What determines fire suppression?
According to the NFPA, extinguishment by cooling with water is determined by: • Volume of water available • Rate of application • Type of stream applied The volume or amount of water available will determine the size of fire you can extinguish. The rate of application is self-explanatory. The type of stream refers to heat absorption. The two common ways of increasing a stream’s heat absorption is by breaking the stream into smaller droplets and increasing the number of droplets by increasing your gpm. To be effective, the water droplet must be formed near the base of the fire, or be large enough to have sufficient energy to reach the seat of the fire despite air resistance, the force of gravity, and the fire thermal column. When droplets are too small they can be deflected by the fire plume, or be evaporated before they reach the base of the fire. A water droplet stream used in a heavy smoke environment will improve visibility by the attachment of carbon particles in the smoke to the w
