Target in Mundelien (Radionics System; renovation halfway done)
WC System Sensor SpectrAlert Classic horn/strobes and strobes.
WC SpectrAlert Advance horn/strobe in the food area.
WC L-Series horn/strobe in the vision section of the store
WW L-Series strobes in the bathrooms
And finally, White Gentex Commander 3s with blue strobes near a bunch of exit doors and the kitchen. I have no idea why some places being renovated or having a new FA system like my school are adding these. I don’t think these are lockdown alarms.
The high-rise apartment my aunt and a friend of mine live at near my college has finally gotten a fire alarm upgrade!
It’s two towers connected by a hallway on the ground, originally built in 1971 with an S.H. Couch system. The original pulls were mostly Couch F1G Chevrons, but in one of the towers there are also some of the larger Couch pulls that resemble the coded ones but are not (they have a keyhole on the bottom where the code number plate would go), and the original smoke detectors were these small Pyrotector ones. I’m not entirely sure what the original alarms were, but they were most likely old-style Federal Vibratone 350 horns, as I saw one at a similar high-rise apartment built at the same time.
In the 80s, an Edwards panel of some kind replaced the original Couch panel, and they also replaced many of the Pyrotector detectors with ESL 523C smoke detectors rebranded by Edwards GS.
Then in the 90s, a conventional Notifier panel of some kind was installed, and the old horns got replaced with Wheelock MT4-24-WM horn/strobes. In each apartment unit there was a Wheelock MIZ-24-LSM horn/strobe. My aunt lives in a handicapped apartment unit, and her bedroom also has a Wheelock RSS strobe in it. Also in each unit is some kind of unknown household-style smoke alarm; I think they’re made by Firex. There were also some System Sensor 2400 and i3 smoke detectors scattered around. The Couch pulls were also lowered to an ADA-compliant height, for the most part. Also some time in the last decade, a small EST panel was installed in the main entrance vestibule for one of the towers, for the sprinkler system.
Starting a couple months ago they began a total fire alarm system overhaul. They have installed a Notifier NFS2-3030 voice-evac system. The panel was installed in the main vestibule where the old Notifier annunciators and the EST sprinkler panel were. In the main lobby is an auxiliary panel of some kind, and in the vestibule entrance for the other tower is what looks like an NCA-2 annunciator with an emergency mic next to it.
The alarm signals are a first for Brockton; they have System Sensor L-series speakers and speaker/strobes! Depending on the area, there are wall-mount and ceiling-mount versions, all red. In my aunt’s apartment unit, they put a remote strobe in the living room/kitchen area and a speaker/strobe in the bedroom.
Naturally, the pulls are NBG-12LXs, and the smoke detectors are FSP-851s. For now, the old devices are still up but inactive; the Couch pulls have blue masking tape over them. I’m going to see if my aunt can let me know when they begin taking out the old alarm devices to see if I can get some of them! (I’m surprised I don’t have a Wheelock RSS or MT4-style horn/strobe yet!) I will say, this new fire alarm system is a major improvement, as I’ve often felt the high-rise could use an upgrade to a fully-addressable system.
The new Alabama welcome center on I-10 East has probably the most overkill system I’ve seen: a Simplex 4100ES voice system with addressable TrueAlert speaker/strobes. I don’t know how a glorified restroom could possibly meet the occupancy numbers to make a voice system required, so either there’s some interesting Alabama code at play or the Tyco sales guy got a huge pat on the back for making that sale.
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Many of the service areas on the New York State Thruway and Massachusetts Turnpike have EVAC systems, possibly most. The only Thruway service areas I can confirm do NOT have EVAC are Angola, Iroquois, and Ramapo (3 out of 27). I’ve seen EVAC in service areas in DE and MD, too. Can’t remember if IL, IN, NJ, OH have it in theirs.
Came back from a vacation in Vermont and the systems at my grandparents retirement home and the motel we stayed in are still the same. The retirement complex called “Sunrise Manor”, has a Simplex 2001 system. Most of the alarms are Simplex 4903-9220 horn/strobes. They are a replacement for Simplex 2901-9806 horns on 2903-9101 strobe or light plates except for outdoors where they remain.
The motel we stayed at is called “Lakefront Inn and Motel” has Wheelock 7002T horn/strobes.
I just got home from a 2.5-week cross-country trip, staying in hotels every night. While most systems I saw were pretty standard, I did see a few interesting ones.
DoubleTree Columbus-Worthington (Columbus, OH)
This hotel appears to have been built in the late 80s-early 90s.
Pulls: Simplex single-action T-bars of various ages.
Smokes: mix of Simplex smokes, with a few EST smokes thrown in there. Typical household smoke detectors in rooms.
