Question: Our yearly fire inspection revealed low water pressure and the requirement for a tank. Our fire protection company cannot sign off on the AFSS due to our lack of compliance. What do we do?
I’m a strata committee member for our 70-year-old, 25-unit building. Our yearly fire inspection revealed low water pressure, requiring a new 25,000-litre water tank. Installation of a new tank is costly, and we have no land available. Our fire protection company cannot sign off on the AFSS due to our lack of a compliant fire safety system.
A December 2024 report from Sydney Water indicated that our building does meet their flow and pressure requirements. What can we do?
Answer: Get a second opinion before doing anything further, and if that shows the issue is genuine, contact a fire engineer.
The Sydney Water Pressure Flow enquiry is a computer-generated report showing the theoretical pressure and flow available to the building at the street main tap-in point, e.g. out the front of the building.
The flow test undertaken by your fire contractor must be done at the “most hydraulically disadvantaged” location in the building. e.g. the location that is highest and furthest from the building entry.
The contractor’s test proves whether there is sufficient water at the furthest point for the fire brigade to use in an emergency.
Hence, while there is a relationship between the street mains pressure and flow and the contractor-completed test, the Sydney Water test does not take into consideration these factors:
- Height difference – for every metre the hydrant is above the street main, the pressure delivered drops by 10 Kilopascals.
- Back-flow prevention valve (the big blue thing out front) will reduce pressure by 50-150kPa.
- Friction losses – every bend, tee and valve causes friction that reduces pressure between the street and the farthest hydrant.
- Time of day and usage – if everyone is having a shower or watering the garden at the same time, one-off pressure issues can occur.
The contractor is doing exactly what they should in not endorsing the AFSS when the hydrant system has been proven not to perform as designed.
I highly recommend the owners get a second opinion before doing anything further, and if that shows the issue is genuine, contact a fire engineer who can potentially help with alternate/ performance solutions that may avoid the standard solutions raised by your contractor.
This post appears in the June 2024 edition of The NSW Strata Magazine.
Rob Broadhead 2020 Fire Protection E: rob.broadhead@2020fire.com.au P: 1300 340 210