Patent ID: 6889775

Claim:
In a method of converting an existing fire suppression system that initially utilized Halon as a fire suppressant agent to protect a room or other enclosure and including a piping system having a plurality of existing distribution pipes leading to and operatively coupled with respective distribution nozzles, a selectively openable reservoir containing a first amount of pressurized Halon fire suppressant agent, said reservoir operatively coupled with said distribution pipes and normally operable, in response to fire conditions within said room or enclosure, to exhaust said Halon fire suppression agent into and through said distribution pipes and respective nozzles in a time from about 6 to about 10 seconds, said method comprising: providing a selectively openable container holding a second amount of pressurized HFC 125 fire suppressant agent greater than said first amount of Halon, said container being operatively coupled with said existing distribution pipes; pressurizing said amount of HFC 125 fire suppressant agent in the container to a level sufficient to exhaust said second amount of HFC 125 through said existing distribution pipes and out said respective nozzles in a time range of from about 10 to 25 seconds; and analyzing the suppression agent flow properties and characteristics of the existing Halon fire suppression system to determine the time-to-discharge (T D )of Halon from the system, and determining said amount of HFC 125 fire suppression agent to be added to the container in accordance with the formula C + =((T D −10)/(2×T CRIT )−T D ×100) where C + is the additional percentage on a weight basis of fire suppression agent needed for fire extinguishing performance equivalent to said amount of Halon in the system, T CRIT is the critical average time span for material required to be extinguished, and T D is the time of total discharge of HFC 125 from the system, a sufficient amount of HFC 125 being provided in the container to such that the suppressant agent meets standard Class A or Class B fire extinguishment tests when exhausted from the container.