I found out what that MT in continuous horn came from! I found out this morning that it is a Wheelock MT4-24-LSM.
I am going to apply for a job at the Brockton Hospital. I’ve already went over the fire alarm system before, but here’s a recap, plus an amazing discovery I found as well:
Simplex 4603-9101 annunciator installed next to an older graphic annunciator. I wish I knew what company made the old one. It might be a Simplex annunciator, but I am not sure. I think the panel’s a Simplex 4100U, judging by the size of the building.
Most of the signals are these: the older Simplex LifeAlarm speakers on the 2903 retrofit plates. I’m not sure if they are either light plates or strobe plates.
These are the pull stations through most of the hospital: Simplex 4251-20 T-bars. Some of them have Stopper IIs over them, and a few have been replaced with 2099-9756 T-bar pulls.
These are the primary smoke detectors throughout the hospital: Simplex TrueAlarms. Some of them have heat sensors on them as well. There are also some of these…
Older ESL smoke detectors, some rebranded by ADT, and others rebranded by Simplex. These are being replaced by the TrueAlarms.
But in the emergency wing, as well as a laboratory on the first-floor and a section of the third floor, these are the signals:
I think they’re Simplex 4903-9150 speaker/strobes. There are a lot of them in some places, plus it looks somewhat curved on the inside, like a speaker would have. If they’re horn/strobes, since these were recently-renovated areas, then they’re probably the ones that use the TrueAlert horns in them.
The pull stations are Simplex 4099-9003s, and the smokes are TrueAlarms yet again.
Remote strobes are the vertical 4903-series remote strobe in that wing on the third floor, and the rest I’ve seen so far are TrueAlert strobes.
These are the primary signals, smokes and pulls throughout the hospital. But a couple of the old LifeAlarm speakers and 2903 strobe plates were replaced with the vertical rectangular 4903 speaker/strobes, and at one entrance I saw a newer-style Simplex LifeAlarm speaker on a 4903-9001 light plate. And the main entrance has 2098-9201 and 2098-9202 smokes. And as if that weren’t enough, the Radiology lab has SpaceAge Electronics 2DCD horns behind AV32 light plates (with the red lens and “FIRE” lettering!) Strangely enough, the pulls are 2099-9756s (or 4099-9003s) and the smokes are TrueAlarms!
Don’t you think it’s odd that my HS has had something replaced from every part of the system EXCEPT the alarms. Have you guys ever seen a big building with really old alarms that has retained them all? At my HS, every alarm I have seen up close is a SImplex 4040. I haven’t seen every part of the school yet so I am not sure whether there are any newer alarms. I haven’t been in the pool room in a while. I remember the alarms being pretty much the same in there, but I haven’t gotten up close to look under the grille. I also haven’t been in the upper gym yet. Which from a distance I can see what looks like an Edwards 270-SPO on a back box which means it was probably added later. I don’t know what alarms are in there.
The short answer is, nope its not odd at all.
To keep this simple you don’t have to change out your system nor do you have to modernize it unless the site meets certain standards. These standards all vary by State, City/town, county Etc. so I will not go into great detail.
To head down a different road your school is public, therefore the town of Belmont is basically responsible for the inspection and upkeep of that building. Were talking about local politics here… in a town where the electrical inspector only works for an hour and a half a day. You can’t expect to much.
Today my mother and I went over to the Downey Elementary school, where my brother’s basketball league is held. I managed to finally catch a closer glimpse of what’s behind those grilles! The horn I saw had a label reading “FEDERAL SIGN AND SIGNAL” on it. So I had the right model number, but the wrong company name! I kinda figured that Fire-Lite rebranded the older-style Federal 450s, as did Standard, Notifier, Simplex and others. So I’ve pretty much completely confirmed what the horns were.
As for the bells, I found out that they are indeed Simplex bells. But they aren’t the same kind as the Davis K-8 school has; they’re 6-inch, but they have the red cursive “Simplex” script on the bottom half of the gong, and the shape/design reminds me of a gray Edwards Adaptabel. The school was built in 1971, so I guess these bells were an older model that dated back to the 1960s. And someone told me why their bells never rang; years ago they discovered a bird’s nest in one of the outdoor bells, so they decided to disable the bell system so they wouldn’t disturb the birds (they said they were beautiful ones; I guess they were blue jays because a lot of them live in that area of my town during the autumn months). I guess they just got lazy and left the bell system off. I said if that was the case, then they should at least re-do the PA/clock system so that a tone sounds over the PA speakers to signal class-change.
Back on September 20th I had visited Anna Maria College in Paxton, MA and found some vintage FA’s -Yes I know the pics are large, but I wasn’t able to resize them for some reason.
Hope you guys like close-ups! :lol:
An old break glass pull station
An Edwards horn/strobe
Class change bell and Fire Horn
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whoah! :shock: nice
My temple has a gray Edwards fire horn like that. I doubt it still works since there is a SpectrAlert right near it, but I am guessing the fire horns were part of the original system at my temple.
