AnthonyB

Smoke detectors on a commercial intruder alarm are not for life safety and are for property protection out of hours via the intruder systems dialler or Redcare link. If your premises are so large a shout of fire, hand operated gong, whistle or similar cannot be heard throughout the premises without putting persons are risk then an electrical manual fire alarm system using call points and sounders to Category M of BS5893-1 is required. This is the legal benchmark and in simple non sleeping risk premises you do not require any detection unless there is a risk of a fire going undiscovered for long enough to prejudice escape - most single occupancy premises don't need this as they are usually occupied such that the staff would readily discover a fire early on and activate a call point (human senses are better detectors than you might have thought) Smoke alarms are for residential use, not commercial, although there are a few applications where they may be used, such as for inner room situations where only a local alarm is needed of a fire in an access room.

Sounds like you don't have the proper Theatre exit signs that are designed to have low ambient light levels and limited light spill during normal maintained mode and only full brightness in emergency mode. (e.g. http://www.escapezone.net/assets/pdf/Escapezone-st43m.pdf) You can't physically just turn maintained lights off, unless they have been set up as switchable maintained (not usual, but not unknown). Even if you can you shouldn't, but subject to suitable management backed up by a risk assessment it's not impossible for such a short time

If this had been thought of in the design stage then either traditional central battery or addressable LED emergency lighting systems could have been specified - with these individual fittings are powered centrally so there would be no LED in the fitting to cause disruption. As you are stuck with self contained fittings you may need to consider replacement with different fittings where the LED is placed to be less intrusive - with some I see it's quite hard to see the LED

I'd be surprised if it was as well. If your lease doesn't include an easement for this usage and there is no deed of variation for escape access you can keep it locked in the short term whilst you sort it out. If a recent build I'd ask to see the fire strategy that contains this route and the proof of Building Control approval. I'd also ask the fire service for advice - fire regulations require premises to have escape routes not requiring fire service assistance and a 4th floor dead end balcony requiring the fire service to come along with ladders or an aerial platform would not meet this criteria. I'd also ask for a copy of the fire risk assessment - it may not be suitable and sufficient - just because a panic bolt has been fitted doesn't make it a fire exit, I've seen doors that are definitely not part of an escape route with panic bolts on. Of course it could be as simple as the panic bolts having been fitted on the wrong side of the door and that they should be on your side giving you emergency access to the shared stair (possibly as you may have a flat internal layout requiring the second route)

The issues are if the buggy would be an obstruction and whether it poses a fire risk in what should be a fire sterile area by way of it's fabric coverings. The default would be a no to storage, but depending on the answers to be above and the options for managed use of the communal areas some storage occurs in some premises

Possible, but unlikely. Some traditional fire extinguisher companies do carry out Extended Services on liquid extinguishers, but most will replace new as the trade cost 'out of the box' is comparable with the cost of an Extended Service once you've thrown in labour time, environmental compliance, and the cost of having all the parts, chemicals and charging equipment on every van. Plus it's years and years and years since engineer's training courses included recharging so there is a large number of engineers that don't know how to fill an extinguisher. You are looking at time to take the extinguisher to the van finding a suitable foul drain for legal discharge if the van has no agent tank a minute to empty the extinguisher a minute or two to remove the valve a few more minutes to strip the valve & change the O-ring and to rinse out the body (and where do they get the water to do this if they are at the van?) Another few minutes to blow the hose and dip tube and change the O-ring A few more minutes to refill the body with water (from where?) add the wet chemical concentrate and refit the valve A minute or two to fit the charging adapter, connect the Nitrogen cylinder in the van and pressurise the extinguisher and reassemble the hose A minute or two to fit the pin, pull tag, test the pressure gauge and affix the dot and to fill in the service label Time to bring the extinguisher back into the premises I would suspect the extinguisher was taken to the van, labelled as Extended Serviced, and brought back........

If you are genuine trade you should be able to go direct to manufacturers - Jewel Saffire, PJ Fire, Jactone, Britannia Fire, Express Fire, Check Fire, Moyne Roberts, TG Products. These can supply all the correct servicing spares and tools too. If you are a small quantity user then you may actually get a better deal via Safelincs as some manufacturers have different pricing structures based on turnover and Safelincs, who due to turnover will be on the best scales the manufacturers they use offer, may actually offer better rates than direct!

