S95 Regulatory Codes and Requirements 2 — Questions and Answers
Question 1: What is the primary national standard governing fire alarm system installation, inspection, testing, and maintenance?
- NFPA 13
- NFPA 70
- NFPA 72 (Correct answer)
- NFPA 101
Correct answer: NFPA 72
NFPA 72, the National Fire Alarm and Signaling Code, is the primary standard covering all aspects of fire alarm systems.
Question 2: Under NFPA 72, the term 'Authority Having Jurisdiction' (AHJ) refers to:
- The manufacturer of the fire alarm equipment
- The organization or individual responsible for enforcing requirements (Correct answer)
- The certified fire alarm technician
- The building owner
Correct answer: The organization or individual responsible for enforcing requirements
The AHJ is the organization, office, or individual responsible for enforcing code requirements and approving materials and installations.
Question 3: NFPA 72 Chapter 14 primarily covers which aspect of fire alarm systems?
- System design specifications
- Inspection, testing, and maintenance (Correct answer)
- Signal transmission requirements
- Alarm notification appliance design
Correct answer: Inspection, testing, and maintenance
NFPA 72 Chapter 14 specifically addresses inspection, testing, and maintenance requirements for fire alarm systems.
Question 4: According to NFPA 72, who is permitted to perform testing and maintenance of a fire alarm system?
- Any licensed electrician
- Qualified personnel with fire alarm training and experience (Correct answer)
- The building owner only
- Only the original installing contractor
Correct answer: Qualified personnel with fire alarm training and experience
NFPA 72 requires testing and maintenance to be performed by qualified personnel who have relevant training and experience in fire alarm systems.
Question 5: When a fire alarm system is taken out of service for maintenance, NFPA 72 requires notification to be given to:
- Only the building occupants
- The fire department and building owner or representative (Correct answer)
- Only the installing contractor
- Only the central monitoring station
Correct answer: The fire department and building owner or representative
NFPA 72 requires that both the fire department and the building owner or representative be notified when a fire alarm system is out of service.
Question 6: Under NFPA 72, what documentation must be provided upon completion of every fire alarm system installation?
- A manufacturer's warranty certificate
- As-built drawings and a record of completion (Correct answer)
- A sales receipt from the equipment vendor
- An annual insurance certificate
Correct answer: As-built drawings and a record of completion
NFPA 72 requires as-built drawings and a record of completion documenting the system's configuration and acceptance test results.
Question 7: A fire alarm control unit (FACU) is defined in NFPA 72 as the component that:
- Generates audible alarm signals through speakers only
- Receives initiating device signals and controls notification and auxiliary functions (Correct answer)
- Monitors smoke detector photometric sensitivity
- Connects the system to the public switched telephone network
Correct answer: Receives initiating device signals and controls notification and auxiliary functions
The FACU receives signals from initiating devices, processes them, and activates notification appliances and any auxiliary control functions.
S95 Regulatory Codes and Requirements 2
What is the primary national standard governing fire alarm system installation, inspection, testing, and maintenance?