Experts in fire protection

Problem

Drinking water is a precious commodity and is therefore strictly controlled. If a public drinking water supply is also used to supply an extinguishing system, the legislator deems the extinguishing system to be part of the drinking water supply system. This means that for example sprinkler systems also fall within the scope of the Federal Drinking Water Ordinance. 

The installation of a drinking water delivery point serves to reliably separate the extinguishing water from the drinking water supply. If no water exchange takes place over an extended period of time in the individual supply line between the drinking water extraction point and the extinguishing water delivery point, the water becomes stagnant. Under such conditions, the water may become contaminated by bacteria. If bacterially contaminated water enters the drinking water system, it may present a risk to the health of consumers.

If the length or the pipe volume of the individual supply line exceeds a specified value, safety precautions must be taken in accordance with the applicable regulations and standards. The spreading of germs due to inadequate compliance with the regulations may even entail criminal prosecution.

Solution

Regular flushing of the individual supply line prevents the formation of bacteria. For this reason, the Drinking Water Ordinance requires pursuant to DIN 1988-600 a weekly flushing as a precaution. This can be done safely and conveniently with Minimax’s automatic flushing device.

We install a branch with a flush line directly ahead the extinguishing water delivery point and at its end the automatic flushing device. The latter consists of a flush valve with a pressure gauge and a timer. When the valve opens the flush line, the drinking water flows through the individual supply line and subsequently through the flush line into the drain system. This process flushes the line.

Based on the standard, we calculate the necessary flushing time as a function of pipe length/volume and flow pressure. The timer of the flushing device controls the flush valve and thus defines the flushing intervals and duration.

In this way you can comply with your operator obligations without any major effort and minimize the risk of harmful contamination of the drinking water.

Scope of service

  • Dimensioning of the flush line and the flush valve according to the flow rate and the flow pressure
  • Assembly of the flushing device and the flush line
  • Calculation of the necessary flushing time and appropriate programming of the timer
  • Amendment of the existing documentation and installation papers
  • Functional testing and briefing