Smoke ventilation systems are there to protect your staff, customers and property, making them a crucial part of a building's fire safety strategy.
Also known as smoke control systems or automatic opening vents (AOVs) their design varies but their job is the same, to vent smoke, fumes and heat out of a building during a fire.
With so much to do in fire safety, the need for proper maintenance is very important to help keep a building and its occupants safe.
How do Smoke Vents work?
With the increase in the number of buildings with more than three floors, smoke ventilation systems are now playing a major role in protecting occupants from fire. When a fire starts in these buildings, the main cause of death is not the fire itself, but smoke. The smoke severely impedes visibility, making evacuation more difficult for occupants and firefighters trying to fight the fire.
Smoke Vents can be found in numerous types of buildings ranging from commercial to residential. They are placed on roofs and walls and are triggered to work with heat and smoke detectors within the building. In the event of a fire, the smoke ducts automatically open, allowing smoke and fumes to leak and bring fresh air into the building. This helps create smoke free zones, such as corridors and stairwells, to help people escape. They also help emergency services locate the source of the fire and stop heat buildup in a building, protecting the building's structure.
How often should our smoke vents be serviced?
The consequences of not maintaining your smoke vent system can be devastating, with the potential for injury and loss of life if the system crashes. As a building owner you must understand the regulations you need to abide by in relation to fire safety.
Therefore, it is vital that smoke vents are maintained and serviced on a regular basis to ensure they work in an emergency and meet regulations. Smoke vents have many moving parts and if these have not been used for long periods, a seal can form around the vent to prevent opening. To prevent the vents from failing over time, the smoke vent systems need on-going maintenance.
Maintenance includes testing every part of the smoke vent system, including the fire alarm. We recommend an annual or biannual maintenance of your smoke vents to ensure you are meeting regulation standards.
Routine maintenance can also generate significant savings, as preventative maintenance can allow systems to operate more efficiently throughout their lifecycle. Inspections make it possible to identify problems before they turn into costly system failures.
While some buildings may have maintenance staff that can undertake some checks, it makes sense to have an expert regularly check and maintain your smoke vent systems. This is especially true when looking at the cost of fines for non-compliance, or the potential loss of revenue from a building closed by the fire.
How can SFE Services help you?
Our maintenance is comprehensive and in accordance with South African standards. All work undertaken by us will be consistent with your building's fire risk assessments and fire certificate. We can arrange all maintenance at times that are suitable for your business and make sure that there are minimal interruptions in the work environments.
Don’t put off maintaining this vital part of your fire safety system, contact us for your free fire safety survey today on 011 730 8243/4.
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