| Great points Mike. The newer (and more expensive equipment) do offer some options as long as the AHJ approves their use. Keep in mind, a fire pump system is designed to run to destruction if it is needed to. This includes a low pressure suction condition. Thanks, John John August Denhardt, P.E Vice President Engineering and Technical Services American Fire Sprinkler Association 301-343-1457 Are you a member with a technical question? Don't forget one of the most valuable resources that AFSA provides is Technical Reviews by our Technical Services Department. It’s like having an FPE on your staff. Visit www.firesprinkler.org/
In fairness, there are a couple other options today, most controllers now can be configured for a low suction shutoff if allowed by the AHJ (however this is rarely an acceptable option) and pressure limiting
drive (PLD) diesels can have a low suction throttle in their controller (this is becoming pretty common as the added transducer and controls are typically cheaper than the valve, and you aren’t adding loss etc). But typically, when someone says “low suction
alarm” it’s just as you say, a buzzer/supervisory signal and no action is taken by the controller. Mike Morey 2025
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260.417.0625 From: John Denhardt <[email protected]>
Low suction alarm? Low suction valve? A low pressure alarm is just an alarm or supervisory alarm. No impact to the fire pump system as it will run to destruction.
A low suction valve will restrict the discharge to limit water flow rate to prevent ZjQcmQRYFpfptBannerStart
ZjQcmQRYFpfptBannerEnd Low suction alarm? Low suction valve? A low pressure alarm is just an alarm or supervisory alarm. No impact to the fire pump system as it will run to destruction. A low suction valve will restrict the discharge to limit water flow rate to prevent a low suction situation. The fire pump system (including a diesel driver) will only see lesser water flow. I hope this helps. Feel free to call me to discuss further. Thanks, John John August Denhardt, P.E Vice President Engineering and Technical Services American Fire Sprinkler Association 301-343-1457
Are you a member with a technical question? Don't forget one of the most valuable resources that AFSA provides is Technical Reviews by our Technical Services Department. It’s like having an FPE on your staff. Visit www.firesprinkler.org/technicalreview to
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Does a low suction pressure alarm have any affect on the diesel fire pump’s engine control?
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