Fire Suppression In Data Centers: Protect the building and components

We’ve come a long way when it comes to dealing with unexpected fires. Between fire alarms, fire suppressions systems and modern fire departments, we’ve mitigated the risk of people dying and greatly increased the likelihood that the building will survive the fire. Unfortunately, when it comes to protecting server rooms or data centers from fire, the challenge isn’t straightforward.

At the core of today’s global economy is the internet, and at the core of the internet are data centers where lots of power-hungry electrical equipment and sensitive data is packed densely into a closed space.

A data center is a high-value asset that needs protection from fire, and the data center is also the most likely source of the fire due to faulty equipment or an electrical short. As a result, fire suppression in data centers requires special equipment and expertise.

Dowsing a fire with water is a tried and true method. If used in a data center or server room water is going to destroy the server. The solution is nearly as bad as the problem you’re applying it to.

Fire protection systems are governed by building codes. And those codes subdivide fire suppression systems into three levels.

The employees and the building structure are the first priority when it comes to suppressing a fire. This level may use traditional sprinklers and a charged water system, especially in areas free from delicate electrical equipment. This level also includes fire extinguishers and fire-retardant construction materials.

The standard for room level fire suppression is laid out in the NFPA 75 – Standard for the Fire Protection of Information Technology Equipment with additional guidance in the NFPA 76 – Standard for the Fire Protection of Telecommunications Facilities. At this level, you need a wet sprinkler system or a pre-action fire sprinkler. Wet sprinklers have are “charged” with water that sits in the pipes ready for release when the fusible link or trigger is activated. Pre-action fire sprinklers use multiple points of fire detection before activating the system.

Using fire protection at the rack level allows you to address a fire quickly and without flooding the room with water. These systems use tubing installed throughout the server rack that can release clean agents (usually a blend of inert gases) to starve the fire of oxygen and isolate the damage to a single rack.

There are two main types of fire suppression systems used in data centers and IT server rooms. Water-based systems are common, reliable, and likely to cause equipment failure even if the fire is dowsed quickly. Gaseous or dry fire suppression system are an excellent alternative, but carry their own complications.

Using a water-based system for your data center can be a cost-effective way to meet the minimum for fire safety. If you choose a sophisticated system using pre-action sprinklers, sensors, and segment the room so that only relevant areas get wet — you increase your odds of success.

Another water-based solution uses a fist mist of water pumped out of special sprinkler heads at high pressure. This approach requires significantly less water to suppress fires and reduces the potential damage to electrical equipment caused by flooding.

Gaseous fire suppression systems rely on huge volumes of inert gas, also called clean agent, to displace the oxygen in the room and starve the fire. These systems are very effective and don’t damage equipment or pose any danger to personnel because they can be removed via the HVAC system and leave no residue.

They do require special equipment and dedicated space for pressurized gas tanks to supply the system in a hurry.

Although you should have redundancy for the data housed in your facility and the equipment you rely on to run the data center, losing everything to a fire, or sprinkler-caused flood isn’t a great option. Although conventional fire suppression using lots of water can save your employees and your building, it’s not the best choice for your business long-term.

If you’re going to use water-based system in server rooms, the high-pressure mist systems are a good option. Gaseous fire suppression is the gold-standard because it handles the fire and preserves as much of your equipment as possible.

Both systems still require special considerations for installation, maintenance, and effective deployment. You should consult with a partner who specializes in data center construction and can advise on the best approach and the best data center fire suppression vendors to use.

This may seem obvious, but in a data center it’s important to address fires as directly as possible. Ideally, you want your alarm to feed into a system that can give you information about where the fire is. Some sensors can be rendered less effective because the HVAC system is moving too much air through. HVAC system can also spread smoke and feed fires fresh oxygen.

Your fire suppression system should take this into account, disabling some or all of your HVAC system when a fire pops up.

Data redundancy is a must-have, and it shouldn’t be within the data center. You, or your clients need to arrange for data backups that are stored offsite. That way, if a fire does destroy everything, a full data recovery is possible.

Allowing dust to collect in server racks or blow air flow for cooling can lead to a piece of equipment overheating and sparking an electrical fire. Regular inspections, maintenance, and cleaning with reduce your risk of fire and help you spot issues before they become full-blown problems.

i.e.Smart Systems is a Houston, TX based technology integration partner that specializes in design and installation of audio/visual technology and structured cabling. For more than three decades, our team of in-house experts has partnered with business owners, architectural firms, general contractors, construction managers, real estate developers, and designers in the Houston market, to deliver reliable, scalable solutions that align with their unique goals.