What Is Passive Fire Protection?
If you are worried about the outbreak of fire in your home, you can stem or at least slow it down when you implement some basic fire protection systems. Continue to read this post to find out what they are and how they work.
When it comes to protection against fires, you can try a passive protection system. They come under 2 categories. These systems are designed to contain both fire and smoke to a limited area, that in essence, will slow down the burn rate. Good examples of these include materials and chemicals which are fire retardant and fire-resistant.
Unlike active fire protection, the passive protection measures are not meant to extinguish fires; instead, they will slow down a fire and restrict the damage to a smaller area. Limiting or slowing down the spread of the smoke and flames is critical, as it gives the buildings occupants more time to evacuate safely. It can limit both physical and structural damage to a building. In contrast, the purpose of active protection systems is to detect and extinguish fires.
Fire retardant materials will either inhibit or resist the spread of fire. For example, drywall contains gypsum and is considered a passive protection material. Gypsum is a plaster, also referred to as calcium sulfate hemihydrate. Plaster has a high water content and releases water vapor when it is exposed to extreme heat, which slows down the burn rate.
Fire-resistant materials are those which do not burn and are capable of withstanding high temperatures. Walls and floors that are made from concrete blocks are considered passive fire protection, due to the fact concrete does not burn. Steel, however, will lose its integrity when exposed to extreme temperatures and collapse, while concrete maintains its structural integrity under high temperatures.
To conclude this post of Allegiant Fire Protection Systems post, if you live in Albuquerque, NM and would like to know more about our services, please do not hesitate to call us at (505) 259-1803 today.