Code of Maine Rules › 16 - DEPARTMENT OF PUBLIC SAFETY › 219 - OFFICE OF STATE FIRE MARSHAL › Chapter 4 - WATER-BASED FIRE PROTECTION SYSTEMS › Section 219-4-5 - Design Requirements

Current through 2024-29, July 17, 2024
1. A cushion of 5
				p.s.i. is required on
fire
sprinkler hydraulic
				calculations. Some or all of this cushion may be waived by the State Fire
				Marshal's Office-in unusual circumstances, such as in determining whether or
				not a fire pump will be required. The 5 p.s.i. cushion is not required on
				National Fire Protection Association Standard (NFPA) Standard # 13D fire
				sprinkler systems.
2. Hydrant flow
				tests for fire sprinkler system design shall be not greater than five years
				old. The authority having jurisdiction may require a current test when deemed
				necessary. Until current water data is available, an extra 1 p.s.i. of cushion
				is required for every year that the test data is greater than 5 years old.
[For example, water data that is 9 years old will require a 9 p.s.i.
				safety margin.]
This does not apply to NFPA Standard #13D fire
				sprinkler systems. Exceptions may be granted by the Office of the State Fire
				Marshal.
3. A maximum 65 p.s.i.
				automatic will be required on all wet standpipes in accordance with NFPA
				Standard #14.
4. Standpipes not
				required by NFPA Standard #101 may be manual dry or manual wet subject to
				approval by the local fire department.
5. Fire sprinkler systems required by any
				internationally or nationally recognized building code, or required by any
				local ordinance or required by any insurance company must be approved by the
				Office of State Fire Marshal and shall meet National Fire Protection
				Association Standards #13, #13R, #13D, Maine Life Safety System or Hydro-Pro
				System criteria.
6. Prior to
				construction of any new fire sprinkler system over 6 heads, or any addition to
				an existing fire sprinkler system of more than 20 heads, a fire sprinkler
				permit shall be required in accordance with 32 M.R.S.A. §1371 - 1382.
[Relocated heads shall count toward the 20 heads, but the replacement
				of existing heads without a change in pipe length shall
				not.]
7.
				Non-combustible/limited-combustible spaces having 15 or more combustible
				electrical cables grouped together such as in cable trays, shall be fully
				sprinklered in the area of the cables in NFPA Standard #13 fire sprinkler
				systems. Plenum-rated and riser-rated telecommunication cables however are
				considered to be limited combustible/fire resistive according to standards
				established by NFPA Standard #70 and therefore do not trigger this fire
				sprinkler requirement.
8. All
				industrial hose stations shall be required to be reduced to 100 psi.
9. Fire pumps and standpipes shall be
				considered part of the sprinkler system and subject to review and
				permitting.
10. All dry pipe
				systems shall have a low-air alarm in addition to a low-air switch for the
				compressor.
11. Operating freezers
				shall not require fire sprinkler protection if they are not used or intended to
				be used with fork lifts and the storage does not exceed 8' in height, and the
				door(s) are all self-closing, positive-latching and the rooms do not exceed 800
				square feet.
12. Exterior canopies
				shall not require fire sprinkler coverage if they are less than 4' wide and are
				constructed of non-combustible/ limited-combustible material, regardless of the
				use beneath them.
13. With prior
				approval of the Office of State Fire Marshal, canopies that meet an exception
				in the currently-adopted edition of NFPA Standard #13 for not requiring fire
				sprinkler protection beneath them may not require fire sprinkler protection
				within them, even if the interior construction contains combustible
				material.
14. Fire sprinkler heads
				in elevator shafts shall have a shut-off outside of the shaft, arranged in such
				a way so that servicing of the head in the machine room will have a minimum
				amount of water to drain into the room.
15. Fire sprinkler heads in elevator machine
				rooms shall have a shut-off outside of the machine room, arranged in such a way
				so that servicing of the head in the machine room will have a minimum amount of
				water to drain into the room.
16.
				The shut-off for the elevator shaft head and the elevator machine room head(s)
				can be the same control valve, but if there is a head at the top of the shaft
				and one in the elevator pit, then they shall have separate shut-offs.
17. Hose connections on stages are to be on
				the audience side of the proscenium curtain. Exceptions may be granted by the
				Office of State Fire Marshal.
18.
				The type of and location of the fire department connection and of the standpipe
				connection are subject to the local fire department.
19. Vital records storage vaults less than
				5000 square feet in area and for no more than brief occupancy may have smoke
				detection/heat detectionwithin, plus a fire extinguisher in near proximity, in
				place of fire sprinkler coverage within. For this exception to apply, the room
				must be either 2-hour fire rated or be of non-combustible construction, or the
				exposed interior surface must be of non-combustible construction;and the
				smoke/heat detection must be alarmed to a constantly-attended location, and the
				door to the vault must be closed and locked whenever there is no
				occupancy.
20. Maine Life Safety
				shall not require fire sprinkler coverage of bathrooms that are less than 55
				square feet in area.
21. Hydro-Pro
				standard shall not require fire sprinkler coverage of freezers or of elevator
				shafts or any exceptions mentioned in NFPA 13R, but not specifically mentioned
				in the Hydro-Pro standard.
22.
				Bladder tanks shall not be required for Hydro-Pro systems.
23. Fire sprinkler heads shall be used within
				their listings in both the Maine Life Safety and Hydro-Pro standards. Special
				exceptions may be granted by the Office of the State Fire Marshal.
24. Low-water alarms or automatic fills are
				required for stored water sources in all life-safety fire sprinkler standards
				other than NFPA Standard #13D systems.
25. Pump power monitoring is required in all
				life-safety fire sprinkler systems other than NFPA Standard #13D
				systems.
26. Fire pumps used in the
				Maine Life Safety standard and the Hydro-Pro standards are not required to be
				listed for fire service. Fire pumps that are less than 7.5 horsepower are not
				required to be listed for fire service in NFPA Standard #13R systems.
27. The required water volumes for fire
				sprinkler systems may be altered depending upon the occupancy type, occupant
				load, construction type, building height and other related factors. Prior
				approval must be granted by the Office of the State Fire Marshal.