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Olympia, WA council votes 6-1 for sprinklers in homes

T

Tom Hill

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Olympia, WA council votes 6-1 for sprinklers in homes

Beginning next summer, new homes built in Olympia will have to have sprinkler systems, the Olympia City Council decided in a preliminary 6-1 vote Tuesday night.

The council is expected to take a final vote on the matter next week.

The sprinkler requirement will apply to residential building permits issued on or after July 1, 2014.

Read more here: Olympia council votes 6-1 for sprinklers in homes - South Sound - The Olympian - Olympia, Washington news, weather and sports

Tom Hill | Building Official, Permit and Inspection Services Manager

City of Olympia WA | POB 1967 | Olympia WA 98507-1967

City Hall Offices are located @ : 601 - 4th Avenue E

Phone: (360) 753-8486

Email: thill@ci.olympia.wa.us

City of Olympia Website: Welcome to the City of Olympia
 
Tom, do you think this is a good thing or another way politicians are trying to control our personal castles? I personally like sprinkler systems but I want to choose if I put them in my own home not be mandated to do it.
 
Little_Guy, I, too, am saddened to see this move on the part of Olympia. Not worried here in Skamania County, but the Fire Sprinkler Lobby will see this as a big crack in the wall and continue until the whole state of Washington adopts mandatory residential fire sprinklers. Sad... but it's one more loss of freedom.
 
I have mixed reaction to this - and have held off posting on any sprinkler related issues because of this. I'll weigh a bit, and stir the pot, in hopes of debate and discussion. I have been a building inspector for 17 years now, but also happen to be an employee of the Fire Department. We work closely with the fire inspectors, the Fire Marshall, and others who respond to save property and life.

I have always been a hard-right leaning, strong conservative when it comes to governance. (note my tag line below...) However, I would really like to see all homes have fire sprinkler systems. I think it is the next logical step, especially with the extensive use of engineered lumber products we see today. Our homes burn faster and perhaps fail quicker than they used to. (Mostly my opinion here - with some imperical data that lead me to this conclusion).

I don't see this step as any more of a reduction in freedom as it relates to construction, than many steps we have taken over the decades. Minimum ceiling heights, required egress paths and rescue openings, minimum tread depth, max riser height, fireblocking, GFCI protection, etc. All were inacted to protect the occupants of a home. The materials and technology exists to put sprinklers in a home at a fairly reasonable cost.

It makes sense to me.

My 02.

Darren
 
An abbreviated version of the statistics: 2,570 deaths per year in residential settings, from 366,600 fires. That means that you have a better chance of winning the lottery than dying in a fire [.007 chance of dying in a fire].
 
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What the h... does the city council know about residential sprinklers?

I haven't heard of a fire official sprinkling there own home, have you?
 
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