In view of the confusion that often is associated with the different sort of fire alarms, we thought it might be helpful to explain a few things:
- Are non-addressable fire alarms no longer compliant? No, this is not the case. Although addressable is often preferred, and indeed specified in certain environments, there is nothing wrong with a non-addressable fire alarm system in a smaller building.?
- Is there a limit to the size of a non-addressable system that can be installed? No, but manufacturers typically only recommend 20 devices in a zone. If your building needs more than 200 devices on the system you will probably prefer to have an addressable system because of the functionality advantages of an addressable system.
- Is there a difference to the information displayed on the panel? Yes, there is. A non-addressable system will tell you in what zone a device has activated, but you will have to go the physical zone to identify the device in question which limits search distances. An addressable system will tell you the exact device number and location.
- If a fault disappears, will the panel retain the history? Only an addressable system has this capacity. Once a fault has disappeared on a non-addressable system it isn’t possible to see from the panel what the problem was.
- Is it possible to upgrade a non-addressable fire alarm to an addressable one without replacing everything? As long as the cabling is in good condition, yes. There are some changes that will be needed to be made to the cabling, as it will need to be changed to a loop rather than a zone or by adding extra control equipment. The panel and all the devices will need to be replaced, but often, the sounders and their circuits can remain as they are.
- Are non-addressable alarms cheaper than addressable? Yes, they are, but not as much as it once was, as technology improves.
- Can a non-addressable alarm be linked to an Alarm Receiving Centre??Yes, they can.?
