Citation to Excitation

1906-Present 110 years of caring

Keller Nursing Center

Aerial View of the “Big House”

111 Bed Skilled

Nursing 1995

May 2, 2016Inspection of Skilled Nursing

“This three story facility was determined to be of Type II construction and except for the enclosed attic space was fully sprinkled. The enclosed attic is constructed with metal studs with fire rated plywood decking containing no combustible materials and was not sprinkled being considered a concealed space.”

“The identified issue is noted that the facility attic does not have proper sprinkler coverage. Facility is seeking a 12 month temporary waiver for this citation.”

Inspection of Skilled Nursing

“Identified area will have proper sprinkling per regulation within the 12 month time frame.”

“It was determined that the facility did not maintain the fire resistant rating of the building in accordance with LSC sections 19.1.6”

Attic Space

Metal studs

Loose insulation over concrete deck

Attic Space

Fire rated plywood roof sheeting

Temporary Waiver until April 30, 2017

Project Duration:12 weeksWinter 2016/17Approved

Academics

How does Nitrogen work?

Earth's atmosphere—the air we breathe—is composed of 78% nitrogen and 21% oxygen.

While oxygen is great for people, it is unfortunately very reactive with metals. When oxygen reacts with metals, such as steel pipe, the process is called oxidation. This oxidation of metal is what leads to the orange/red

corrosion (rust) you see in fire sprinkler pipes.

Nitrogen, the inert gas

Nitrogen is a stable element. It is an inert gas, which means it does not react with metals. Thus, no oxidation or rust occurs! The trick to this is removing that 21% oxygen from the fire sprinkler piping and replacing it with pure nitrogen.

No oxygen, no problems

Knowing that oxygen is the problem, it is necessary to

remove it from the sprinkler system. Luckily, even though air

contains the issue (oxygen), it also contains the answer

(nitrogen). Nitrogen is the perfect substitute for oxygen.

It’s inert, globally available and in an inexhaustible supply.

Nitrogen Generators take the air around us and separate out the

oxygen. Up to 99% pure nitrogen is then pumped into

the sprinkler system to disperse the oxygenated air.

No water, no problemsWhile oxygen is a chief contributor

to corrosion, so is the water. The nitrogen generator offers the added benefit of injecting dry nitrogen into the system. The nitrogen delivered to the system has an amazingly low

dew point of -58 degree F! Talk about drying power. Since corrosion requires all three ingredients (water, oxygen and metal), removing both

the water and the oxygen has a two-fold effect!

20 yr. old schedule 10 pipe

Major pressurization

leak from corrosion

In an attic “dry” system

Attic Sprinkler

Attic Sprinkler System- “dry system"

Nitrogen Generator

There are 2 types of systems:1. Membrane

technology2. Pressure

Swing Absorption

Both mechanical separation. Membrane less expensive to maintain: $500-700/year

Nitrogen Generators

3 main components:-Air compressor tank-Nitrogen membrane

-Nitrogen storage tank

Steps in the nitrogen generation process:

1. Air is compressed from the atmosphere, and pressurized through a high pressure air compressor

2. Compressed air is then fed from the air storage tank to the nitrogen cabinet

3. In the nitrogen cabinet, air passes through the nitrogen membrane

Nitrogen Membrane

Using an advanced

hollow fiber

membrane separation process-

allows the nitrogen

to separate from the oxygen and any

other residual

gas

Research

Factory Mutual Insurance Co. 80 page study, one of the main recommendations was : Fill dry pipe or preaction system with nitrogen as a supervisory gas (use on-site nitrogen generator) to mitigate pipe corrosion.

Longevity

If properly maintained, nitrogen systems last 3-5 times longer than oxygen systems with same schedule/ thickness of pipe.Use of lighter steel pipe/ schedule 10 vs. schedule 40, often offsets the cost of the N2 Generator.