FirePumpDesign&Testing

TS30011
Friday9:00am12:00pm
GregTrombold

By: Greg Trombold

Code books used during presentation

Terms and definitions
Water supply
Selecting a the correct fire pump for the job
Pressure calculation
Flow calculation
E mpl
Examples
Pump selection
Code issues
Avoiding trouble
Contractors point of view on pump selection
Questions

NFPA 20 Installation of Stationary Pumps for

Fire Protection
NFPA 13 Installation of Sprinkler
p
Systems
y
NFPA 14 Installation of Standpipe and hose
systems
y
NFPA 22 Water tanks for Private Fire
Protection

NPSH net p
positive suction head ((32 feet at sea
level)
Rotation direction that a pump shaft spins
TDH total dynamic head this is a combination
of vertical head, friction loss, and other losses due
to heat or elevation
Brake horse power actual horse power required
at a specific point on a pump curve
Locked rotor current maximum amp draw for a
motor
t if th
the shaft
h ft iis h
held
ld in
i a locked
l k d position
iti
Service entrance rated a device that is rated to
handle direct feed from the utility

Minimum water level the minimum water

level that a vertical turbine fire pump will
operate to its design parameters
Static pressure pressure reading at no flow
Residual p
pressure p
pressure at a specific
p
flow
Churn pressure pressure that a pump
produces at no flow
AHJ Authority having jurisdiction

High Rise Building A building greater than

75 feet in height. Where the building is
measured from the lowest level of fire
department vehicle access to the floor of the
highest occupiable story.

The most important thing you need to consider

when sizing a fire pump is water supply
The first q
question one needs to ask is does the
municipal supply provide enough volume to
meet the system demand

For example if a city water test is 75 static, 50

residual at 1350 flowing
Does this provide enough water for a 750 GPM
pump
Answer: Yes the maximum y
you test a 750 GPM fire

pump to is 1125 GPM or 150% of rated flow

Does this same water supply provide enough water

for a 1500 GPM fire pump
Answer
A
: maybe
b if you plot
l t a fl
flow curve outt you

could have the flow required for the 100% flow point
(1500 GPM) *see curve
However this can be misleading there is a couple of
rules that I follow when talking about a municipal
water supply.
1.
2.
3.

Make sure the test is recent within a year

Make sure the residual flow is at least the 100% flow
rating
g of the p
pump
p
Avoid winter tests versus summer tests flow tests done
in the winter are always better than flow tests done in
the summer

If the water supply

pp y does not supply
pp y enough
g
volume what are your options

Gravity feed tank a ground level storage tank

usually steel providing enough water for the
sprinkler demand
30 of system demand for light hazard
60 min for ordinary hazard
90 min for extra hazard

Below ground tank usually limited to 50 k of

supply
Lake or reservoir leads to some system
requirements that may be an issue - goosenecks

Job: warehouse Allentown PA

City water test 82 static, 45 residual with 1941

flowing
Test date February 2011
Main size 8
S
System
d
demand
d 2108 GPM at 110 psii
Pump size 2500 GPM at 80 psi

If you plot the water curve out it appears that

you have enough water at 2500 GPM or 100%
of the fire pump

However there are several red flags that

should have been looked at when engineering
this job

1.
2.
3.

The water test was done in the winter

The main size is 8 when the main is tapped the
coupon th
thatt is
i tapped
t
d in
i th
the pipe
i is
i roughly
hl 7.3
7 3
The city water test was only run to 1941 GPM not
full flow of the fire pump
p p

Actual flow when pump was tested in August

2011

Types of pumps

Horizontal split case pumps

Inline fire pumps
p p
End suction pumps
Vertical turbine fire pumps

Horizontal split case pumps this is also called

a double suction fire pump because the water
pathways direct water to both sides of the
impeller. It is also the most common fire pump
on the market partly because of the ratings
available
il bl in
i this
thi style
t l off pump 250 GPM
through 5000 GPM
This was also the first type of pump used for
fire protection systems

Inline fire pumps these pumps have

expanded in use in the last five years for
several reasons

Space savings
Increase in ratings allowable by NFPA 20 from max
off 499 GPM,
GPM then
th to
t 750 GPM,
GPM to
t today
t d which
hi h is
i
unlimited rating. The largest currently available is
1500 GPM
Cost of installation these are typically less
expensive to install because there is no base plate
that requires grouting

End suction fire pumps not widely used

mostly because they are limited in size per
code
They are also slightly more expensive than in
line pumps
The one pump application where it is used is
small diesel driven applications 500 GPM or
less

