Field Investigation of Residential Smoke Detectors.
Field Investigation of Residential Smoke Detectors.
(2296 K)
Bukowski, R. W.
Southern Building, 28-21, April/May 1977.
Keywords:
smoke detectors; fire investigations; residential
buildings; building codes; fire tests; sensitivity;
identification; escape means; experiments; heat
detectors; thermocouples
Abstract:
At the present time, standards for fire detector
location in dwellings, as well as standards for fire
detector sensitivity, are based mostly on laboratory
data and engineering judgement without the benefit of
extensive fullscale data to provide guidance. For
example. as new methods of fire detection have
developed, laboratory evaluations have been modified in
attempts to provide realistic exposure environments;
However, this has led to a multiplicity of evaluation
techniques. These are only loosely interrelated, making
comparative judgements difficult between detectors
stimulated by different characteristics of fire. As more
and more jurisdictions make dwelling fire detection
mandatory, it becomes increasingly important to develop
experimental data to back up and improve existing
standards. The primary purpose of this study
was to investigate detector siting and sensitivity as
they relate to escape potential in residential fire
situations. Although a number of actual detectors were
used in the investigation, it was not the intent of
this-project to judge the merits of the individual
detectors used. The detectors were selected to provide a
cross section of the several detection principles now
available and to represent the current level of
technology available in residential type detectors.
Building and Fire Research Laboratory
National Institute of Standards and Technology
Gaithersburg, MD 20899