Thanks but I respectfully kinda disagree. If I start by testing the pump (0-150%), then move to test each floor, check TS, open ITV and time zone and main WFS; I'm not done. The more I write this the more I think how silly a main drain test is with a pump but there's no minimum requirement excepting me from a main drain test when I have a pump and the sprinkler standard actually states it should be on the street side of the pump. I can almost hear the phone ringing from George, he'd have been up for an hour at this time of the morning and skipping the keyboard for a good morning call, coffee in one hand and a butt in the other. I'm going to suggest to the client he invest in a new main drain (and riser gauge) on the city side and replace the leaking main drain (which is really just a drain imho) on the system side and we test and tag city side valve. For what I don't know, seems a waste of time and water. BTW, their pump is done over, 39 year old Patterson that sounded like a bucket of bolts and now the loudest sound coming from it is the 55L dumping down the drain. Totally rebuilt, even grouted and painted.
Tommy (Yo, dude!), The Pump IS the water supply. In order to drain the system, the Main Drain needs to be on the system side of the pump. And in order to test the water supply to the system (ie: city water + pump. dammit), you gotta flow the water from the city supply through the pump and to the system. This is even more critical when you are supplying multiple standpipes AND sprinklers. NFPA 25 requires an analysis of the city water supply at 5 years. Tom, the beauty of what you do is that you ALWAYS think about the best interest of the owner. And you should rock on in giving the owner the cadillac! But that is not what the NFPA standards are all about (even if we want to encourage such a thing). NFPA has to draw a line at what the minimum acceptable safety standard should be. The minimum (and it is quite acceptable) is to install a drain (call it main...and each floor would end up having one, right?) and use it to determine whether the ENTIRE water supply is adequate. There ya go. It should be recognized that the above is my opinion as a member of the NFPA, (you know... 3,4,13,14,25,72,88A & stuff) and has not been processed as a formal interpretation in accordance with the NFPA Regulations Governing Committee Projects and should therefore not be considered, nor relied upon, as the official position of the the NFPA, nor any of their technical committees. Sincerely, Cecil Bilbo _______________________________________________ Sprinklerforum mailing list [email protected] http://lists.firesprinkler.org/listinfo.cgi/sprinklerforum-firesprinkler.org
