Statistics shows that one-sixth of total fire accidental deaths between 2010-14 in India are Kitchen related. Kitchens are the originating sources of open fire, mostly commercial kitchens which serve for hundreds and thousands of people should and are made necessary with essential fire safety equipment. The open ignition sources and working with flammable oil, grease not only has the risk of starting a fire but also can spread quickly.
Being aware of the previous disasters and learning from the failure steps taken by the unfortunate owners, commercial kitchens understood the potential cost of not having a Fire Suppression Systems that prevents the fire to erupt as soon as it detects an unusual activity.
How does the Kitchen Fire Suppression System work?
Wet Chemical Fire Suppression Systems which are generally used for kitchens works collectively by depleting the oxygen content and cooking effect of water.
The chemical agent present in the system combines with the burning oils to form a soapy layer that cuts oxygen supply from the oil and grease restricting them to further ignite. The commonly found agents are potassium acetate, potassium carbonate and potassium citrate. Parallelly the water which is also present in the fire suppression system cools the oil and grease by decreasing their temperature.
The system consists of nozzles that are targeted to the stoves and fryers releases the agent-water mixture as soon as it detects an unfamiliar activity. The mixture, which is nothing, but a large-scale Fire Extinguisher is situated in a box and is connected through a pipeline to the nozzle. The connection is controlled by a valve is generally triggered by a thermal link that is fixed to a wire but can also be done by a manual pull switch.As soon as it triggers, the agent from the extinguisher cylinders gets released through the nozzles taking the situation under control. The complete kitchen fire suppression system needs to be constructed with stainless steel to avoid corrosion and to sustain the heat effect.Some systems might interface with duct work dampers to confine the fire to kitchen and stop the spread through the building.
Standards of Kitchen Fire Protection System
These are four of the standards released by the National Fire Prevention Association (NFPA) that are required to maintain for using a Kitchen Fire Protection System.
NFPA 12: Standard on Carbon Dioxide Extinguishing Systems
NFPA 13: Standard for the Installation of Sprinkler Systems
NFPA 17: Standard for Dry Chemical Extinguishing Systems
NFPA 17A: Standard for Wet Chemical Extinguishing Systems
Commercial kitchens should follow the Regulatory Guidelines to balance between the quality of food and safety of food workers.
Benefits of Kitchen Fire Suppression System
- The damage caused by a kitchen fire accident costs a fortune while compared to the costs required for preventive measures.
- Kitchen being a source of open fire, the suppression systems takes the situation under control immediately after detecting the fire within a matter of seconds. In this case, it is better than having a bunch of fire extinguishers.
- Having a fully protected suppression system establishes the safety of the working staff.
- If commercial kitchen, it ensures the safety of customers.
- A complete set up of an appropriate suppression system can minimize the damage cause by accidents (if any).