How often does your station perform a full Co2 concentration dump test? When the turbine enclosure roof has been removed or are there local regulations/insurance reasons? I would imagine that if a concentration test or smoke has not been performed since commissioning that there is that unknown of whether the fire protection system is effective.

I would imagine if its a mandatory regulation or insurance purpose to perform dump testing. If its not mandatory, its wise to evaluate the cost benefit to performing the test. Cost of Co2, will it cause damage to equipment? Also the catastrophic damage it will cause if a fire is not able to be put out due to a deliquent fire protection system. There are other methods of testing for sealing integrity without having to perform an actual discharge such as a smoke test. Using a smoke bomb will allow the user to seal up any compartment leaks to further ensure a successful Co2 discharge during an actual event.

CO2 Concentration tests are a functiion of insurance regulations, and in nuclear cases, othe requirements. Note: there is NO substitute for FULL DISCHARGE TESTING to determine concentration levels. The cost of CO2 is absolutey nothing compared to the lost of what is protected and the associated down time. A test should also be done when there are ANY changes to the CO2 system. Now when doing a full test it is important to know HOW to do a test. It is not as simple as it sounds, and the recording equipment required to do such a concentration test, IN ACCEPTABLE TERMS TO MATCH NFPA REQUIRMENTS, is only availabe from ONE manufacture. And it does NOT use tubing. Using any other equipment is acceptable only as long as you can meet the FULL requirements for the data. Any failure to do so, can result in an insurance company denying all or part of the claim should a fire occur.

what is the recommended maitnenance schedule on the Co2 fire protection skids? Such as testing of the calibration of pressure switches, strobes and alarms, etc.? thanks