Pull stations with the key inserted in buildings.

[Lambda]

@theboginator

Not surprising if you live in Rhode Island. Not sure on the specifics of the laws there but they are tough on who’s granted access to fire alarm equipment. I sent a defective control panel back to its’ manufacturer through a distributor in the Cranston area, and when I brought it into the building, I was advised to leave it in its box, don’t show that I had a key for it, and do not remove the control board from the chassis myself. The reason? The representative told me that in the state of Rhode Island, just putting the key into the box or touching the internal components without being a firefighter or licensed technician, is considered a FELONY - go to prison, lose your right to vote, the whole she-bang. Doesn’t matter if the system is live or my own panel just sitting in its packaging.

From the State of Rhode Island General Laws - Title 11 Criminal Offenses - Chapter 4 Arson & Fire:

[i]§ 11-4-10 Interference with fire alarm apparatus – Penalty.

Every person who unlawfully and without just cause willfully or knowingly tampers with, interferes with or in any way impairs any public fire alarm apparatus, wire or associated equipment shall be guilty of a felony and, upon conviction, shall be punished by a fine of not less than one thousand ($1,000) nor more than five thousand ($5,000) dollars, or shall be imprisoned for not less than one nor more than five (5) years, or both.[/i]

So technically, yes, it would be a felony to open up a panel and start messing around with things. And a felony is defined as more then one year in prison. BUT, if you look at the code, it specifically states “who unlawfully and without just cause”. I would find it hard to believe a system owner who opens up the panel to silence a trouble condition or disable his system for construction would be thrown in prison. After all, the fire department would not be dispatched for a low battery and expecting someone to call a technician out every time the AC Fail trouble sounds would be impractical. And I doubt they would prosecute someone who owns a panel and puts in in his basement as a “hobby system”. The intent of a code like this is to keep the general public from messing around with vital life safety equipment. For example - a building tenant opens up the fire alarm panel to silence the alarm or takes a baseball bat to the horn/strobe in his apartment. Not lock up a building owner because he wanted to open the panel and check the log book to see when it was last inspected.