Water is the oldest resource when it comes to fire fighting. After all, it’s widely available, isn’t it? But when we use so much water every day, how can we be sure we aren’t damaging the environment?

Both fire suppression systems like sprinklers and watermist rely on water to fight fires, but traditional sprinklers use much more water, making them a less environmentally friendly and cost-effective choice. Conventional sprinkler systems are based on the British Safety Standard BS 9251. The problem with these sprinkler systems is that they were traditionally designed for large industrial spaces so they can be expensive to install and difficult to retrofit and, if you’re using mains water, you might need to upgrade your water supply and find somewhere to fit a tank.

A watermist, or ‘total compartment application system,’ is a fire suppression system that discharges a fine spray of water droplets through a special nozzle. These fine water droplets remove the heat and displace the oxygen, which extinguishes the fire.

black-and-white-waves-close-up-view-circle-large

Water, a natural, powerful resource

The advantages of installing an innovative watermist system over a traditional sprinkler system are:

  • They’re completely non-toxic and no chemicals are used
  • They’re environmentally friendly
  • They’re much more cost-effective
  • They cause less damage to property because so much less water is used
  • They’re more effective over a wider area thanks to the surface area of the watermist droplets
  • You won’t need a large tank or an extra mains water supply
  • They can enable more flexible designs plans without compromising fire safety
  • They can help you comply more easily with building regulations
pexels-photo-27944-large

Natural water mist formation

Being environmentally friendly is easy with a watermist system because they’re really efficient in the way that they use the water. This is especially important when you realise just how much water each person uses in the UK.  Here are five interesting facts about water consumption:

  • Each Briton uses about 150 litres of tap water a day, but if you include the amount of water within products, this increases to about 3400 litres a day.
  • To produce just one pint of beer takes 170 litres of water!
  • If the entire adult population of England and Wales remembered to turn off the tap when they brushed their teeth, we could save 180 mega litres a day. That’s enough to supply nearly 500,000 homes and fill 180 Olympic swimming pools.
  • A dripping tap wastes at least 5,500 litres of water a year. That’s enough water wasted to fill a paddling pool every week for the whole summer.
  • If everyone in the UK cut one minute off their shower we would save 1,420 million litres of water a year.

For more fun facts, take a look at the Waterwise website which is packed with other ways to help you save water.

So whether you’re a homeowner, landlord, architect or interior designer, watermist systems can not only keep your property safe, but they can help keep the environment safe too! Contact your local watermist retailer today and find out how to get started.