Vegetation Management – Hydrants
Ensure fire safety in your strata building by maintaining vegetation clearances & visibility around hydrant boosters and valves. Learn about essential standards, real-life examples, and tips for keeping hydrants accessible and vegetation managed. Prioritize safety with expert advice from Civil Fire.
5-Yearly Servicing of Hydrant & Sprinkler Systems
With the legislation of AS1851 in NSW coming into force in 2025, the 5-yearly service of the fire hydrant system and sprinkler system
AS1851 in NSW
The Australian Standard for the Routine service of fire protection equipment, AS1851-2012, is being legislated in NSW as of 13th February 2025. What does this mean for building owners? Find out more.
Fire Dampers
Fire dampers are an essential safety measure that helps to prevent the spread of fire and smoke in buildings. Dampers belong to the ‘passive fire protection’ family.
Ionisation Vs Photoelectric Smoke Alarms
There are two main types of smoke alarms available on the market: ionisation smoke alarms and photoelectric smoke alarms. While both types of smoke alarms can detect smoke and save lives, they operate differently, and there are advantages to using one type over the other in specific settings.
Hydrostatic Testing of Fire Hydrants
Hydrostatic testing is a process of testing the integrity and strength of a pressurized system, such as a fire hydrant system, to ensure that it can withstand the required pressure and flow.
What is hoarding?
Hoarding is defined as collecting or keeping large amounts of various items in the home due to strong urges to save them or distress experienced when discarding them. Hoarders’ homes are often so filled with possessions that the occupants are unable to use the rooms as intended.
These days hoarding is recognised as a mental disorder. A person may be genetically predisposed to hoarding, or hoarding may be triggered by traumatic events, or the hoarding may be a symptom of another disorder such a obsessive compulsive disorder or depression.
It is a complex issue and requires appropriate long-term support.
Why is hoarding a concern for fire safety?
- The build-up of possessions increases the fuel load and provides a much greater opportunity for ignition.
- Exits and paths of travel to exits may be blocked by possessions.
- If sprinklers are installed, they may not be the required 50mm of clearance for the head to operate effectively.
- Heating units may be too close to things that can burn. They might also be placed on unstable surfaces. If a heater tips over into a pile, it can cause a fire.
- Cooking areas may be compromised by encroaching storage & possessions.
FRNSW estimates about 12% of fire fatalities in NSW were persons reportedly living in hoarding and squalor conditions.
Hoarding in sole occupancy units (SOUs) of residential strata blocks
This is a tricky area.
The concern is that hoarding behaviour by one resident may put the whole unit block at increased risk or fire. The concern is valid, but fire contractors, executive committees & even FRNSW have very little power to remedy the situation.
From Civil Fire’s perspective, the annual inspection of SOUs is usually limited to ensuring there is a working some alarm, and an operating fire door for each unit. Whilst we may note excessive clutter, or even extreme hoarding, we don’t have any powers to insist on corrective action.
Hoarding can be reported to FRNSW by completing the Hoarding and Squalor fire risk report form, but since they cannot engage directly with the resident, they will refer the report to the local council as a health and amenity concern.
FRNSW can only enter a SOU if they have been invited to do so by the resident, or if there is an emergency.
What can be done?
To protect the health & safety of the hoarder:
- The smoke alarm should be tested regularly.
- Clear paths of egress should be maintained throughout the unit.
- Appropriate support should be offered to hoarder. Hoarding disorders are complex and require ongoing professional support.
To protect the health & safety of other residents in a strata block, it is important that the fire contractor confirms:
- The fire door on the hoarder’s unit can self-close & self-latch. In the event of a fire, this should delay the spread to other parts of the building.
- That possessions are fully contained within the units, and do not encroach on common areas.
I don’t think we’ve had contractors come through before who were so clean and tidy, helpful and responsive with ideas about how to better maintain the heritage and be compliant and generally respectful of the property.
He was so thoughtful, he stopped the really noisy part of the repair so I could answer calls. I went out at lunch, and he was on his hands and knees washing the floor in the entry because he’d brought in some debris from the street.
