NFPA Journal - Summer 2022 - 59

In Compliance
valve, preaction valve, or deluge valve
supplying the corresponding hydraulically
designed area unless the authority
having jurisdiction approves an alternate
location. This is a significant
change for the 2022 edition of NFPA
13, where each system riser and floor
control assembly had not been previously
specified. This change will result
in many more hydraulic information
signs than previously required. General
information signs are required at each
system control riser, antifreeze loop,
and auxiliary system control valve.
It is worth noting that combining the
hydraulic design information sign and
the general information sign is permitted.
Consolidating the signs reduces
the required space for signage at valves
or in valve rooms. These signs must
be permanently marked, be of weatherproof
metal or rigid plastic, and
secured with corrosion-resistant wire,
chain, or other approved means.
Existing systems are not exempt from
information signs. The owner's responsibilities
section of NFPA 25 requires
that information signs be located at
the system control riser supplying an
antifreeze loop, dry system, preaction
system, or auxiliary system control
valve. Signs are one of the items that
must be visually verified during the
annual inspection of sprinkler systems.
The information required by NFPA 25
is not as substantial as that required
by NFPA 13, and it is not necessary
for a system to have both the information
sign required by NFPA 25 and
the general information sign required
by NFPA 13. The information sign
required by NFPA 25 is only intended
for systems installed prior to the 2007
edition of NFPA 13.
The presence of information signs
does not in and of itself make a sprinkler
system any more reliable. The
signs do, however, provide the means to
quickly determine if the water supply is
still sufficient or if changes in the occupancy
or use of the building require a
design analysis.
Jonathan Hart is technical lead, Fire Protection
Engineering, at NFPA. NFPA members and AHJs can
use the Technical Questions tab to post queries on
NFPA 13 at nfpa.org/13. To follow the progress on the
upcoming edition of the code, visit nfpa.org/13next.
NFPA 101
Life safety in new
and existing structures
'Last resort': The Life Safety
Code and fire escape stairs
By Valerie Ziavras
I
n the wake of a number
of recent fires, questions
have been raised as to
the role of fire escape
stairs in mid- and highrise
apartment buildings. Although fire
escape stairs are often seen as an
acceptable component in a means of
egress, NFPA 101®
, Life Safety Code®
,
which governs the protection of occutypically
accessed either via a window
or door that opens onto a platform.
They do not meet the more restrictive
requirements of an outside stair, which
is a stair that meets the same dimensional
criteria as an inside stair but
is located on the outside of the building.
An outside stair also has additional
protection requirements to minimize
the risk that fires occurring inside of a
building will affect the usability of the
stairs.
The use of fire escape stairs is
Although fire escape
stairs are often seen as
an acceptable
component in a means
of egress, NFPA 101,
Life Safety Code,
which governs the
protection of
occupants from the
effects of fire, permits
the use of exterior
fire escape stairs in the
required means
of egress only as a
last resort.
pants from the effects of fire, permits
the use of exterior fire escape stairs in
the required means of egress only as a
last resort.
Fire escape stairs are generally
constructed of noncombustible materials
and attached to the outside of a
building-think of the classic iron fire
escapes bolted to the facades of older
structures across the country. They are
extremely limited; they are only permitted
for use on existing buildings of
certain occupancies, such as existing
hotels, dormitories, and apartment
buildings. A new fire escape stair can
be added to an existing building only to
correct an egress deficiency and when
the authority having jurisdiction has
determined that the construction of an
outside stair is not possible. There is no
building height limitation in NFPA 101
for the addition of a new fire escape to
an existing building.
While outside stairs are preferred
over fire escape stairs, the Life Safety
Code recognizes that, at least for some
existing buildings, an outside stair may
be impractical. Examples include when
the space between the building and
property line is too small to accommodate
a stair meeting the dimensional
requirements of an outside stair, or
where the stairs are over a sidewalk
or alley that cannot be permanently
blocked by the construction an outside
stair would require.
The preference for outside stairs
over fire escape stairs can best be
explained by comparing the requirements
of the various components,
starting with the dimensions. An
outside stair, like an interior stair, is
required to be at least 44 inches (1,120
millimeters) wide when serving fewer
than 2,000 people, whereas a fire
escape stair is required to be at least
22 inches (560 millimeters) wide when
it serves more than 10 occupants. For
a fire escape stair serving more than
10 occupants, the riser height can be
no more than 9 inches (230 millimeters)
and the tread depth must be at
least 9 inches (230 millimeters). For a
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NFPA Journal - Summer 2022

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