On 31/05/2012 00:31, Cash wrote:
John Rumm wrote:
http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-wales-18266064


John,

As one who over the years has been involved in repairing several fire
damaged dwellings (two with fatalities) [1], I think that sprinklers in
dwellings are a bloody good idea, and is one of those where the value of
fitting them could well far outweigh the costs in lives saved and reduced
injuries. As for the builders shouting about the costs, they will recoupe
these simply by increasing the cost of their houses from eye-watering to
larcency with the extortionate profits they make on them.

The sums don't add up though. At £6m per life saved there are far better
ways to keep people safer in their own homes. DIYers feature high among
the casualty list for self inflicted injuries for instance.

Fire alarms are very cheap and if the objective is to save lives then
*they* should be the first priority. Or innovative alarms that use cell
phone technology to call for help if a fire is detected. Teaching people
to close doors downstairs at night would go a long way towards
controlling the risk by slowing the spread of fire and smoke.

Sprinklers in a domestic setting will just lead to a false sense of
security unless they are regularly maintained. It isn't unreasonable to
require every household to own and maintain a current CO2 or dry powder
extinguisher for instance. Local councils could provide basic fire
training as beginners aim too high missing the root of the flames.

Now if they could legislate for householders to have some training in how a
dwelling fire develops when doors are left open at night, along with the
very high temperatures created, and how to escape from a burning building,
that would be a bonus - but then the shoutsof a "nanny state" would be very
loud!

[1] Some of the sights I've seen have been horrendous, and I have a
great respect for those professionals that fight the things (and a great
awareness instilled in myself and family).

Anyone who has been on a serious fire safety course has a pretty good
feel for how fire behaves in the large. Untrained people tend to get
themselves into big trouble - especially if a flashover occurs.

I was taught that water based extinguishers were mostly useful for
breaking down locked doors. The fire brigade do a nice demo of how not
to tackle a kitchen chip pan fire in mobile vans before they show how to
do it right. These days because of health and safety they have to tell
people to just close the door and ring 999 for expert help.

--
Regards,
Martin Brown