[Douglas Hicks]

James, one point I did not make. The hood guy is the guy who comes in and cleans the exhaust system, fan to duct. The fireguy is the guy who comes in and does the fire suppression system and portable fire extinguihshers. As we both know from experience in the fire service, no one plans to have a fire. When I was in the fire service & we got a call, we assumed the worst. During the response, we quickly went through the knowledge we got about the incident, our past knowledge of the area, the hazards, and based our plan on the worst case scenario. Very seldom was the incident that bad, but when it was, we were somewhat prepared. On the NFPA standards, the real standard to follow is the mfg. If you have not had the system serviced to the mfg requirements, you could be up the proverbial creek w/o a paddle. A nearby community had a resturant burn to the ground. the owner claimed everything was OK. the FM contacted the service agency, who produced the service reports. Each service report listed the same deficiencies, each report had the signature of a resturant employee. the insurance company denied the claim, because the system was not maintianed properly. You did get a copy of the service report?

Before you call in the service tech, pull a nozzle cap off and see if he catches it. If you want to really confuse him, ask about recalls. If an Ansul, ask it the chemical still chrystialyzzes. If a Range Guard w/an A+ control, ask it there is still a problem w/the rivit breaking and tripping the system. Adk if they hae problems getting nozzle seals Ask the torque required to tighten the nozzle caps (36 to 45 inch pounds) If a Pyrochem, ask if he changed the cartridge gasket. If an Amerex, ask if there is still leakage around the valve stem. If you get a blank look, hire someone else. If your K FX is an Ansul ask about the recall for the broken plastic siphon tube. A quality company will know about those recalls, even if they are not distributors of that brand. Again, ask to see the factory manual. The mfg tells in the manual , the required actions to perform maintence on your system. No manual, no money. Look in the van, look for tools, spare parts. Be an *******, it is your money, your business, your employees. This time yuou are the customer, act like one. As per NFPA, even though you are relying on the suppression company, the final responsibility for maintainence and service is yours.

good luck.