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FIRE SERVICE AND GENERAL FIRE SAFETY TOPICS => Fire Safety => Topic started by: Paul2886 on June 20, 2008, 11:20:29 AM
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Just had a phone call from a home to say they must take down the notice that says the fire alarm test will take place every Tuesday at 11.00am. The maintenance chap says its not allowed as it makes the staff complacent. Any thoughts...thanks
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You don't want to make staff complacent but its when you are running a fire drill that you don't want to be telling people when its going to be happening
With a weekly bell test it surely doesn't matter if they know when its happening or not, in fact its probably advisable if you have door retainers so they know to get out of the way
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I agree - leave the sign where it is
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Just had a phone call from a home to say they must take down the notice that says the fire alarm test will take place every Tuesday at 11.00am. The maintenance chap says its not allowed as it makes the staff complacent. Any thoughts...thanks
The maintenace guy is,IMO,talking through his hat. Weekly tests should be done at the same time and day every week so that staff know that it is a test and do not respond in full fire mode.
It means that they have no excuse in not reacting to a genuine activation of the fire alarm system.
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Just had a phone call from a home to say they must take down the notice that says the fire alarm test will take place every Tuesday at 11.00am. The maintenance chap says its not allowed as it makes the staff complacent. Any thoughts...thanks
The maintenace guy is,IMO,talking through his hat. Weekly tests should be done at the same time and day every week so that staff know that it is a test and do not respond in full fire mode.
It means that they have no excuse in not reacting to a genuine activation of the fire alarm system.
Not only that if staff know the time and day the alarm is tested they can report back any faults for example Mrs Mopp the cleaner says to Joe Bloggs the manager: "I was on the first floor and I never heard he fire alarm go off"
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A fire alarm warning device test should be carried out at the same time and day every week for all the very good reasons given above.
The time and day to do this is not 3pm on a Friday. Trying to get a maintenace company response in these circumstances might result in fault rectification works having to be carried out in overtime hours and at a weekend.
The best times for the determined fire alarm warning devices test is between 10.00 -12.00 either Monday, Tuesday or Wednesday. I can tell you that experience shows me that any faults revealed by the tests will be rectified quicker and cheaper by following this advice
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What they said
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But did they explain why this is good practice? Was it even anything relevant to the original question asked?
I thought I would add my comment here for those who have never given this matter any thought and still carried out their alarm warning device test on Friday afternoons 'just to ensure everything is o.k. for the weekend'
Is this o.k with you or should I have started a new post?
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Don't forget that a test should be done for night staff as well so the sign may say another time as well.
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But did they explain why this is good practice? Was it even anything relevant to the original question asked?
I thought I would add my comment here for those who have never given this matter any thought and still carried out their alarm warning device test on Friday afternoons 'just to ensure everything is o.k. for the weekend'
Is this o.k with you or should I have started a new post?
wiz...who was that aimed at?
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I thought I would add my comment here for those who have never given this matter any thought and still carried out their alarm warning device test on Friday afternoons 'just to ensure everything is o.k. for the weekend'
Is this o.k with you or should I have started a new post?
Say nothing Wiz.... i dont think any one noticed....i wont tell if you wont
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I thought I would add my comment here for those who have never given this matter any thought and still carried out their alarm warning device test on Friday afternoons 'just to ensure everything is o.k. for the weekend'
Is this o.k with you or should I have started a new post?
Say nothing Wiz.... i dont think any one noticed....i wont tell if you wont
oh ok... righty o
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jokar, why does the test need to be done for the night staff? Surely the pupose of the test is to check that the alarm system is working. Now as for a fire drill then yes you must ensure the night staff know what to do, but I can't see the need to test the alarm system for its operation at night.
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jokar, why does the test need to be done for the night staff? Surely the pupose of the test is to check that the alarm system is working. Now as for a fire drill then yes you must ensure the night staff know what to do, but I can't see the need to test the alarm system for its operation at night.
It is so all members of staff know what the fire alarm sounds like.
However,in the case of care homes it may be better pcratice to rotate the night staff on to one day shift or have the test at a time when all staff can attend (actually,in the case of care homes etc. the fact that most staff work shift patterns makes the same time/same day test a bit unworkable,doesn't it?)
Anyway,in general and from Part 1 Section 44.2 -
b) The weekly test should be carried out at approximately the same time each week; instructions to
occupants should then be that they should report any instance of poor audibility of the fire alarm signal.
c) In premises in which some employees only work during hours other than that at which the fire alarm
system is normally tested, an additional test(s) should be carried out at least once a month to ensure
familiarity of these employees with the fire alarm signal(s).
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What should be done where a public address system is used?
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I thought I would add my comment here for those who have never given this matter any thought and still carried out their alarm warning device test on Friday afternoons 'just to ensure everything is o.k. for the weekend'
Is this o.k with you or should I have started a new post?
Say nothing Wiz.... i dont think any one noticed....i wont tell if you wont
Well spotted Izan. I won't. I think he's only trying to get his 'number of posts count' up anyway.
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Wiz
I really don't know if your barbed comments are aimed at me but I'm too long in the tooth to worry about playground antics. If it is me (and I'm assuming it is because you followed my post) I was agreeing with the comments of others that had posted above me...sorry if it wasn't a long winded technical answer but I didn't see the need...others had said it all before me. As for your ridiculous comment about 'post counts' do you really think people are that childish...if so I suggest you grow up a wee bit lad.
