How to Choose the Right Fire Alarm System for Your Office

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A high-quality fire alarm, when properly installed by an industrial or commercial electrician, is an essential part of all fire alarm systems. If you want your business in Medicine Hat to be protected, it’s in your best interest to get the right fire alarm system for your office.

How Do Fire Alarms Work?

Most modern commercial fire alarms detect smoke in two ways. First, an alarm may function through ionization. This means that the air inside the alarm is ionized to allow the air itself to conduct an electric current. If particles of smoke enter the alarm, they’ll interrupt the electric current and set off the siren or other warning measure.

Second, photoelectric alarms work on a very similar principle. Rather than electric current inside these alarms, however, there’s a small strobe light that is registered by a photoelectric cell. If smoke particles enter this device, they’ll refract the light, changing how it hits the photoelectric cell and setting off the alarm.

While ionization and photoelectric alarms are the most common kinds of smoke detectors on the market, there are also more advanced devices that are even more sensitive and actually take samples of the air to test them for the presence of smoke. Similarly, there are other kinds of detectors that can sense abnormal levels of heat, rather than smoke.

Which Type of Alarm is Best for the Workplace?
It depends on where you work. For most workplaces, fire alarm systems that have ionization or photoelectric alarms work well. Many models of fire alarm, in fact, use both these common methods, as each tends to be a little more sensitive to different kinds of fire.

Some businesses have special needs that should also be taken into account. If you’re in charge of a warehouse that regularly has flammable materials in it or in charge of a facility that contains sensitive electronic equipment, you may want to opt for an even more sensitive smoke detector.

Are There Other Ways I Can Protect My Property from Fire?
The detector itself, of course, is only one half of a fire alarm system. The second half is the response. Although a siren or other alarm sound is traditional to warn anyone in the building of the presence of a fire, there are many more options available through modern security systems. The system itself can contact the authorities in the case of an alarm being set off. If your system is monitoring your business, you can be given updates by the system directly to your phone with some models.

If you’re interested in hiring an industrial or commercial electrician to install any fire alarm systems in your home or office,  contact us at  Quick Way Electrical in Medicine Hat today. Our experts can help you have peace of mind when it comes to fire safety.

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