Plumis Automist saves the day

Truffle, a London-based property developer recently undertook the refurbishment of a 3-storey, Victorian, terraced house in Hammersmith. The project’s architect and historic building consultant, Peter Powlesland knew that ordinarily, a protected fire escape route would have been required by Hammersmith Building Control. However, Peters client wanted an open-plan lowest floor with no separation at all between the large kitchen living room and the staircase; in other words, without a protected route to the front door on the floor above, and thence to the street.

Building Control was, initially, adamant that a protected route would be required; however, the building control officer suggested that Peter should investigate Plumis Automist as a possible solution to the impasse. The Automist system uses a high pressure pump to generate a fine water mist from nozzles mounted under a standard monobloc mixing tap, standalone on a worktop or on a wall that rapidly suppresses a fire and thereby provides sufficient protection to satisfy the building control requirements of many applications.  It’s connected to the domestic water supply and requires no tank and much less water than traditional sprinklers.  The need for significantly less pipe-work and the prevention of potentially devastating home damage in the event of fire by suppressing flames and thus limiting smoke and heat were further compelling reasons for choosing Automist.  Elite Fire Safety are the principal accredited installers for Plumis Automist in the London area and in this case they fitted the system comprising of two pumps, associated hoses and spray-heads in an under-stair cupboard at lower ground-floor level in just one day.

Peter had never tried the innovative fire protection solution before but he says he would readily use it again. “The spray-heads were very discreet and did not impinge on our design. The District Surveyor was very happy with it and it was very good value for money. The value of 25 New Kings Road has increased a great deal thanks to Automist which allowed us to complete the open plan design, which is currently so much in demand by property buyers. In short, Automist saved the day!”

For further information on this project or the Plumis Automist range of water-mist suppression solutions call Plumis on +44 (0) 20 7871 3899, visit www.plumis.co.uk or email info@plumis.co.uk

Published April 2015