More or less true, yes. All F-Gas agents (including those used in extinguishing such as FM200 [ HFC-227ea] or FE36 [ HFC-236fa ]) are subject to the EU phased reduction in availability of hydrofluorocarbons (HFCs) by 79% between 2015 and 2030. As such year on year supply will become more difficult to come by and more expensive, although it will be a little longer before complete withdrawal.. https://www.gov.uk/guidance/hfc-phase-down-in-the-eu-how-it-works-and-exemptions https://www.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/387955/F_gases.pdf http://ec.europa.eu/clima/policies/f-gas/legislation/index_en.htm

There is no legal requirement to hold the FDIS qualification to inspect fire doors - the actual specialist installers of fire doors and passive fire protection that also carry out inspection services don't have it and they are hardly incompetent. FDIS is a method of competency, but by a long way is not the only one - it's possible to be competent without this and (tens of) thousands of inspections are carried out every year to a competent standard by people not in this scheme. Unfortunately some FDIS holders have let it get to their heads and have been a bit misleading in their advice to end clients.

Point out it is there responsibility, that it's best practice (unlikely to get enforced against for not doing it) offer to train them, if they insist on paying for you to do it then it's an informed decision on their part which is fair - it's if they are led to believe they MUST have you do it that it would be inappropriate.

It's a private dwelling so BS5306-8 does not apply. It's not law either and is purely guidance as it is unduly OTT in small premises.

3 hours. 1 hour units haven't been manufactured for years.

Article 10 and Schedule Part 3 - Principles of Prevention. Whilst not explicit (few things are, the legislation sets out broad requirements, not the detail of how to achieve them), the cleaning of duct work would be a means of avoiding or combating fire risks as required by the legislation. There are plenty of destroyed workplaces that prove the need for such precautions.

Not for life safety. It could be a business continuity issue warranting such provision. I can't comment definitively without seeing the site, the tanks and building structure.

No. Very few situations require sprinklers for life safety. The archives may have a business continuity valve requiring protection, but again water isn't always best and a clean agent system could be considered, or better a fire prevention system such as Wagner Oxyreduct: http://www.wagner-uk.com/products/oxyreduct1/

Nitrogen, less moisture risk, plus compressors can't provide the pressure required for modern extinguishers so you'd need to be using cylinder air anyway and the cost difference isn't massive.

If it was just an inner room/access room then a Grade D smoke alarm to the access room and changing the lock to one that doesn't require a key from the inside would be the solution, but it sounds like an inner inner room situation - not usually permitted.

You could provide that type of coverage as an alternative to the mixed system set up above.

That's unusual, you normally get valve shutoff, but not fuel diversion. How old is the original building as basement fuel oil tanks with foam inlets are shouting pre-1960's office block. You've got more precautions than most generator set ups in buildings so I wouldn't be too concerned. Anthony Buck Alcumus HSE BAFE SP205 Third Party Accredited Fire Risk Assessors

Are you talking about a door from the building to the outside or in an outer wall fence to the street? Anthony Buck Alcumus HSE BAFE SP205 Third Party Accredited Fire Risk Assessors

It's not set in stone, but most providers use First Aid as a benchmark and put a three year expiry on, which as skills fade would be similar to first aid as you aren't regularly using your training isn't unreasonable. Your training regime must be suitable to the circumstances and risk and your fire risk assessor should be able to advise. A fire warden certificate should be transferable as the basic principles are always the same, however as specific procedures will differ between premises and organisations some additional instruction may be needed. Anthony Buck Alcumus HSE BAFE SP205 Third Party Accredited Fire Risk Assessors

Yes & possibly. Sounds like the old caretakers flat in a late 20th century building. A fire in the office block would have a major impact on the life safety of the flat. The flat as a minimum would need a self contained LD3 system to BS5839-6 plus some sounders from the main building system. There would not be an automatic need for main building detection inside the flat (cover to the stair landing outside the front door would do) but would have property protection benefits.

You really should have called the fire brigade at the time, not only for safety but because they would have taken out the mattress for you! Combustion by products include quite a lot of very nasty substances - anyone exposed should seek medical attention. Perhaps Social Services or a Charity could assist with the mattress issue.

Your fire extinguisher maintenance company can environmentally dispose of old fire extinguishers and issue a waste transfer note for your records - you can't just bin them (as someone found out when they blew up a bin lorry this way)

They are notices, not signs, so don't have to use the colours and symbols detailed in the Safety Signs Regulations, although it's best practice. You can produce your own or buy ex stock from a supplier No signs have to be photoluminescent as the normal & emergency lighting should be sufficient to permit legibility of key signs & equipment - the only time they would have to be is if a photoluminescent way guidance and information system is being installed instead of emergency lighting. Purchased signage can be normal self adhesive vinyl or rigid plastic and do not have to glow in the dark