Quite an interesting & expansive system indeed!
Okay…that’s sure odd! I sure have never seen something like that before! Wonder why they did so…
This is what’s left of my school’s original fire alarm system. The pulls were simplex coded pulsations. In an art installation, they painted a false continuation of the hallway, which has one of those pull stations in it.
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Oh wow…you really oughta see if whatever old devices remain & that code directory can be saved! (especially the latter: don’t think I’ve ever seen that before!)
Family Fare (North)- Bismarck, ND
Panel: Fire-Lite MS-10UD (likely replaced a conventional Simplex panel from the mid-2000’s)
Notification Appliances: Simplex True-Alert SmarySync horn/strobes (likely running on a SmarySync module)
Pull Stations: Only one Simplex 2099-9754 at the customer service desk
Detectors: I did not see any, but there are likely some conventional Simplex detectors somewhere
Simplex 4037, some kind of grey/white Simplex electromechanical horn (probably AC given the 4037, which is AC, both of which are mounted behind bell grilles way too big for either of them & that have additional stuff behind them in the case of the latter), one of those very old & quite dangerous Pyrotronics “metal cylinder” ionization smoke detectors (mounted on or through a round metal plate interestingly enough), & an Acme Fire Alarm Co., Inc. pull station (no idea of the model number) huh? Quite an old & unique system! Any chance of saving it?
That seems to be a factory painted white Simplex horn in the second picture. I’ve seen one of those in a museum in my area. That one that I have seen is still in service. I think it must have been a replacement because the rest of the system has 4050 horns.
I have a few of those Pyrotronics flush mounted smoke detectors, except mine are painted or bare aluminum.
I think you should let Old School Fire Alarms know about this place. I would assume the building is from the early to mid 60s
One of the “additional things” is a Simplex 4045 chime
Oh? Definitely another component to save for sure then!
I’d like to see one with out the chrome plate. I’m trying to draw one and the chrome plate is making it more difficult.
What makes it dangerous? It does look quite odd.
Some of the older ones use radium instead of americium-241. Radium is a lot more radioactive and can be dangerous to be around for long periods of time even at the distances you might be at in that room.
Ah. That makes sense. Don’t want to stay close to that detector for too long!
Not only that but they also have an electric shock hazard since their shell is made out of metal rather than plastic! (which can happen if they’re miswired according to a Reddit user)
In addition to that several Reddit users say that if knocked even a little bit they may leak said radiation, which is incredibly dangerous to inhale (there really were lower manufacturing standards back then weren’t there?).
Buffalo Wild Wings- Moorhead, MN
Panel: Mircom FX-400 (Probably)
Notification Appliances: Mircom FHS-240R horn/strobes
Pull Stations: Mircom MS-710APU devices
Detectors: I didn’t see any, but him sure there are some somewhere (although it is a sprinklered building)
Delta Hotel- Fargo, ND
Original System (1996-2022?):
Panel: Cerberus-Pyrotronics MXL-V
Notification Appliances: Wheelock E-70 speaker/strobes (With vertical LSM strobes) and remote speakers
Pull Stations: Cerberus-Pyrotronics MS1-10B addressable pull stations
Detectors: Cerberus-Pyrotronics FP-11 smoke detectors and FPT-11 heat detectors
New System (2022?-Current):
Panel: Likely a Potter AFC-1000V
Notification Appliances: Potter SPKSTR-24WLP speaker/strobes, S-24 remote strobes, FASPKR remote speakers, and some Wheelock E-70 remote speakers from the old system that are being reused
Pull Stations: Potter PAD100-PSSA addressable pull stations
Detectors: Potter PAD200-PD addressable smoke detectors and Potter PAD100-HD addressable heat detectors
This is the largest Potter system that I have seen. This building is pretty large. It is 6 stories and at has many rooms, restaurants, bars, a large indoor pool, and a very large convention center. I believe they were just finishing up the install on this new Potter system when we stayed here in the fall of 2022.
Midway Lanes- Mandan, ND
Sorry I’m posting so much at once lol.
This is a fairly large building. It consists of a fairly big bowling alley (52 lanes), an arcade, a restaurant, a bar, two stores, and 6 party rooms of various sizes, among other things. It was originally opened in 1961 as an average size-small bowling alley with 20 lanes, but it has been expanded many times since then and had many renovations. The most recent expansion was in 2021. That added a store, the restaurant, and the arcade. That 2021 expansion is also what brought the fire alarm system. Before 2021, the building had no fire alarm system (although it has had a sprinkler system since an addition in 2004). Interestingly, it had the same owner from 1967 to 2023, when he finally retired.
Panel: Probably a Potter AFC-100
Notification Appliances: Everywhere except the newest addition has Potter CHS and CS ceiling-mount horn/strobes and remote strobes. The newest addition has Potter HS-24 and S-24 wall-mount horn/strobes and remote strobes.
Pull Stations: None (possibly a PAD100-PSSA pull station by the panel, but I can’t go in the panel room as it is behind a locked door in the arcade)
Detectors: Potter PAD200-DUCT duct detectors (there is probably a PAD200-PD smoke detector in the panel room)
I also saw this interesting fail in one of the party rooms the other day:
Also, I think they should have installed ceiling-mounted horn/strobes in the arcade because most of the wall-mounted ones are blocked by arcade machines.
I recently attended an event at a hotel near my house. In addition to a hotel, the building, which was completed in 2018, houses condos and an art gallery. The system is Notifier NFS2-3030 with at least two LCD-160 annunciators. The initiating devices are Notifier N-MPS-2A pull stations (some of which are mounted next to FT-300 firefighters’ phones, as shown below) and FSP-851 smoke detectors.
The signals are the most interesting part of the system, as they consist of a mix of SpectrAlert Advance and L-Series devices:
- The small reception room in which the event was held has a ceiling-mount Advance speaker and a ceiling-mount L-Series speaker/strobe, while the elevator lobby/hallway leading to this room has a wall-mount Advance speaker/strobe and a ceiling-mount L-Series speaker/strobe.
- The washroom near the reception room has a ceiling-mount Advance speaker and a wall-mount Advance strobe.
- The main lobby has ceiling-mount Advance speaker/strobes.
- According to photos I’ve seen online, the hotel suites use wall-mount Advance speaker/strobes, while the condo units use wall-mount L-Series speaker/strobes.
The signals are white, and the speaker/strobes and remote strobes feature bilingual lettering.
While the devices themselves aren’t particularly interesting, it’s peculiar to see a system that uses a mix of two different generations of devices in such a random manner. Systems featuring different generations of devices aren’t an uncommon sight, but this one is unusual as the mix is original to the building rather than being the result of devices that were replaced or added over time.
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