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Not sure what kind of fire there was there, but once those automatic sprinkler systems get going, they are very difficult to stop. Someone in my freshman colle

Not sure what kind of fire there was there, but once those automatic sprinkler systems get going, they are very difficult to stop. Someone in my freshman college dorm decided to use one as a clothes hanger hook and broke the thermometer in there. The sprinkler damaged the entire floor with water and the floor below had spotty rain as well. The fire department came and was mainly concerned about evacuating everyone rather than shutting the water off. The water is typically chemically treated and has been sitting there for years as well -- very nasty stuff.

mvanbaak 4y ago
datacenters dont use sprinkler systems (or at least they should not).
- glogla 4y ago
  Yeah, I always thought datacenters would use Halon. It of course has the problem of suffocating everyone.
  - packetslave 4y ago
    Halon has been banned for years because 1) it's bad for the ozone layer and 2) it'll kill you. Newer systems (FM-200, Inergen, etc.) fight the fire by removing heat instead of removing oxygen.
    - alwayslikethis 4y ago
      Halon is still used. Unfortunately the same properties that makes it effective also makes it harm the ozone layer. It does not just remove heat or oxygen, it directly interferes with the reaction involved in combustion, making things stop burning.
    - dx034 4y ago
      Wasn't there also this technique of lowering oxygen levels so much that humans can still survive but fire won't spread as fast? Or did this turn out to be too expensive?
- packetslave 4y ago
  A non-water fire suppression system for a 300,000+ square feet warehouse-scale datacenter would be incredibly expensive.
  - Aeolun 4y ago
    Would it be as expensive as replacing 300,000+ square feet of servers?
    - packetslave 4y ago
      People who aren't me get paid to do that kind of math when designing datacenters. Presumably there's a break-even point.
- jamesfinlayson 4y ago
  I have no idea what's used these days but I remember someone telling me the dry powder that is sometimes used is very bad for computer hardware - not immediately, but within a couple of years the metal will show obvious signs of reaction with whatever is in it.
sbierwagen 4y ago
Always worth tracking down the sprinkler shut off valve in your residence/place of work. If you’re in a high rise it‘ll be the big red wheel on the sprinkler main in the fire stairs. If it’s a spurious activation you can just shut it off yourself, you don’t need to ask anybody’s permission. The fire department is always going to prioritize safety of life, and after all it’s not their stuff getting soaked.
- Kon-Peki 4y ago
  > The fire department is always going to prioritize safety of life, and after all it’s not their stuff getting soaked. They won't hesitate to smash your stuff or break down your walls either. Being in a fire is no joke. You've got to be crazy to think that your stuff is important. It's not.
  - dsfyu404ed 4y ago
    Anyone talking up firefighters like this clearly hasn't been around them much. They're boys with toys that they don't frequently get to use and they work for the government. Follow the incentives. They'll do their jobs but they don't give a lot of fucks about things like "unnecessary property damage" and "other people's financial well being" and anything else not written in their KPIs. I used to drive tow truck. I can't count the number of cars they totaled peeling the roof off (granted some were totaled anyway) because that was easy and cutting a door off was hard. And don't get me started on them and their stupid stands they use to prop shit up in the most questionable of ways...
    - local_crmdgeon 4y ago
      Firefighters are personally incentivized to take photos like this: https://nypost.com/2022/01/10/fireman-in-post-photo-recalls-moment-he-saved-baby-from-blaze/ https://nypost.com/2022/01/10/fireman-in-post-photo-recalls-.... They are not incentivized to protect your stuff, that's what insurance does. Good. I want you to save me and my family from dying in a fucking fire. This thread is obsessed with saving Funko Pop collections for some reason??
deagle50 4y ago
This happened in my freshman dorm as well. The broken sprinkler was on the 3rd or 4th floor and my room which was on the 1st got at least an inch of water.

mvanbaak 4y ago

datacenters dont use sprinkler systems (or at least they should not).

glogla 4y ago
Yeah, I always thought datacenters would use Halon. It of course has the problem of suffocating everyone.
- packetslave 4y ago
  Halon has been banned for years because 1) it's bad for the ozone layer and 2) it'll kill you. Newer systems (FM-200, Inergen, etc.) fight the fire by removing heat instead of removing oxygen.
  - alwayslikethis 4y ago
    Halon is still used. Unfortunately the same properties that makes it effective also makes it harm the ozone layer. It does not just remove heat or oxygen, it directly interferes with the reaction involved in combustion, making things stop burning.
  - dx034 4y ago
    Wasn't there also this technique of lowering oxygen levels so much that humans can still survive but fire won't spread as fast? Or did this turn out to be too expensive?
packetslave 4y ago
A non-water fire suppression system for a 300,000+ square feet warehouse-scale datacenter would be incredibly expensive.
- Aeolun 4y ago
  Would it be as expensive as replacing 300,000+ square feet of servers?
  - packetslave 4y ago
    People who aren't me get paid to do that kind of math when designing datacenters. Presumably there's a break-even point.
jamesfinlayson 4y ago
I have no idea what's used these days but I remember someone telling me the dry powder that is sometimes used is very bad for computer hardware - not immediately, but within a couple of years the metal will show obvious signs of reaction with whatever is in it.

sbierwagen 4y ago

Always worth tracking down the sprinkler shut off valve in your residence/place of work. If you’re in a high rise it‘ll be the big red wheel on the sprinkler main in the fire stairs. If it’s a spurious activation you can just shut it off yourself, you don’t need to ask anybody’s permission. The fire department is always going to prioritize safety of life, and after all it’s not their stuff getting soaked.

Kon-Peki 4y ago
> The fire department is always going to prioritize safety of life, and after all it’s not their stuff getting soaked. They won't hesitate to smash your stuff or break down your walls either. Being in a fire is no joke. You've got to be crazy to think that your stuff is important. It's not.
- dsfyu404ed 4y ago
  Anyone talking up firefighters like this clearly hasn't been around them much. They're boys with toys that they don't frequently get to use and they work for the government. Follow the incentives. They'll do their jobs but they don't give a lot of fucks about things like "unnecessary property damage" and "other people's financial well being" and anything else not written in their KPIs. I used to drive tow truck. I can't count the number of cars they totaled peeling the roof off (granted some were totaled anyway) because that was easy and cutting a door off was hard. And don't get me started on them and their stupid stands they use to prop shit up in the most questionable of ways...
  - local_crmdgeon 4y ago
    Firefighters are personally incentivized to take photos like this: https://nypost.com/2022/01/10/fireman-in-post-photo-recalls-moment-he-saved-baby-from-blaze/ https://nypost.com/2022/01/10/fireman-in-post-photo-recalls-.... They are not incentivized to protect your stuff, that's what insurance does. Good. I want you to save me and my family from dying in a fucking fire. This thread is obsessed with saving Funko Pop collections for some reason??

deagle50 4y ago

This happened in my freshman dorm as well. The broken sprinkler was on the 3rd or 4th floor and my room which was on the 1st got at least an inch of water.