NAs: This is where it gets interesting. The vast majority of signals were Simplex 2902-9739s (flush-mount LifeAlarm speaker/strobes). There were a couple of 2902-9717 speakers and a couple of 4903-9147 speaker/strobes, likely replacing failed units. The lobby had, in addition to speaker/strobes, ceiling mount Genesis horn/strobes on the high ceiling. The room had a pop-out panel that almost certainly contained a speaker or speaker/strobe. While I couldn’t see inside as the panels only open if the alarm is activated, I’m assuming they were TrueAlert speakers or an earlier model.
Super 8 Rapid City-Lacrosse Street (Rapid City, SD)
The alarm system, at least, dates from the 80s or early 90s.
Pulls: EST SIGA 270s
NAs: System Sensor MASS (non-ADA). Most had no strobes, but a couple had the vertical non-ADA strobe of the original MASS.
The Ob/Gyn center near our main hospital was built in the early 90s with a Simplex 4001 fire alarm system, with 2901-9838 horns on 4903-9001 light plates, 4251-20 single-action pulls with Stopper II covers, and 2098-9201 photoelectric smoke detectors on -9637 bases. But some time back, the Simplex 4001 panel was replaced with a Simplex 4006 system! (red cabinet version) Everything else on the system is still the same, though. This was a fairly sensible upgrade, as a Simplex 4007ES may have been a bit overkill for replacing a 4001, especially if you’re going to reuse the existing devices. (Plus, as I’ve said, all the 4006 seems to be typically used for is to replace any existing hardwired conventional fire alarm panels that use up to ten zones and four signal circuits; I’ve even seen a 4006 panel installed in a gutted 2001-8001 cabinet!)
Alberta Children’s Hospital has a HUGE two-stage EST3 system (a few panels in the FACP room, and one in the hallway between the parkade and main hospital), with EST 964-1A-8RW speakers on the ceiling, most with EST 202-5A-TW strobes with LKC-1 lens (ceiling “FIRE” orientation) on the ceiling next to them or by the elevators on the 3rd floor and possibly the others, within 6 feet from the speaker, but some speakers have no strobe by them. Those can be found all over the main hospital. The parkade hallway has EST 964-5A-8RW speaker/strobes, and the parkade has EST 964-5A-8SW speaker/strobes, again, all with LKC-1 lenses. The parkade stairwell and possibly the other stairwells, have EST G4R-S2 and G4RF-S2 speakers. Pulls are EST SIGA-270P in the main hospital, and EST SIGA-270 in the parkade and the hallway between. Some pulls have been replaced with their EST/GE variants. Smokes are EST SIGA-PS, some EST/GE.
All strobes in the system are synchronized, and the alarm tone for first stage is a chime that goes on every 3 seconds, second stage is possibly a code-3 chime. There is a message that occasionally comes on the speakers saying “Code Red, level #, (room name)”
Safeway in Crowfoot had a minor update to their system. It has a Simplex 4100ES 2-bay system (currently has a trouble) replacing an old Edwards panel (unknown model) in 2015, with EST 757H-15PS horn/strobes, one of them is falling off the wall. Pulls are a Simplex MS-301C that says “PULL OUT” instead of “PULL DOWN” by the right entrance, two Edwards 275-C111 pulls can be found by the left entrance, the Notifier MPS-950B by the juices has been replaced with a Tyco/Grinnell variant, a Tyco/Grinnell pull has been replaced with a Mircom MS-401 by a door that leads to the warehouse.
Safeway in Crowfoot had a minor update to their system. It has a Simplex 4100ES 2-bay system (currently has a trouble) replacing an old Edwards panel (unknown model) in 2015, with EST 757H-15PS horn/strobes, one of them is falling off the wall. Pulls are a Simplex MS-301C that says “PULL OUT” instead of “PULL DOWN” by the right entrance, two Edwards 275-C111 pulls can be found by the left entrance, the Notifier MPS-950B by the juices has been replaced with a Tyco/Grinnell variant, a Tyco/Grinnell pull has been replaced with a Mircom MS-401 by a door that leads to the warehouse.
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And I forgot to mention that even though the system is addressable, the system is set up in a conventional manner.
Home Depot in Beacon Hill has a Notifier AFP-200 system (panel located at Contractor Pick-Up entrance and has a DMP annunciator weirdly), with System Sensor P1224MC horn/strobes mounted high on the ceiling. The Garden Centre has System Sensor P1224MCK horn/strobes, but I may be wrong. Pulls are mostly Notifier MPS-950B, but there’s one Simplex MS-301C by an entrance that says “PULL OUT” at the top.
