Kitchen fires can be devastating for any commercial foodservice business, but they can be avoided or minimized with the right kitchen suppression system. Working with a professional to design and install your fire suppression system can benefit your business and may be required in the area where you operate your kitchen.
Suppression System Requirements
Operating any size commercial kitchen may require you to have a kitchen suppression system that rapidly intervenes if a fire breaks out. Some smaller kitchens run by small vendors may not require a complete system, but it is vital to check because you may live in an area that requires fire suppression systems, even in a small home-based commercial kitchen.
Operating any for-profit kitchen will come with regulations that you must meet. Still, these rules can vary wildly from one location to another, so you need to talk with the code enforcement officer or building inspector that has oversight where you are located to ensure the information you get is accurate for your fire suppression requirements.
Professional Installtion
When considering options for a commercial kitchen suppression system, you may not know what you need. Many fire suppression system installers offer help with the design and layout of the system they will install for you, and they work with these systems daily, so they often know better than anyone what works and how to best layout the system.
You will also need to decide if you need a wet system or a dry one, and while they both have benefits, they also have some downsides that you need to discuss with the installer. A wet system is typically easier to clean up after activation, but some cooking equipment is better protected with the dry system. Since you can not use wet and dry chemicals in one system, often it comes down to deciding which kitchen suppression system is best for your situation or installing two smaller and independent systems in your kitchen.
Separating the systems in a large commercial kitchen is common, but in a small kitchen, it might be cost-prohibitive, so finding the best system that will offer the things your kitchen will benefit from is often the best solution. If you use a lot of oil and grease in your cooking, you may benefit more from a dry system, but discuss the options with your installer, and you can determine the best solution together.
For bigger kitchens, you may need to have a fire suppression system designed and certified before it is installed. Often the design will come from an engineer or architect that understands the building construction and the best way to protect it in the event of a kitchen fire. Any kitchen suppression system aims to contain the fire and reduce the damage it causes until responders arrive and extinguish the blaze.
For more information, contact a fire suppression system supplier.
