Our customer, Sennen Property Management, needed to perform an annual static pressure test of Dry Risers for a new block of flats in London. British Standard 9990 requires dry riser systems undergo an annual static pressure test and inspection and a six monthly visual inspection by a competent company.

RES has a dedicated Fire Hydrant and Dry Riser test team and equipment for its inspections. In order to carry out a Dry Riser test, a large bowser is needed along with a water pump to simulate a fire engines pump being connected to the dry riser column.

A dry riser is basically an empty pipe that runs up a building which can be externally connected to a pressurized water source by fire fighters. This vertical pipe can then distribute water to multiple levels of a building when fire fighting hoses are connected to an outlet valve typically located on each level.

A Dry Riser test involves sending pressurised water up the column to ensure that the pressure is maintained, that there are no leaks or faults and that the air release valve (located at the top of the column) is working correctly. The column needs to be able to maintain 8 – 10 bar of pressure for 15 minutes. The water that is sent into the column comes back out of a drain valve and back into the bowser, ensuring that water can be re-used for another test.

“At Sennen Property Management the safety of all our sites and the residents is paramount which is why we use RES as it gives us the peace of mind that all our fire safety systems are maintained to the highest standards.

High quality contractors are key to our business, and with RES we know we use the best in the industry to keep our sites compliant and safe for all our customer”

Tony Collings, Director, Sennen Property Management Ltd