A fire hydrant, faucet or fire hydrant is a water intake designed to provide a considerable flow in the event of a fire. Water can be obtained from the urban supply network or from a tank, using a pump.

Contenido

Hay dos tipos principales de bocas de incendio.

Exterior fire hydrant

They are located in the vicinity of buildings and are where firefighters can attach their hoses. They can be aerial or buried; In the first case it is a post with its sockets (normally more than one) and in the second, they are located in a box, with a cast iron lid, below the level of the sidewalk pavement.

interior fire hydrant

Also called equipped fire hydrant (BIE), it is located in places in buildings that also have the necessary equipment to make it work (pump room). A BIE is usually in a cabinet, where there is a water inlet with a shut-off valve or theater type valve and a pressure gauge to check the status of the supply at any time.

It has a hose with mandrel joints, folded (folder) or coiled (reeler), with its exit mouth (lance and nozzle). The hoses can be ø25mm (1"), ø45mm (1¾") and ø65mm (2½") (nominal diameter), which allow high water flow rates: 1.6 and 3.3 liters per second, respectively. The ø25mm hose can be used individually, but the 45 and 65 mm hoses must be used with the help of another person. When the valve is activated and opened, it is advisable to hold the lance or hose nozzle to prevent it from starting to lurch due to pressure, as this could injure someone. The nozzle can be adjustable, to allow the output in the form of a full jet or mist. The cabinet where they are located is usually closed with a glass, with the inscription: "Break in case of fire", because anyone must be able to break it in case of fire, to use it.

dry column

Although it is not exactly, it can be considered another type of fire hydrant. It is for exclusive use by firefighters. The system consists of an empty (dry) pipe that runs through the building throughout its height (it is usually mandatory in buildings that are greater than 20 or 30 m) and has branches to cabinets with fire hydrants on each floor or every two floors, to which firefighters connect their hoses. Unlike previous systems, the pipe does not carry water; This is introduced into the column through a special mouth on the façade of the building, where firefighters can connect the hose from a hydrant, from a tanker truck or from a hydrant (without sufficient pressure), passing through a pump on the fire truck, to the mouth of the dry column. This system serves to avoid deploying many meters of hose unnecessarily and, most importantly, having to lift large rolls of hose to the floor (high) where they are necessary.