Vehicle access in the event of a fire
Building a new home or an extension more than 45m from the road?
If any part of your building is more than 45 metres from the nearest point that a fire appliance could get to, part B5 of the building regulations will take issue with your project. Luckily, there’s a solution. British Standard BS9991 allows this distance to be increased, possibly as far as 90 metres, as long as a sprinkler system is installed. BS8458, (which post-dates BS9991) indicates that watermist systems can be used for this purpose and outlines the consultation procedure.
What does this mean for me?
If your extension lies partially, or entirely, outside a 45 metre radius from the nearest point on the road, your Building Control Officer will probably require you to install Automist Smartscan® suppression throughout any affected rooms. The logic will be that the changes to the dwelling must make it no less safe than before.
If any part of a new build lies outside the 45 metre radius, you will need Automist® Smartscan® throughout the building, protecting all the main rooms.
Because there are some differences between the BS9991 and BS8458 regulations on these issues, you should make absolutely sure that your building regulation approver and any other involved authorities are agreed on Automist Smartscan® before proceeding with the project.
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