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Builders to Appeal NFPA Fire Sprinkler Requirement
Maintaining that current residential sprinkler systems are not a cost-effective improvement to occupant safety or property protection, NAHB will be appealing a decision by the National Fire Protection Association (NFPA) this month to require fire sprinklers in all one- and two-family dwellings.
Approved in Las Vegas at the association’s annual conference, the requirement may be included in the 2006 editions of the NFPA’s 101 Life Safety Code and its 5000 Building Code. NAHB will be making its appeal to the NFPA Standards Council on procedural grounds.
NAHB policy supports an affirmative program of fire safety for residential construction that includes life safety improvements and cost-effectiveness as its principal components. Its policy opposes mandatory construction and other fire protection techniques that do not enhance the safety of occupants and are not cost-effective.
NFPA’s own data show that the current requirements for smoke alarms and systems in homes are working to reduce losses, and that the installation of fire sprinklers in one- and two-family dwellings may not be cost-effective.
Although it is likely that provisions for residential fire sprinklers will eventually be included in the Life Safety Code, jurisdictions adopting NFPA 101 generally do not apply the provisions to one- and two-family construction.
For the most part, jurisdictions nationwide have shown little interest in adopting the NFPA building code.
For more information, e-mail Larry Brown at NAHB, or call him at 800-368-5242 x8565.
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