There’s a primary school in my town that was built in 2012 with a 4010es and simplex 4906-9129’s and 4906-9103 strobes and simplex addressable detectors. There are also a couple of 4906-9132 outdoor horn strobes located on certain areas of the building. I did not attend this school, but I have been there a couple of times.
the system at my high school currently is an EST 3 voice evac system installed in the summer of 2016 replacing 2 notifier panels, an AFP-200 and possibly an AFP-400 or an ONYX 640 (I’ll have to dig more deeper) notifier bgx-101l’s and sdx-551s and Wheelock ehs-el1’s, in 2005, the school added the ONYX 640 or whatever when they built a new expansion, building a new library and more classes. the new expansion consists of notifier fsp-851 detectors, nbg-12lx pulls and SpectrAlert horn strobes. now this system existed before I went to high school, the replacement of the system occured during the summer of 2016 (the same summer when I first started my channel). the old panels and devices were removed and the school district decided to use EST devices instead of another notifier or simplex system. the panel was installed and EST ceiling mount horn strobes were installed throughout the building with a few wall mount devices. it seems that the school district is now using EST as their preferred fire alarm system brand in their newer schools.
the system at my high school currently is an EST 3 voice evac system installed in the summer of 2016 replacing 2 notifier panels, an AFP-200 and possibly an AFP-400 or an ONYX 640 (I’ll have to dig more deeper) notifier bgx-101l’s and sdx-551s and Wheelock ehs-el1’s, in 2005, the school added the ONYX 640 or whatever when they built a new expansion, building a new library and more classes. the new expansion consists of notifier fsp-851 detectors, nbg-12lx pulls and SpectrAlert horn strobes. now this system existed before I went to high school, the replacement of the system occured during the summer of 2016 (the same summer when I first started my channel). the old panels and devices were removed and the school district decided to use EST devices instead of another notifier or simplex system. the panel was installed and EST ceiling mount horn strobes were installed throughout the building with a few wall mount devices. it seems that the school district is now using EST as their preferred fire alarm system brand in their newer schools.
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They should’ve stuck with Notifier or Simplex, IMO…
Speaking of schools, due to us moving to a new house last December, my voting location has changed. I now vote at an elementary school fairly close to our current home. The school was built in 1965 and still has its’ old Gamewell FlexAlarm system in use; the panel is located in the main office. The alarms I saw were old-style Federal Signal Vibratone 450 horns, and the pulls are old Gamewell Centuries. I think there may still be some old Chemtronics 500-series heat sensors around, but some others got replaced with System Sensor 2400 smoke detectors. The school bells are Stromberg, with M18070A 6" bells flush-mounted behind grilles on the inside, and 10" bells with protective covers over them on the outside. The school also has a modular building with its’ own small EST system consisting of Wheelock MT-24-LSM horn/strobes, RSG T-bar pulls and ESL smoke detectors, along with an Edwards 6" Adaptabel for the school bell.
Apart from the System Sensor smoke detectors and the school bells, this is pretty much the exact same setup my second elementary school had, and still does to this day. I know another school in Brockton MA that used to have a Gamewell system like this too, before it was replaced in 2009 with a Notifier NFS2-640 voice-evac system. (And it may not be long before my school has their system replaced, too.)
Shaganappi Village Shopping Centre has an EST FireShield (panel located in Wicker Land), with the main signal EST G1R-HDVM horn/strobes. The Goodwill has a G1R-HDVM horn/strobe on the ceiling, and it also has a Wheelock MB-G6-24 on the left side of the store, I’m not sure why it’s there, it might be disconnected or it rings with the horn/strobes. The Matador Pizza and Steakhouse has an Edwards 439D-6AWC bell. Pulls are mostly Edwards 270-SPO, but one of the pulls in Goodwill is a Notifier MPS-950B, and the Matador has an Edwards 274-111, smokes are unknown.
Sport Chek in Crowfoot Crossing in a 3 large-store plaza has a Mircom FX-2000 system possibly, with System Sensor P2R horn/strobes. Pulls are Mircom MS-401.
I’m a new Super in an old multi-storey building, not well familiar with fire alarm systems. Each suite in the building has a Mircom non-silenceable mini horn MH-24W similar to this. I found some tenants disconnected them saying they are very noisy, and can’t be silenced by a tenant. Each suite seems to have a separate in-and-out wire set the mini- horn is hooked to, unless all mini horns are hooked in parallel to the same wire set, but other fire alarm system wires are also running through the same box in each suite - in this case what they are for?
How I can find what suites have the fire horn disconnected? Is annual alarm test run by a fire tech the only way to find it out?
I’m a new Super in an old multi-storey building, not well familiar with fire alarm systems. Each suite in the building has a Mircom non-silenceable mini horn MH-24W similar to this. I found some tenants disconnected them saying they are very noisy, and can’t be silenced by a tenant. Each suite seems to have a separate in-and-out wire set the mini- horn is hooked to, unless all mini horns are hooked in parallel to the same wire set, but other fire alarm system wires are also running through the same box in each suite - in this case what they are for?
