Fire Prevention Week: Home Sprinkler Systems

We are half way through Fire Prevention Week, and I wanted to write about something that most people I talk to have never considered: home sprinkler systems. We all know that hotels, high rise buildings, and restaurants have them, but can a home have a sprinkler system? YES! And there are a number of reasons why they should:

1. They are cheap improvements to a home!  The average cost of installing a system in an existing home was $1.27 per square foot last year.  For a 1,200 square foot home, that's only about $1,524.  Before you tell me that's a lot of money, consider that it costs about the same to repave a driveway, and about half the cost of a new roof.  There's a big reason that a home sprinkler system is a better investment than either of those...
2. They can significantly increase the value of a home.  Homes with a sprinkler system typically resale for more and quicker than homes without a sprinkler system. There are also discounts available on home insurance, typically 8-16%!
3. Smoke detectors are good, and every home (and every room in a home) should have one. However, smoke detectors are only good at alerting occupants to a potential hazard. They are no good at putting out a fire!  A home sprinkler system can be used in conjunction with smoke detectors, and have a much higher probability of containing the fire before it is out of control.

There are a number of concerns about home sprinkler systems as well.  I would like to address a couple of those concerns right now:

• A home sprinkler system will flood my whole house! Wouldn't it cost me or my insurance company regardless of whether my home is damaged by water or fire?

Actually, a home sprinkler system uses 10X less water than a fire hose! Plus, the home sprinkler system won't flood the whole house. 85% of the time, only one sprinkler head will activate: the one closest to the fire. The water damage would be minimal compared to the fire damage AND water damage if the fire department has to put the fire out.

• There is too much chance of the sprinkler system getting a leak and flooding my house!

Highly unlikely that would happen. In fact, because of the testing that home sprinkler system go through (with water pressures that are 2 to 3 times what they will experience once installed), it is more likely that your home plumbing will leak before your home sprinkler will.

I hope you find this information useful, and I thank you for taking the time to visit!