13-332 INSTALLATION OF SPRINKLER SYSTEMS
Sprinkler protection designed on this basis would likely
prohibit future tiering without redesign of the sprinkler system.
A.4.2 A building constructed where the expected occupancy
hazard and commodity classification of tenant uses are
unknown at the time of the design and installation of the sprin‐
kler system presents special problems due to unknown factors
of future tenants and uses. The design of sprinkler systems for
such buildings should be carefully reviewed with the owners,
builders, leasing agents, and local authorities having jurisdic‐
tion prior to the selection of design criteria and installation of
the system. Consideration should be given to the available
N A.4.3.1.4 Miscellaneous storage is intended to be storage that
FIGURE A.3.3.185(g) Typical Laced Tire Storage.
To supply
FIGURE A.3.3.206.5 Gridded System.
To supply
FIGURE A.3.3.206.6 Looped System.
2019 Edition
height for storage, as well as the occupancy hazards of potential
tenants and their likely storage needs.
The intent of Section 4.2 is to provide the owner’s certificate
for all new systems and where there is a change of occupancy
and/or building use. [See Figure A.27.1(b).]
A.4.2(4) Recycled or reclaimed water used in a sprinkler
system should not have contaminants in the water that are
combustible or that will have a detrimental effect on the sprin‐
kler system performance or the life of the sprinkler system.
A.4.3 Occupancy examples in the listings as shown in the vari‐
ous hazard classifications are intended to represent the norm
for those occupancy types. Unusual or abnormal fuel loadings
or combustible characteristics and susceptibility for changes in
these characteristics, for a particular occupancy, are considera‐
tions that should be weighed in the selection and classification.
The light hazard classification is intended to encompass resi‐
dential occupancies; however, this is not intended to preclude
the use of listed residential sprinklers in residential occupan‐
cies or residential portions of other occupancies.
is ancillary to the primary function of the building. One exam‐
ple is a manufacturing facility where storage on the manufac‐
turing floor is limited.
A.4.3.2 Light hazard occupancies include occupancies having
uses and conditions similar to the following:
(1) Animal shelters
(2) Churches
(3) Clubs
(4) Eaves and overhangs, if of combustible construction with
no combustibles beneath
(5) Educational
(6) Hospitals, including animal hospitals and veterinary
facilities
(7) Institutional
(8) Kennels
(9) Libraries, except large stack rooms
(10) Museums
(11) Nursing or convalescent homes
(12) Offices, including data processing
(13) Residential
(14) Restaurant seating areas
(15) Theaters and auditoriums, excluding stages and prosce‐
niums
(16) Unused attics
Note that it is not the committee’s intent to automatically
equate library bookshelves with ordinary hazard occupancies or
with library stacks. Typical library bookshelves of approximately
8 ft (2.4 m) in height, containing books stored vertically on
end, held in place in close association with each other, with
aisles wider than 30 in. (750 mm) can be considered to be light
hazard occupancies. Similarly, library stack areas, which are
more akin to shelf storage or record storage, as defined in
NFPA 232, should be considered to be ordinary hazard occu‐
pancies.
A.4.3.3 Ordinary hazard (Group 1) occupancies include occu‐
pancies having uses and conditions similar to the following:
(1) Automobile parking and showrooms
(2) Bakeries
(3) Beverage manufacturing
 ANNEX A 13-333

