Residential Fire Sprinklers .com

Protecting Your Home & Family

eNews Park Forest

The Village Board recently passed an amendment to the Fire Prevention Code lowering the square footage requirement for sprinkler protection in new commercial structures and mandates residential sprinklers in new single-family homes.

The measure lowers the square footage requirement from 5,000 square feet to zero for commercial structures.

According to Fire Chief Robert Wilcox, residential sprinklers are a simple solution to lessen the possibility of deaths in the event of fire, “A public policy decision like this can potentially save the lives of residents and firefighters alike,” Wilcox told members of the Village Board.

Fire Sprinklers react to temperatures in each room and respond when heated to their designed temperature setting, Wilcox said. He noted that in most residential fire scenarios, a single fire sprinkler will control a developing fire.

Chief Wilcox said the cost for the added security feature to a home can be nominal. Studies have shown that the in­stallation of a fire sprinkler is roughly one-percent of the construction cost of a new home.

Sprinklers also provide enhanced safety of firefighters. According to the National Fire Protection Association, no firefighter has lost their lives in sprinklered buildings since 1983 - except in occurrences of explosion or flash fire.

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