THE "GRINNELL" SPRINKLER

Dominion, Volume 12, Issue 72, 19 December 1918, Page 7

THE "GRINNELL" SPRINKLER

— ~* _ IN OPERATION AT THE MATCH FACTORY. Commercial Wellington was well represented at the match factors of Brynnt and May, 801 l and Co., at ".Yewtown, yesterday afternoon, when n highly-in-teresting demonstration of Ilio "Grinnell" on'rinkler .-is a fire extinguisher was given under the personal direction of llr. A. ]). ]?ilcy, New Zealand representative: for the GrinneH system, now en universally favoured throughout the world. Mr. liiley illustrated by means ot .-v plan the manner in which "n building, large or small, is fitted with the TinmieU". sprinkler. The system enriul.; a complete reticulation of pipes, which ;ire supplied with walor from a ' large reservoir or tank, the capacity of which may vary from ,5000 to ifl.OOo'gallnns, according lo Hit.- size of the buililing. These pipes traverse "ho ceilings unostentatiously, ' nud are punctuated every ten feet with sprinkler heads, an ingenious contrivance of admirable strength and workmanship. When a fire occur.? beneath one. of these heads, and the heat, rises to 150 degrees, an alloy of metals malts, and the immediate result is a sharp shoot of water, which striking tho lower part of the head, is deflected for a radius of ten feet, and descends in a perfect delugo on the (ire below. In the course, of his explanatory remarks Mr. .Hilo.v stated tho usual fire suppression provisions in a building were watchmen, water buckets, and perhaps n lew liosis here and there. The result jvns that when a fire occurred tho buckets were as often as not empty, and the hoses, which, perhaps, had not been run out' for years, were found to be dciective. ]n tin case of (lie lire at the Jlonse of Parliament in Wellington there were watchmen, buckets, and hoses, yet file building had been burnt. There had been no fewer than fifteen fires in flic match factory where they were, and on each occasion the outbreak- had been suppressed by the sprinklers without any other 111,1. In regard to all tho fire's which.had occurred in buildings provideii with "GrinneH" sprinklers in New Zealand, only on four occasions had two sprinklers been called into use. The demonstration was a complete success. A pile of paper cuttings and shavings well soaked in spirit, placed in 0 loured annexe at the rear of tho building, was sot alight. A hungry tongue of llame quickly leapt up to the coiling, Ilia heat driving the onlookers to more secure ground. Tho fiamo played round a sprinkler, and in 'five or six seconds the metal stopper fused, and down poured the water in u fierce sproy on to tho blazing heap. At the same time the flinrni bell rang outside tho buildinir and also (electrically) j u the Wellington boutn Jure Brigade Station, with the reetilt Hint \n ono minute .thirty-live seconds the brigade motor dashed'up to'the factory door. Only a heap of smouldering paper, pretty well drenched, met tho firemen's view. The match factory is also provided with o system .of exterior "GrinneH" drenchers. They supply a complete screen of water for each window-a provision against catching fire from an adjoining building. Another line of drenchers is located along the main rid"inj; of one of the factory buildings. This is tho modern- form of roof protection, so much needed in congested parts of a city.—(Published by arrangement.