They used to have those horns at South Junior High School! But not anymore, not since they upgraded to a Simplex 4100U voice-evac system with TrueAlert speaker/strobes. But to be honest, I like the Simplex system much better. The people there said that it’s also not as loud as the old fire horns were.
I saw a youtube video of those horns and they are LOUD!
Agreed! I can’t blame them for switching to a voice-evac system during the renovation. But then again, it seems that school stuck with Simplex since they had an IBM clock and bell system. I bet if they upgraded/renovated the school during 1979-1980, they would’ve put in a Simplex 2001 system with 4051 horns on 4050-80 light plates! For school systems, it seems that new school buildings go with EST, and older ones getting renovated varies, usually either Simplex or Notifier. I think they use Notifier for quick cheap upgrades (just the panel and signals) mainly for replacing old Gamewell systems, and Simplex for major upgrades or replacing an older Simplex system. If that’s the case, I hope the Davis K-8 school upgrades their old 2001 system with 4051+80s (which I’ve mentioned over and over on this site) with a Simplex 4100U voice-evac system like the one at South Junior High if they ever renovate the school.
I’ve never heard of Auth. Anyone know anything about them?
Here is a recap of all the alarm systems at the schools in my town:
Burbank Elementary: I attended this school. It was renovated in 1989 so they installed the system back then. The panel is probably a Simplex 2001. The pulls are 4251-30s and the alarms are 9806s in continuous behind 2903 light plates. There is also a Gentex SHG in the music room, probably later replacement. The smokes are the big Simplex smokes. I doubt they will upgrade the system soon since it is fairly new, compared to some other systems in my town.
Wellington Elementary: This school has one of the oldest systems I have ever seen. The school used to be a high school and was mostly damaged by fire in 1967. They built Belmont High at its current location and renovated Wellington. The current classroom wing was added in 1963. The oldest parts of the school date back to the 1930s. The panel was probably upgraded to a newer Fire-Lite panel since panels are upgraded more than alarms. The pulls are Fire-Lite BG-6s. The alarms are these HUGE wedge shaped alarms that are probably old Fire-Lite retrofit lights, and the horns, which I am guessing are Fire-Lite 450s go on the bottom. The heat detectors may be Chemtronics ones since I saw one in the video of the school I posted in the other thread. The town is rebuilding the school between 2009 and 2011. They will probably install a Simplex 4100U with TrueAlert Speaker/Strobes since my MS has a voice evac system.
Winn Brook Elementary: This school was renovated in 1989 as well. The panel is probably an FCI panel. The pulls are FCI MS-2 pulls and the alarms are SpaceAge Electronics V33 light plates with either 2DCDs or Federal 450Es behind them. It will probably be around for a while too since it’s more recent than the oldest systems.
Butler Elementary: I have never been inside this school. The school was renovated in 1979 so I am guessing since the town likes installing Simplex systems they probably installed an old Simplex panel with the pulls probably being 4251-30s or maybe 4251-20s. The alarms are probably 4050s or 4051s on 4050-80s. I don’t think the town has plans to renovate this school.
Chenery Middle: This is the middle school I attended and is the only one in Belmont. The building was built in 1997 after the old one burnt down by fire. The system will be in use for a while. The panel is a Simplex 4100. The pulls are all 4099-9003s. The alarms in the hallways are Federal SelecTone speaker/strobes. The cafeteria, library, band room, auditorium, gym, and boys locker room have Simplex 4903 speaker/strobes. The classrooms have Federal SelecTone speakers next to Simplex 4904 strobes both mounted on the ceiling. Smaller offices have only the 4904. However, the principals office is about as big as a classroom has only a remote strobe. Some rooms about the size of a small office have both the strobe and the speaker on the ceiling. The outdoor alarms are SpaceAge Electronics V33 strobes next to those Simplex rebranded Honeywell speakers. They are flush mount, which is odd for outdoor alarms. The smokes are some 90s era Simplex smokes and TrueAlarms. There are a couple SelecTone speaker/strobes that have been replaced with a Simplex ceiling mount 4904 strobe with a wall plate covering the rest. They should have put in Wheelock E70s which would cover the holes up better and have the speaker too. The alarm noise is slow whoop six times and then what I believe is the same voice evac soccerude7330 has at his school. I haven’t heard the voice evac clearly enough. There is a “phone ringing” noise that comes out of the PA and doesn’t stop for the voice evac so that makes it hard to hear. This system is very unique since most 90s era Simplex systems don’t use Federal Signal alarms and the combo of the Federal alarms and the Simplex alarms, especially in the classrooms, is very unique too. I am guessing the installers had both kinds of alarms.