How I can find what suites have the fire horn disconnected? Is annual alarm test run by a fire tech the only way to find it out?
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If they are disconnected and are wired right, the fire panel should be showing a fair bit of troubles. I would recommend calling whoever services your system and they would be able to help you out. Note that only someone who has been trained and has a license should be working or touching anything on the system. Anyone else who tampers with it can potentially be fined thousands of dollars if the fire inspector made a surprise visit (and they do often).
Updated recap of the Westgate Mall in Brockton, MA, not counting the anchors stores:
The mall currently has a Notifier NFS(2)-3030 system, presumably replacing a Notifier AM-2020 system judging by all the 90s Notifier devices still in use in the main mall concourse and a few stores. Just recently they installed a new NCA-2 annunciator in the entrance vestibule that the existing 90s graphic annunciator, the Gamewell master box and the door to the main fire panel is located. I guess they wanted to have an LCD annunciator handy as well. All alarm signals do Code-3, to my knowledge.
The main concourse mostly has Wheelock MT-24-LSM horn/strobes set on Code-3 horn. Next to one fire exit is a Wheelock MT-24-MCW, most likely installed when the former Macy’s was put in (currently being remodeled into a Planet Fitness and a Burlington.) The main mall office has Wheelock Exceder horn/strobes. Other stores (non-anchor) have varying alarm signals from the 90s to the present, including Wheelock MT-24-LSMs, AS horn/strobes, Exceder horn/strobes, System Sensor SpectrAlert Advance horn/strobes, and a few newly-remodeled stores have the new System Sensor L-series horn/strobes! There’s also a watch store that has Gentex Commander horn/strobes, and a food counter that has a Wheelock NS horn/strobe in its’ back room (I heard it go off once) and an RSS strobe in the kitchen, and some stores/restaurants even have EST Genesis horn/strobes! (Given how the mall has stuck with Notifier since the 90s, I presume when those stores were remodeled they had a service company that distributed both EST and Notifier products.) In the Popeye’s Fried Chicken restaurant, a Genesis remote strobe that was damaged got replaced with a Wheelock Exceder LED remote strobe. The restrooms have Wheelock RSS remote strobes.
The concourse still has a bunch of Notifier BGX-101L pulls (their addressable version of the BG-10). A few have since been replaced with NBG-12LXs, and many of them have had Stopper II covers installed over them over the years. The stores and other remodeled areas, along with under the Wheelock MT-24-MCW, have NBG-12LX pulls.
The concourse has a bunch of FSP-751 smoke detectors. A few were replaced with FSP-851 detectors. Many stores also have FSP-751 smoke detectors; any post-2012 installations have them on the newer conical-shaped base. Some stores have System Sensor 2400-series smoke detectors.
The Chapel of Our Savior church near the mall was originally built in 1961 with an old Edwards fire alarm system, with 6" bells with red “FIRE BELL” label. The pulls were Edwards 270-SPOs, and there were also whatever Edwards called the Chemtronics 500-series heat sensors back then.
It appears some time during the last decade, they had a fire alarm upgrade of sorts; the Edwards bells were replaced with Wheelock ZNS horn/strobes, and the old heat sensors also got replaced; in the main lobby there’s a System Sensor i3 smoke detector, and in another room I saw System Sensor 5601 heat sensors. The old Edwards pulls are still intact.
The Party City in Avon, MA has relocated to a somewhat bigger space. The strip mall complex it’s now part of presumably already had a Fire-Lite system installed, but when Party City moved there, they put new fire alarm devices in the space as well. The alarms are red System Sensor L-series horn/strobes, with wall and ceiling-mount versions in the appropriate areas. At the main entrance there’s a Fire-Lite BG-12 pull.
Eton Senior Center (Dearborn Heights) - Formerly known as Eton Elementary School, this building opened in 1959, and still contains some vintage devices!
Panel/annunciators/detectors: Unknown
Pull stations:
Edwards 270-SPO models with the Edwards shield logo and glass rod.
Notification appliances:
2nd-generation System Sensor SpectrAlert horn/strobes, all of which are mounted on red backplates where the original fire alarms were.
This building still has vibrating bells! They’re all Honeywell 6" models inside, with the serial tags reading “Minneapolis-Honeywell Regulator Company”. I couldn’t get a model number because it was too small for me to read from a distance (and to not arouse any suspicion, as there was a flea market going on during my visit). All the indoor bells are surface-mounted next to the SpectrAlerts. Interestingly enough, there is an original Honeywell clock system still in operation, and is likely tied into the bell system.
Outside, there are 8" or 10" bells behind grilles. I couldn’t determine the make/model, but presumably, they’re from Honeywell also.