I'm reading on here that you are an electrician of some sort...well done that's nice...me, I have 26 years experience in the Fire Service many years operational and many years in a dedicated fire safety field in charge of a department...and since retiring carrying out many fire risk assessments...
Not that makes me better than anyone else of course....in fact some on here could put me to same with their technical knowledge without reference
So you can take your snide little comments sonny and stick em where the sun don't shine
hope that helps :D
ps..come over onto uk-fire ;)
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ladies/gents,
I dont quite follow this thread, I've obviously missed or miss understood the insult/allegation/joke. Or maybe there wasn't one. Either way, its a nice Sunday so let's all chill out a bit please. Before anyone else posts in anger why not wait till the next day and then ask yourself how sensible your angry words seem then. Cheers,
Chris
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ladies/gents,
I dont quite follow this thread, I've obviously missed or miss understood the insult/allegation/joke. Or maybe there wasn't one. Either way, its a nice Sunday so let's all chill out a bit please. Before anyone else posts in anger why not wait till the next day and then ask yourself how sensible your angry words seem then. Cheers,
Chris
Ok Chris...but It's Saturday :)
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Transmit test message before fire/evacuation message
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Lingmoor, it is easy for people to misunderstand comments on forums and take them the wrong way.
I will admit to being a little bit sarcastic with you because of your comment to my original post.
On reflection, after reading your recent explanation, maybe I did misunderstand your original post and took it as a sarcastic response to my own. Therefore I apologise to you for my own sarcasm in reply.
However, if I now read your post as you say it was meant to be, then it now means that your post actually was to be read , but in other words, 'I agree with all the above'. I now suggest to you that such a post doesn't add anything of use to the thread. No one knows who you are and so you can only qualify your advice with an explanation of why you give it. I would accept that if you had said 'I have 26 years experience in the Fire Service many years operational and many years in a dedicated fire safety field in charge of a department...and since retiring carrying out many fire risk assessments and I fully agree with all the above posts' then this might have been a worthwhile addition. I would respectfully put it to you that your post - What they said is not much of an addition to the thread. I hope you can see this? That I misread your post because it was immediately after my own is surely understandable in the circumstances.
I accept that many of my posts are long-winded. This is for many reasons but mainly because I find some of the shorter posts are open for misinterpretation or leave many obvious questions unanswered. I also believe that some people reading this 'open forum' have little technical background or fire service experience and need a fuller understanding of the many facets of the subjects discussed. I believe that this can rarely be achieved in just a few words. I generally restrict my own posts only to the technical and those general areas of other subjects because I have no knowledge or experience of those other areas. For example, I wouldn't know how to put out a fire if it reared up and burnt me! However I consider my knowledge and experience in some areas to be of worthwhile assistance to some readers of this forum. Like many others I give this input free-of-charge on this forum, whilst being able to charge handsomely for it in my 'day' job. I trust those members who already know what I am explaining, to understand that I realise this and not to take it as me trying to teach them to 'suck eggs'
Whilst sincerely apologising for my sarcasm due to misunderstanding your original post, I am disappointed with the tone of your last post to me. I was tempted to respond in a similar vein to correct a few of your wrong assumptions, but too many of these forums have been destroyed by childish personal battles between members.
I decline your invitation to join uk-fire for obvious reasons.
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This thread is completely confusing - what sparked off all this? Wiz who are you to say what is or is not of benefit on these forums? Why is a short reply so bad ? I think some of us need to grow up a little and stop being so pinikitty - this is what happened on the green boxes thread so time ago. Wiz you accuse others of not being descriptive enough in their explanations and that unclear posts cause confusion to people who may not know much about fire safety.
Surely if someone doesnt understand something they will say so and ask for a better description in laymans terms. Or they will say from the word go that they need advice. If I agree with something on here i will normally post something like "I agree" does that add anything to the forum? yes, it shows a concencus is forming amongst people. On another forum im on i posted a problem i had with my car. One guy replied and told me what he thought the fault was. Other people wrote that they agreed underneath which gave me the confidence to go with what that man had said. And sure enough he was right.
Time to get off your high horse Wiz we are all different. Just cos you think something isn't right or isn't explained very well doesn't mean others feel the same. Perhaps you need to read posts properly before replying and I can fully understand why lingmoor was a little put out and said what he said.
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"what they said" is a perfectly legitimate psot to make. At the end of the day when any of us post nobody really knows if we are qualified or not. Its a public forum and all opinions, short or long are welcome. I think wiz has taken the **** a bit first time round, I think lingmoor has reacted in a rather inappropriate manner. So that's 1 each. Move on now please gents. I'm sure you are both able to do so without any more sarcasm or insults.
And oops, it is Saturday. Working from home all week...what can I say....
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Ok folks
The truth is my 'what they said' post was a little light hearted reply...just my sense of humour
I didn't realise it would bring such responses...especially my own
apologies to all
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Accepted but erm what did it mean? in response to what ?
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What they said
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Glad thats cleared up then :D
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"what they said" is a perfectly legitimate post to make. ....
Chris, I am disappointed that you think it is legitimate in this context. I will try to prove why I think this is so over the next few days. Please bear with me.
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"what they said" is a perfectly legitimate post to make. ....
Chris, I am disappointed that you think it is in this context. I will try to prove why I think this is so over the next few days. Please bear with me.
Can we not just move on and let it go?
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Ladies and Gents,
The conversation has moved away from the topic of the post. So, yes Midland Retty, we will be moving on as the topic is now closed :)
Thanks to everyone for their input.
Chris.