Cort Smith's Blog – February 2019 Archive (2)

In my last post, I talked about establishing your pump discharge pressure (PDP) for a high-rise. In that post, I used the Devon Tower as an example. Standing at 844 feet in height, per the formula (height x .434 + 100), that structure would require 470 psi to get 100 psi to the roof. Structures that require these extremely high pressures have some added considerations, one of which is the presence of separate vertical zones.

Why Different Zones?

Per NFPA 14, the NFPA…

For years, departments have relied on pump charts for establishing pump discharge pressures (PDP) on high-rise fires. And generally, these charts are based on 125 plus five psi per floor in elevation loss. Using these charts may work very well on many mid-rise structures, however on taller and more modern high-rises, there may be a better way.

Discard The Pump Card?

Pump charts based on five psi per floor in…