4/18/2024 08:52:41 am

I like to take the size of the unit, plop it on a drawing, add 50% of the unit size to each side up to 2'-0.Thats your left/right clearance. Then double the size of the unit in front of the installed location up to the size of the unit + 30'' That allows a person (30'') + the unit to be brought into the room then installed/removed.

So say you have (5) 6'' DDX pre pack from reliable that are 30'' wide and 33'' deep. For a row of 5 units you'll need (30'' x 5) + (15'' x 4) + 2'-0 for tie in at the base of the cabinet and drain manifold. Say 18'-0 wide. in front it's (33'' x 2 + 30'') = 8'

So for an early 'place holder room' a round 20' x 8' room or you can make it more square if you don't want everything on one wall. If this is your water entry room you could put the back flow preventer on the 8' wall and the cabinets on the 20' wall.

Todd E Wyatt

4/18/2024 09:17:18 am

NFPA 70 National Electrical Code (NEC) has minimum prescriptive requirements regarding “work spaces” and “electrical space “ ( … space equal to the width and the depth of the equipment extending from the floor to a height of 6 ft (1.8 m) above the equipment or the structural ceiling, whichever is lower … ) which applies to switchboards, panelboards, switchgear, or motor control centers.

NFPA 13-2022 requires that “ …system valves and gauges shall be ACCESSIBLE for operation, inspection, tests, and maintenance …” per Chapter 16 Installation of Piping, Valves, and Appurtenances, 16.1 Basic Requirements, 16.1.1. While this is not as “prescriptive” as the NEC, the term ACCESSIBLE should be construed to mean “accessible under normal circumstances and not requiring the owner, occupant, or service provider to need special equipment to operate control valves during emergency situations.”

From the “ENHANCED CONTENT” in NFPA 13-2022, it states :

The term accessible in NFPA 13 can have different meanings. Following are some examples of how the term accessible might be used:
1. “Accessible to authorized persons during emergencies”
2. “Accessible for maintenance and service”
3. “Accessible preferably 7 ft (2.1 m) above the finished floor”
4. “Accessible, meaning ‘visible’ from the floor”
5. “Accessible by operation from the floor for chain-operated valves or valves in pits that require a handle to reach the control valve”
6. “Inaccessible for safety considerations”
7. “Easily accessible for access to hose valves, nozzles, and fire extinguishers”

When designing the Fire Sprinkler Riser Room, the ACCESIBILITY of the “piping, valves, and appurtenances” for “operation, inspection, tests, and maintenance” should be considered.

RYAN HINSON

4/18/2024 09:52:25 am

Don't forget consideration for an upstream fireline strainer and possible strainer bypass if required by the applicable standards. What about possible room containment requirements for the foam concentrate...which may be local environmental ordinances or a DoD requirement?

As has already been stated, the best way is to spend the time on the front end actually laying out the enclosure inclusive of shutoff valve types and orientations and access therearound. (OS&Ys have very different spacial envelopes than butterfly valves...as well as obvious hydraulic differences.) Any FA or releasing panels in this room require dedicated spaces for from access therein.

For bladder tanks, don't forget the needed access on back end of the tank to guide any bladder replacement...or provision of access by other means.

If the building cannot support all large piping from above, consideration must also be made for pipe supports from the floor and any access limitations created. The lead-in location and size needs to be coordinated through the slab on which this building will sit or a doghouse might be needed...all things needing coordination.

Who is providing what type of heat herein? You may want to get someone like SafeSpace, Parkline, or another entity that builds custom fire protection enclosures.

Communication, communication, communication.

Jack G

4/18/2024 09:55:21 am

Todd and Dan are spot on.
If it’s a vertical tank—- a roof hatch would be advised to pull the bladder out. Horizontal, set in front of the double doors as stated above.
I ve always diked the room or have the floor below grade for spills and clean up and disposal.
The combination foam water line to each proportioner will expand with temperature due to small amounts of air in the line. 2-3 % could double the pressure. So I usually put a relief valve set at 10 psi below component system pressure.
Dump it to a tank fron each valve. ( for disposal)
Or use an expansion tank on the foam/ water supply to the deluge valves.
I’m assuming each deluge valve( 5) will have its own proportioned.
If only one( to the 5 valves) you will find the pilot line - will dump almost pure foam and empty the tank very quickly. Better for each valve to have its own.

Jesse

4/18/2024 10:08:12 am

These are questions we get asked a lot. Not specific to foam deluge systems, but fire pumps, riser rooms, etc. With riser rooms for instance, there's no code really we can point to and say "I need X-sq. ft."

What I've done in the past; is to layout the equipment in a drawing to scale. Get the size of my foam proportioner, tanks, etc. from data sheets and lay it all out in a way that gives firefighters access to everything while wearing their full protective ensemble.

Franck

4/19/2024 01:37:15 am

As indicated by all above, make a drawing of the room to scale and ask yourself if all key equipment are readily and easily accessible. It is one thing to have all equipment fit in one room, it is another one to reach the valves and other parts for testing and maintenance.
I have been to so many fire pump rooms where you have to crawl over the pipes to go from one side to the other, laking fire pump tests and gage readings a real olympic event !
It could easily be the same with a sprinkler room with an additional foam tank in it…
Have in mind that if access is too difficult, testing will not be done properly and maintenance frequency will not be respected… this is human nature!

How to Size Dedicated Fire Sprinkler Riser Room?

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