Winter Maintenance Tips

The bitter cold, ice and snow are coming, if not already here. Now is the time to double check to make sure your plant is ready. This is the harshest season on your fire system and you will need increased vigilance to insure you minimize your exposure to loss and damage.

First of all, just because you live in the sunny southern part of the country, don't think you are immune to the ravages of winter. Better to plan on the worst and be surprised and happy if it does not occur. More winter related problems and losses happen in areas such as Georgia and Mississippi than in Maine. Why? Because they know they will be hit with bad weather and have learned the price of not being prepared is worse than the effort it takes to make the winter loss free. Of course, the unexpected can happen anywhere, and that is where insurance coverage can come to your rescue, no matter where you live. Now for the specifics!

If you did not have a chance to review our FALL TIPS section, please go back and review that area. Those were things to do to get ready for winter, but they are still good things to keep in mind as the winter progresses!

Bitterly cold temperatures can wreak havoc on your facility in many ways. Plan a review of all your heating systems and make sure they remain in good repair. For fuel fired boilers and gas or oil fired unit heaters, a quick visual inspection for obvious problems can be invaluable. A check of fuel burner combustion safeguards to see that they continue to function properly can pay dividends. If you do have problems, make sure you have lined up a local contractor with the appropriate repair parts for your systems. Also, it is a good idea to plan for temporary heating arrangements before they become necessary.

For those of you who have plants or office buildings where you can set the intrusion alarm system and leave the facility unattended for the weekend or holiday, make sure that you have low building temperature supervision. If not, arrange for someone to drop by and physically make a walk through every day. During bitterly cold weather, gas pressures have been known to drop low enough that heating systems shut down on low gas pressure! Without low temperature alarms or a physical check of the building, significant damage can and has occurred in the past. Sprinkler systems have frozen and burst, along with potable water systems including restrooms and piping systems. Damage and downtime can be very significant. Computers and files can be ruined, carpet, drywall, wall coverings and suspended ceilings destroyed. Not a pretty sight, but one which can be prevented with a few precautions!

Take special care to monitor your wet pipe sprinkler systems to insure adequate heat is provided. Look out for broken windows or dock doors left open for extended periods of time which can freeze a small sprinkler line. For those of you with dry pipe systems, this is the time of year for extra care. Make sure that condensate is drained out regularly from low point drains. This is more critical when the temperatures are fluctuating significantly from daytime highs above freezing to nighttime lows well below. That is the perfect time for condensate to form. Draining the low points daily is not unusual if you want to keep the system in good shape. If a dry system has tripped, make sure the low points are drained each shift until the water held in the system by capillary action is slowly released and purged. Many plants have heat traced or insulated low point drains to further reduce problems.

If you do have a problem with a sprinkler system and have to take it out of service, this is the time you are most vulnerable to loss from fire. Make every effort to have repairs initiated immediately Now is not the time to count pennies. Pay the overtime if necessary to insure repairs continue without interruption until complete. The overtime charges may be a small price to pay compared to the loss of your plant. This is also a time when having a good working relationship with a qualified sprinkler contractor is most important. If you are having problems, rest assured others are as well. If arrangements or prior relationship with a contractor have not been established, your facility will most likely be at the "bottom of the list". Remember, not only are your sprinklers out of service, but your waterflow alarm for that area is now also out. Make sure you have a continuous fire watch in the area, and where possible, lay out a hose so it can be quickly accessed if needed. Don't forget to notify your fire department. They expect a sprinklered plant. Their plan of attack varies significantly when the sprinklers are impaired! Make sure you call Matrix (937-886-0000 or 888-4-IMPAIR in the US only) to report the impairment as soon as possible. We will review any needed precautions to insure the risk to your facility is minimized.

Check fire pumps and run them weekly. During periods of bitter cold, a daily check to insure pump house temperatures are adequate is suggested. Matrix recommends at least 70°F for diesel pump rooms, and a minimum of 40°F for electric pump rooms. Take special note of the location of the small ½ inch sensor lines which connect to the pressure switch in your pump controller. If they run along side an exterior wall or near a window or door, make sure the line does not freeze. If it does, your plant could burn to the ground and the pump controller never sense a low pressure condition. If you have a concern, insulate the line. Make sure your weekly test starts are done by reducing pressure in this sensor line. Make sure the diesel fuel tank is full, and request that "winter blend" fuels not be used. They provide significantly less power than straight diesel fuel and rob your system of it's peak performance! Reserve the "winter blend " for autos and outside equipment only. If you have a diesel fire pump, insure the engine block heater is on and functioning properly. Also, make sure the engine has plenty of combustion air through automatic louvers or other ventilation systems.

As the snow begins to deepen, make sure your fire hydrants and sprinkler control valves, as well as the fire department pumper connection are accessible. This is critical in an emergency. A few extra minutes trying to find and dig out a sprinkler shutoff valve can mean hundreds of thousands of dollars in unnecessary water damage following a small fire or sprinkler line break.

Speaking of snow, the weight of drifted snow continues to cause roof collapses across the country. This is especially critical where you have multi-level roofs. Snow can be blown across the higher roof onto the lower roof just below the juncture of the two areas. If not properly designed for this loading, tremendous stresses are added to the lower level roof. The best advise is to monitor the snow accumulations and have them manually removed when they exceed reasonable limits. Unfortunately, too many older building codes ignored this loading. Most codes have now changed to include this load, but if you have older buildings, you may still be susceptible. If you are not sure, discuss this with your Matrix engineer when they are at the plant, or give us a call. As with some of the other winter problems, many of the losses actually occur in areas where snow is less frequent. The heavy, wet spring snows are a common culprit, especially in the southeastern US.

If you are located near a river or even a creek, you may be susceptible to flooding. If your facility has been identified as a possible target of flooding, now is a good time to take out and review your flood emergency plan. If you don't have one, now is a good time to develop one. Items such as sand bags and the raw materials to make them, a plan to monitor water levels as they rise, along with appropriate action steps are a must to minimize damage. Can critical motors be quickly disconnected and raised above expected water levels? Are tanks and other materials properly secured, or will they float away? Do you have agreements with motor repair shops nearby, but out of the flood zone? If you need help, again, a phone call to Matrix can help you get your plan set up before a need arises. Most floods occur after a winter of heavy snow, followed by warm spring rains. That combination can quickly turn that lazy river down the block into a dangerous swirling torrent of damaging flood waters. With the constant changing of the local topography due to paving and expansion, etc., surprising floods are becoming more and more frequent. Although flooding is mainly a spring and summer problem, now is the time to prepare!

We are sure there are other items you can add to the above. If so, make a list and keep it handy for next year. Also, please share your thoughts and suggestions with us. Give us a call at 937-886-0000.

Thanks and enjoy the winter safely!