K & C POWER HOUSE REPAIR
59 CLEAR LAKE ROAD NORTH, KAPUSKASING, ONTARIO, P5N 2X7
TEL: (705) 337-5211
FAX: (705) 335-6364
FIRE-STOP SYSTEMS
(i) The personnel of K & C Power House Repair are certified installers of Fire-Stop Systems products. One such product is Elasta-SealTM which is the most advanced penetration fire seal available. This unique system represents a fourth generation in fire seal development. Elasta-SealTM eliminates cracks and openings that often occurs in other sealing materials which do not stretch. The Elasta-SealTM surface is an ELASTOMERIC, i.e., rubber-like, fire retardant that adheres tightly to trays, conduits, cables, etc..., allowing them to move within the penetration seal like the fingers in a rubber glove. Elasta-SealTM confines the hazards of fire, smoke and toxic fumes while effectively sealing out dust, water and other contaminants.
(ii) Cable Tray Fire Protection - There is significant misunderstanding about the flame spread resistance of cables which are I.E.E.E.-383 qualified. The common mistaken assumption is that these cables are "self-extinguishing." Why do cable insulations "self extinguish" during the I.E.E.E.-383 test and yet, in actual plant installations do just the opposite, spreading flames vigorously along hundreds of feet of cable trays. In the tests, cables are arranged across the tray in just one row and each cable is separated by one-half a cable diameter. This cable arrangement is not representative of the way most cables are laid in plant installations. In addition, the test layout practically eliminates the major stimulants of propagation, i.e., RE-ENTRY HEAT and RADIATIVE FEEDBACK. The only cables arranged in one row and separated by one-half a cable diameter, in the plant, are power cables. Control and instrument cables are usually laid in the tray at random, directly against and on top of each other and are commonly found stacked many layers deep in the average tray.
Flame Spread Stimulants - The primary stimulant for flame spread in solid fuel sources, i.e., cables, is called RE-ENTRY HEAT which is heat rising from burning cables that, in turn, preheats cables stacked above. This pre-heating causes the cable insulation to degrade and emit flammable gasses that spread the fire. If cables are not stacked on top of each other, RE-ENTRY HEAT stimulation is almost totally lost. RE-ENTRY HEAT is the same stimulant that makes several logs, stacked in the fireplace, burn well. When only one log is used, it is almost impossible to keep it burning. The second most important stimulant for fire spread is called RADIATIVE FEEDBACK. This is the heat radiating downward from the flame that causes the continued heating and offgasing of the cable insulation. When I.E.E.E.-383 qualified cables are stacked, as one finds them in the average plant, with instrument and control cables piled on top of each other, they will not only burn, but will propagate vigorously and the fire will spread vertically, horizontally and from tray-to-tray where stacked trays conditions exist.
FIRE-STOP SYSTEMS' Thermalastic 83CTM Fire Retardant Cable Coating is Factory Mutual Approved for preventing flame spread in grouped electrical cables. Thermalastic 83CTM functions by cutting off oxygen from the fuel source, inhibiting the combustion process in the immediate vicinity of the cable insulation and reducing heat transmission to the protected cables. In the simplest sense, the coating converts a group of cables into one large single cable, covered with a fire retardant jacket. Cable Coating Fire Breaks have been proven to be an effective, dependable and economical way to prevent fire spread in cable trays. Thermalastic 83CTM Cable Coating is also one of the most economical and maintenance-free ways to protect cables from fire in electrical equipment, cable spreader and control rooms. It is totally reliable because there are no electrical or mechanical activating devices to fail, no human error to be concerned about, no tanks to refill and no periodic maintenance. Thermalastic 83CTM provides reliable, maintenance free, low cost fire protection that few, if any other, systems can match.