Fire curtain clarity

[martyclynch]

Okay,

So I am the lone voice saying that the fire curtain must not be broken under any circumstance here, and my certainty is being shaken. Can anyone help me in giving a definitive answer on this?

The question is whether or not an area rug may break the fire line. It is less than an inch thick, but my understanding is that absolutely nothing may break the fire line. After all, the fire curtain is supposed to create a seal, and even a carpet would prevent that, right?

I'm also asking the local fire marshal, but opening is in 48 hours and he's rather busy.

Please help

 

[MNicolai]

It depends on how your fire curtain is rigged. If it has bottom pipe in it, then anything that lifts the curtain, at any height, will lift a large portion of the curtain elsewhere on stage as well. Our fire curtain is rigged with chain sewn into the bottom pocket, so it will conform to anything on the floor. We have not had any complaints from our fire marshal for running cables perpendicular to where the fire curtain drops. The chain drapes over the cables without any issue.

An area rug shouldn't be a problem, but this is is up to your AHJ to determine. They will need to decide for themselves how much impedance of the fire curtain is allowable, and each AHJ will have their own opinion.

Strictly to code, I don't know that anything is explicitly allowed to impede the path of the fire curtain, but your AHJ can waive that for a specific circumstance if they look at the situation and determine that it does not pose any risks. It's situations like this where it's good to have a solid relationship with your AHJ so that you can painlessly go to them with questions like this.

I can think of plenty of people who would say "Shoot first, ask questions later," and who would just put the area rug down, but if you're comfortable in calling the fire marshal on an as-needed basis, you won't ever find yourself in a situation where you have to perform a risk analysis to the effect of, "I can do this just this time and maybe no one will notice." That's not something that anyone should ever do, but most of the people I've known that have done that, do it because they think that the fire marshal is out to get them or that because it's rumored to be in code (or even if it is), that it immediately means that the fire marshal would call it unsafe. That's rarely the the case, though. If you can look at it and it seems safe to you, there's little reason you'd need to be paranoid that the fire marshal would have a problem with it. If they do have a problem with something that feels safe to you, discuss it with them and maybe you'll change their mind, or maybe they'll change your mind. There's no need to make an argument out of it, though -- your AHJ still has the final say.

Also, your AHJ might be busy, but it's likely you could explain your question to him over the phone. Or you could put the area rug in place, drop the fire curtain in, snap a photo of it, and email to his office and he could give a final verdict without having to go on site, but while still being able to easily see the situation. You'll need to find out what he prefers though.

 

[MPowers]

Codes vary widely from state to state and city to city. Ultimately as already stated, the local AHJ is final athority in any case.

That said, a small bit of information here. A fire curtain is not intended to hermaticly seal the stage from the auditorium. For example, wire guide curtains have a 2" to 3" gap around each side edge in the smoke pocket. The curtain is primarily intended to slow down the propagation of smoke and fumes from a fire on the stage to the auditorium long enough for the patrons to evacuate. The secondary purpose is to prevent panic by shielding the imminent danger from direct view.

Some jurisdictions allow anything that meets those goals, some allow nothing to impede or interrupt the path of the curtain, some allow an incursion as long as it still seals with amything sticking though having a fire rating. My personal experience is that if your rug is IFR or flame retardant treated, most, but not all, AHJ's would allow it IF asked in advance. HTH!

Michael Powers, Project Manager, ETCP Certified Rigger-Theatre
Central Lighting & Equipment, Inc. Des Moines, Iowa, Central Lighting & Equipment

 

[martyclynch]

Thank you. Our AHJ was pretty understanding and said we could go ahead with a few qualifications.

I personally don't like the precedent it sets, but I figure the AHJ is the final word. I just hope I don't wind up having to call the poor guy with some new question on every single production.

 

[MNicolai]

Eventually you and him will develop understandings with each other. Things that AHJ lets slide now you won't bother him with in the future unless the circumstances vary, and things AHJ warns you against you'll avoid. When new obstacles present themselves, you can contact him as needed.

And it is entirely acceptable to ask directly if you should call him each time you have concerns or if you should use some discretion before worrying about talking to him. If the latter is the case, he can give you some direction in which situations to contact him versus when to not.

As soon as AHJ understands you want to be safety conscious, he'll appreciate your efforts even if sometimes the questions are somewhat trivial for him. I keep my own AHJ's number handy because I like to bring him in a few weeks before each large production opens. On this next event I'm working on, I'm even going to consult his advice on how to run an effective fire drill mid-rehearsal.

 

[mstaylor]

I keep my fire marshall's cell number on speed dial. If we are doing something odd, I call. It makes for a good relationship.