Vertical turbine pumps these are used for

water supplies that are below the suction
flange of a fire pump
NFPA 20 states that you have to have a positive suction

pressure to a fire pump #

g we should talk about when

The first thing
discussing pressure is height of the building
If a building is more than 75 feet tall the building
will have stand pipes. The pressure required at the
top most outlet is required to be 100 psi at a given
flow rate depending on the number of standpipes
Does this mean that the AHJ will not require 100
PSI on building
g less than 75 feet tall that have
standpipes

The answer is maybe different AHJs have different

requirements
i
t

The code (NFPA 14 chapter 5) states that if a

building is not classified as a high rise the
standpipes installed can be classified as manual
dry, or manual wet.
These types of standpipes do not require 100
psi at the top most outlet.
If that is the case then you simply need end
h d pressure at the
head
h top off the
h structure ffor
standard heads this number is usually around
20 PSI

The other bit of info we need before we start is

the city flow test. Unless we are using a ground
level storage tank or reservoir.
Once we have gathered that info most of the
industry would have a form like the one on the
following page to compile the data and come
up with your pressure

1.

2.

Lets do a couple of examples

In both examples we will assume that the city
water test is right
g at the 100% rating
g of p
pump
p
Height of building is 212 feet. City water test is
45 p
psi static, residual is 35 p
psi with 1250 GPM
flowing
Height of the building is 70 feet. City water
test is 95 psi static with 30 residual with 750
flowing

A couple of things to note here about these

examples in example one the pressure is above
175 psi.
Since you are no longer allowed to use main
relief valves to control system pressure you
have to install pressure reducing valves on
sprinkler lines and pressure restricting valves
on fire department connections until you get
high enough in building where the pressure
will be below 175 psi

The other thing which some engineers forget is

that the pump will discharge much higher
pressure at churn than at the design point
Per NFPA 20 fire pumps are allowed to have a
40% rise in pressure from rated flow to churn
This is almost never the case but different
pumps and speeds affect the churn pressure so
you should
h ld always
l
llook
k at a curve to d
determine
i
the shut off pressure. (see attached)

In the previous curve rated head is 300 feet or

130 psi
The shut off head is 390 feet or 168 psi
p
This calculates to 29% rise from rated point to
shut off head
This pump is a newer design and is 3500 rpm
both contribute to the higher percentage

Lets look at example one to determine churn

The static pressure is 45 psi plus the churn pressure

of 211 psi for a total of 255 psi.
If the floors are 12 feet apart we would need
pressure reducing valves and pressure restricting
valves on the first 16 floors.
floors
255 psi 175 psi = 80 psi / 12 = 15.4

Now I have handed out a copy of the pressure

calculation sheet and I want you all to try the
following example:

Building height 160 feet

City water test done 1-5-09, 60 static, 38 residual
with
ith 1000 GPM flowing
fl i
Lets assume the pump is 10 feet below grade in a
basement
Assume backflow, water meter, and friction in
suction piping are constant

There are two main factors in GPM calculations

Area calculation
Standpipe
p p calculation

We will start with the standpipe calculation

NFPA 14 states that the GPM required
q
for the
first standpipe is 500 GPM
Each additional standpipe
p p requires
q
250 GPM
with a maximum GPM of 1000 GPM

They have done away with the requirement of

combining GPM with sprinkler system
requirements
Since most area calculations for building with
standpipes come up to be less than 500 GPM
the Fire pump GPM is generally equal to the
stand calc

If a building has 2 standpipes the pump GPM

would be 750 GPM

If a building has 3 standpipes the pump GPM

would be 1000 GPM

500 GPM for the first and 250 for the second

500 GPM , 250 for the second, and 250 for the third

Any building with more standpipes would be

1000 GPM as that is the maximum allowable by
code

For calculating GPM for areas there are a

number of factors that come into play.

The first is the type

y of hazard y
you are protecting
g
there are 5
Light hazard
Ordinary hazard group1
Ordinary hazard group 2
Extra hazard g
group
p1
Extra hazard group 2

The density associated with the hazard

Square
q
footage
g of area associated with hazard
Hose allowance

We are not g
going
g to discuss how to choose a
hazard as that is a different topic
We are also not going to talk about storage
design approaches. These are for warehouse
type facilities and generally require soft ware
t determine
to
d t
i pump GPM
GPM. Th
These types
t
off
systems are better to be left to sprinkler
contractors to design build.
build

Once you have your hazard classification we

use the chart on the following page from NFPA
13.
The density is multiplied by 1500 for light and
ordinary and 2500 for extra hazard
The 1500 and 2500 are the most remote square
footage
You then add in the hose allowance from the
chart on the next page to get your pump GPM

