American Fire Sprinkler Association 12750 Merit Dr., Suite 350 Dallas TX 75251
Ph: (214) 349-5965 Fax: (214) 276-0908 ----------------- TECHNICAL UPDATE JULY 7, 2010 ----------------- When supporting pipe from a wood structure such as an attic and additional wood members are installed to support the sprinkler system, does the additional wood have to be attached to the wood truss or joists with bolts sized per NFPA 13 or can this be attached in the same method the trusses were constructed? We have reviewed NFPA 13, 2007 Edition that you indicated as the applicable standard. Our informal interpretation is that NFPA 13 requirements for fasteners do not apply to the assembly of structural members. The scope of Chapter 9 in NFPA 13 is for the support of the sprinkler system piping and the attachments to the structure.╩This chapter does not address additional wood structural members and its fasteners that will support sprinkler piping. Thus the loading of the system piping should be communicated to the structural engineer to verify the assembly will support the load, as is noted in NFPA-13, section 9.1.1.2.╩Guidance is provided by the manufacturers of engineered wood products on supporting fire sprinkler piping from the structure.╩As an example, composite wood joists have thin particleboard as webbing and it is not sufficient to support the loads of sprinkler piping and seismic loads.╩Additional wood blocking or slave piece is added for the pipe support attachment where the types of fasteners for those applications are specified, and the data from the manufacturers provides extensive information on the type of fasteners to be used, how many are required, and how they should be spaced. ----------------- Technical Update is prepared by the Technical Services Dept. of the AFSA: Roland Huggins, a PE registered in fire protection engineering ,Vice President of Engineering and Technical Services; Phill Brown, a NICET IV certified automatic sprinkler technician and NFPA Certified Fire Protection Specialist (CFPS) and Tom Wellen, a degreed fire protection engineering technologist. This is provided with the understanding that the AFSA assumes no liability for this opinion or actions taken on it and they are not to be considered the official position of the NFPA or its technical committees. Copyright ⌐ 2010, American Fire Sprinkler Association. All Rights Reserved -------------------------- If you╒d rather not receive future faxes from AFSA, fax your removal request to Amy Sweeney at Efax (214) 242-3155 or call toll free (888) 839-4830 or send e-mail request at [email protected]. Please include your company name and the specific fax numbers(s) at which you do not wish to receive faxes from us. Our failure to comply with your request may be unlawful. _______________________________________________ Sprinklernotes mailing list [email protected] http://fireball.firesprinkler.org/mailman/listinfo/sprinklernotes