(4) Canneries (8) Saw mills

(5) Dairy products manufacturing and processing (9) Textile picking, opening, blending, garnetting, or card‐
(6) Electronic plants ing, combining of cotton, synthetics, wool shoddy, or
(7) Glass and glass products manufacturing burlap
(8) Laundries (10) Upholstering with plastic foams
(9) Restaurant service areas
(10) Porte cocheres A.4.3.6 Extra hazard (Group 2) occupancies include occupan‐
(11) Mechanical rooms cies having uses and conditions similar to the following:
(1) Asphalt saturating
A.4.3.4 Ordinary hazard (Group 2) occupancies include occu‐ (2) Flammable liquids spraying
pancies having uses and conditions similar to the following: (3) Flow coating
(1) Agricultural facilities (4) Manufactured home or modular building assemblies
(2) Barns and stables (where finished enclosure is present and has combustible
(3) Cereal mills interiors)
(4) Chemical plants — ordinary (5) Open oil quenching
(5) Confectionery products (6) Plastics manufacturing
(6) Distilleries (7) Solvent cleaning
(7) Dry cleaners (8) Varnish and paint dipping
(8) Exterior loading docks (Note that exterior loading docks (9) Car stackers and car lift systems with 2 cars stacked verti‐
only used for loading and unloading of ordinary cally
combustibles should be classified as OH2. For the
handling of flammable and combustible liquids, hazard‐ A.4.3.8 Other NFPA standards contain design criteria for fire
ous materials, or where utilized for storage, exterior control or fire suppression (see 4.3.8 and Chapter 2). While these
loading docks and all interior loading docks should be can form the basis of design criteria, this standard describes the
protected based upon the actual occupancy and the methods of design, installation, fabrication, calculation, and
materials handled on the dock, as if the materials were evaluation of water supplies that should be used for the specific
actually stored in that configuration.) design of the system.
(9) Feed mills Other NFPA standards contain sprinkler system design crite‐
(10) Horse stables ria for fire control or suppression of specific hazards. This
(11) Leather goods manufacturing information has been either referenced or copied into Chap‐
(12) Libraries — large stack room areas ter 26 using NFPA’s extract policy.
(13) Machine shops
(14) Metal working A.4.5.1(3) Pipe schedule — 25,000 ft2 (2320 m2).
(15) Mercantile
A.4.5.6 Buildings adjacent to a primary structure can be
(16) Paper and pulp mills
protected by extending the fire sprinkler system from the
(17) Paper process plants
primary structure. This eliminates the need to provide a sepa‐
(18) Piers and wharves
rate fire sprinkler system for small auxiliary buildings. Items
(19) Plastics fabrication, including blow molding, extruding,
that should be considered before finalizing fire sprinkler
and machining; excluding operations using combustible
design should include the following:
hydraulic fluids
(20) Post offices (1) Actual physical distance between adjacent structures
(21) Printing and publishing (2) Potential for the property to be split into separate parcels
(22) Racetrack stable/kennel areas, including those stable/ and sold separately
kennel areas, barns, and associated buildings at state, (3) Square footage of both the primary and auxiliary struc‐
county, and local fairgrounds tures
(23) Repair garages (4) Difficulties in providing a separate water supply to the
(24) Resin application area auxiliary structure
(25) Stages (5) Occupancy/hazard of the auxiliary structure
(26) Textile manufacturing (6) Ability of emergency response personnel to easily identify
(27) Tire manufacturing the structure from which waterflow is originating
(28) Tobacco products manufacturing
A.4.6.1.1 Alternative means of determining available water
(29) Wood machining
supplies should be considered where drought or other
(30) Wood product assembly
concerns are present.
A.4.3.5 Extra hazard (Group 1) occupancies include occupan‐
A.4.7 Bacterial inhibitors and other chemicals that are
cies having uses and conditions similar to the following:
approved and used for the prevention and mitigation of MIC
(1) Aircraft hangars (except as governed by NFPA 409) and that do not adversely affect the fire-fighting properties of
(2) Combustible hydraulic fluid use areas the water or the performance of the fire sprinkler system
(3) Die casting components are not prohibited.
(4) Metal extruding
(5) Plywood and particleboard manufacturing A.4.9 Non-system components can adversely affect the opera‐
(6) Printing [using inks having flash points below 100°F tion and longevity of the fire sprinkler system. Objects connec‐
(38°C)] ted to the sprinkler system can displace sprinkler system
(7) Rubber reclaiming, compounding, drying, milling, piping, causing obstruction to the spray pattern of sprinklers,
vulcanizing delay the activation of a sprinkler, or cause chemical compati‐

2019 Edition