Belmont High: This is my high school where I currently attend. It was built in 1970 after the Wellington High School was badly damaged by fire. The Wellington was fixed up and is now an Elementary School, but many parts date back to the 30s and 60s back in the High School days. The classrooms are too small to be elementary school classrooms and the building is no longer ADA compliant. That is why the town has chosen the Wellington to be the next school rebuilt. The current high school is in a new location and most of its original system from the 70s. The panel was probably replaced with a Simplex 2001 at some point. The pulls are Simplex 4251-113 Chevrons that say “Local Fire Alarm” on them. I am guessing the original panel was a local panel, I doubt the current one is. The alarms are Simplex 4040s behind flush mount grilles with no lights or strobes on them. They are not as loud as most 4040s (at least the ones I went by during the school’s first fire drill) and sound more like 4050s, but I know they are 4040s since the sounder plate is round on all the alarms I have seen up close. The alarms do 120 bpm march time. The smokes are old Simplex smokes but there are many TrueAlarms too. I actually saw a TrueAlarm with a mark on the ceiling from where the old smoke was. the heat detectors are mostly Chemtronics ones with a few replacement ones. The alarms are mostly wall mount except for the cafeteria which has ceiling mount alarms. The field house has old (probably non ADA compliant) Edwards 270-SPOs. There is a newer one on a backbox at the end of the field house that was probably added later. There is a Simplex 2099-9754 probably replacing an old 270-SPO. The alarms in the field house are also Simplex 4040s. Two of the Chevrons have been replaced with Fire-Lite BG-6s, one by the Math department, one in the auditorium. When Belmont High gets renovated after Wellington gets rebuilt, they will probably replace the system with a 4100U and TrueAlert speaker/strobes since they installed a Simplex voice evac system at the Chenery.
There are all the systems at the public schools in Belmont Massachusetts.
Auth is an older company based in NYC, with connections to Ellenco. I have an Auth bell and a different looking Auth pull station in my collection that you can see on my thread for it.
I had wellness today and was in the field house. When I walked by most of the Edwards 270-SPOs, I didn’t see any logos on them. It was just a rectangle where the logo should be. I didn’t get close enough to the newer one to see it. Also, the 4040 behind the flush mount grille that looks like it’s gonna fall off is in even worse condition than when I last noticed it. Here’s what it looks like. The flush mount grille has been painted over and the horn is really dusty. The horn itself still looks red. The flush mount grille isn’t fitted nicely on the cinder block and the cinder block is all chipped around the alarm. The alarm looks like it’s gonna fall off at any time. I would be surprised if it still works, but if it does, the school will almost certainly leave it. I am not surprised if I see a replacement alarm there at some point. The grille is so dusty that I can’t see under it clearly enough, so I am not sure whether it’s a 4040, but I am almost certain it is.
I took a few pics today at work.
The first pic is in the office of the Student Union where I work. I’m not sure why there is just a strobe…
The second pic is of a new pull station in the library. It was remodeled last year and has a new Simplex 4100U system with voice evac.
I’ll try to get some more pics…the Student Union has a lot of older Simplex pulls and speaker/strobes around, and a pretty big Simplex panel.
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Probably a bad install job. There could have been a horn or speaker there and they just removed it instead of replacing it. My MS had a couple bad install jobs where they replaced broken Federal Signal SelecTone Speaker/Strobes with Simplex ceiling mount 4904 remote strobes and covered the rest with part of a wall plate. They could have put in Wheelock E70s which would fit that place nicely. Also the ceiling mount 4904 looks weird on the wall.
I had wellness in the upper gym today for indoor soccer. I finally got to see the alarms and pulls in there. Overall, nothing special. The alarms are, like usual, Simplex 4040s behind flush mount grilles. One of them I thought at first might have actually been a 4050, but instead I think it’s a 4040 that got knock loose from the flush mount grille. The pulls are interesting though. One of them is indeed, another BG-6! The third one I have seen at Belmont High! The other pull is a 4251-113 Chevron. The Chevron is on a back box with conduit but the BG-6 is flush mount (along with the Chevron it probably replaced). I don’t know why they used a back box for an original pull.
I went to my cousin’s Bat Mitzvah and saw two systems.
Synagogue:
Upstairs area has a BG-10 and Wheelock NS in the foyer, no alarms in the sanctuary.
Downstairs has a Simplex 4251-20 mounted up high and Chemtronics heat detectors. There was also a Honeywell pull mounted high in another room I saw from a distance, with what looks like a SpectrAlert or Genesis Mounted up high. I didn’t see any other alarms, but I bet they are either 4050-80s (which I really want to see one in person), or those Fire-Lite “Wedge” alarms. The Wellington has them mounted high, so maybe the SpectrAlert or Genesis replaced one of those since it was mounted up close to the ceiling.
Party Room:
Some old building where the party was has Simplex 2099-9756s or 4099-9003s and 4903 Speaker/Strobes. There is also a 4251-20 mounted high, probably from an older system.