Generally
speaking, there are two types of fire alarm systems available in the market:
conventional and analogue. Conventional systems—the simplest and perhaps most
common—are essentially simple ‘on off’ switches and offer the most basic
alerting system. It lacks the ability to detect smoke, dust, or steam. The
simplicity of it, however, makes conventional systems a very cost effective option
for households and small buildings.
Analogue
addressable systems are more modern alarm systems which can detect telltale
signs of fire, like smoke or steam. They can also be assigned a specific
"address" in the system so they give the functionality of identifying
which alerts have been tripped or have a fault, effectively locating where in
the building the source of the fire might be.
A
popular choice for
fire alarms
are the automatic types, which are activated by heat detectors strategically
mounted either on the walls or the ceiling. A variant of this is a system is
one which is activated by smoke detectors instead. There are also combination
smoke and fire detector types that sound a local alarm, in the presence of
smoke or extreme heat. Some of these alarm types also have strobe lights that
go off with the audible alarm sound to inform the building occupants of an
emergency. These however, are all just alarm systems that alert of the presence
of fire.
An
automatic fire sprinkler system with heat detectors are common with offices and
commercial establishments, where fire suppression is urgently needed. These
work by having a heat sensitive material working as a switch, which is tripped
when exposed to heat, sounding the alarm while simultaneously activating the
sprinklers.
The
most advanced fire alarms incorporate an automatic sprinkler with both smoke
and heat detection capabilities, with a control panel that works as a fire
indicator capable of displaying which alarms are tripped and where the fire is.
This advanced system, besides sounding a
local alarm, also sends alerts to the local fire department for immediate emergency
fire response.
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