LAFD Memo Addresses Fire Water Tank Flooding Concerns
To minimize the risk of flooding due to overfilling of water storage tanks required in high-rise building for a redundant water supply, the Los Angeles Fire Department issued a memo to all Fire Department Inspectors and Plan Checkers on January 31, 2018.
If your building has not received final Certificate of Occupancy (CofO), your tank design and installation must comply with this memo.
Here are some of the highlights:
- Detailed drawings showing the fill and overfill systems shall be approved by the LAFD inspector and sprinkler inspector assigned to your project.
- Fill systems may have maximum of 4 fill valves.
- Overflow system sized to accept overflow from single fill valve in a single valve design, or largest fill valve volume serving a tank with a multiple fill valve design.
- Provisions shall be made to flow test each fill valve individually and collectively.
- Low and high water level monitoring by the building fire alarm system shall be provided.
- Allow for adequate length of wiring to allow the complete removal of the water level monitoring probes for inspection and service.
- Tank overflow using pumps shall have a primary and redundant pumps on standby power circuits supplied by the emergency generator.
- Discharge valves for pumps on the overflow system shall be secured in open position with chains and breakaway locks.
To avoid costly delays, have your fire protection water storage tank drawings reviewed by your fire protection engineer. Contact us at info@younghusband-consulting.com to receive a copy of the LAFD memo on Fire Protection Water Storage Tank Fill Systems.