Building
g with multiple
p types
yp of hazards y
you
calculate each area and take the worst of the
two to determine your pump GPM
Th
There
are a b
bunch
h off exceptions
i
in
i NFPA 13
which we will only talk about so that you
know they are there. We will not use them in
the examples
Make sure the insurance company is consulted
because they can change the density and
square footage requirement depending on the
job.
job

Building is 15,000 square feet, light hazard

Density for light hazard .1

Hose stream for light
g hazard 100 GPM
Calculation 1500 x .1 = 150 + 100 = 250
Pump GPM 250 GPM

Building is 24,000 square feet, ordinary group 1

Density for light hazard .15

15
Hose stream for light hazard is 250 GPM
Ca
Calculation
cu at o 1500
500 x ..15
5 = 225
5 + 250
50 = 475
5G
GPM
M

For the first two examples you can see why if

either building had standpipes why the
standpipe calculation would be the primary
calculation.

If standpipes are present there is always at least two

which
hi h makes
k the
th pump GPM 750 which
hi h iis far
f greater
t
than the area calculation.

Example 3, building is 23,000 square feet,

22,200 square feet is light hazard and 800
square feet is extra hazard (group 1)

We will calculate the two areas separately

1500 x .1 = 150
800 x .3
3 = 240
As you can see the extra hazard is a greater GPM even

though
g the area is much smaller

Pump GPM would be 240 + 500 (hose) = 740 GPM

Class example please calculate the following

building on a blank piece of paper

Building
g is 35,000 square feet
All but 500 square feet is light hazard
Balance is ordinary group 2

First pick the type of pump for application

Then select the type of driver

Electric motor
Diesel engine

Why
y would y
you select one over the other

If you do not have or an electrical feed would be

costly to install to the location
If the AHJ has deemed that the power in an are is
unreliable

If you choose electric pick the type of start

Across the line

Part winding
g
Primary reactor
Wye delta open transition
Wye delta closed transition
Auto transformer
Pi
Primary
resistance
i t
Soft start
Variable speed

Many people dont

don t know but the primary
purpose of a reduced voltage start is to save on
the size of your generator
If a soft start is used the inrush current goes
from 600% to roughly 400% this reduction in
current can be taken off the generator size

Take the GPM required for job and determine

appropriate
i
pump

NFPA 20 states that you can use up to 150% of the rated GPM
for the system demand but they dont recommend using more
than 140%
This makes selecting the pump much more difficult

For example if you are using a 1250 GPM pump for

1450
50 G
GPM
M syste
system de
demand
a d you have
a e to go to the
t e curve
cu e
and pick the GPM and pressure required for the
system and then slide back on the curve to the UL
rated point of 1250 GPM to determine rated pressure.
See attached
We will assume system pressure required is 121 PSI or
280 feet

Go to the catalog or website of choice to the

selection tables (see attached)
Then things
g like RPM and horse p
power come
into play when selecting the pump

If you have concerns call the factory rep to help

you select the best pump for the job
A lot of times they
y will know which p
pumps
p
have lower churn pressures and which are
more cost effective

There are a lot of code requirements on fire

pumps that should factor into selection and
system design

Horizontal elbows or tees upstream of a fire pump

have to be ten pipe diameters from the suction
flange on a split case fire pump
Pump rooms require a floor drain
Pump
p rooms have to be two hour fire rated if no
sprinklers are present and a one hour fire rating if
sprinklered

Pumps have to maintain a positive suction

pressure at the suction flange
Electrical feeds to fire p
pump
p controllers have to
have a two hour fire rating
Fire p
pumps
p cant be used as p
pressure
maintenance pumps
Variable speed pumps are now allowed by the
code

Make the fire pump room large! This is always

a problem things like horizontal elbows and 4
of clearance in front of a 480 volt main
controller are things that need to be looked at.
Make sure the electrical engineer knows what
he is doing and follows NEC article 695. the
majority of field issues stem from electrical
miscues on the prints
Do your homework with the AHJ and the
insurance representative before you begin

Special
p
requirements
q
some jjurisdictions require
q
different things

New York City requires a manual round rotor fire

pump with every automatic fire pump
Ohio EPA requires suction control valves on every
fire pump to prevent going below 20 psi in the main

Insurance companies like FM require things

above and beyond the code

Diesell fuel
Di
f l tanks
t k are to
t b
be d
double
bl wall
ll and
d have
h
a
spill basin
Every pump room has a low pump room temp alarm

Contractors love to put the maximum amount

of pressure in a system that they can.

Reason smaller pipe and lower installation costs

For what ever reason they dont like packaged

systems they think they can do it cheaper and
dont like to over pay for things
Contractors will try to use inline pumps up to
their
h maximum fl
flow ratings b
because they
h d
dont

have to poor a pad