Do Sprinkler Heads have lifespans?

Question

If so, normally how long is it?

Answer 1

Not lifespans as such, but ages at which they are to be tested. In the US, the requirements come from the National Fire Protection Association.

5.3.1.1* Where required by this section, sample sprinklers shall be submitted to a recognized testing laboratory acceptable to the authority having jurisdiction for field service testing.

5.3.1.1.1 Where sprinklers have been in service for 50 years, they shall be replaced or representative samples from one or more sample areas shall be tested. Test procedures shall be repeated at 10-year intervals.

5.3.1.1.1.1 Sprinklers manufactured prior to 1920 shall be replaced.

5.3.1.1.1.2 Sprinklers manufactured using fast-response elements that have been in service for 20 years shall be tested. They shall be retested at 10-year intervals.

5.3.1.1.1.3* Representative samples of solder-type sprinklers with a temperature classification of extra high 163°C (325°F) or greater that are exposed to semicontinuous to continuous maximum allowable ambient temperature conditions shall be tested at 5-year intervals.

5.3.1.1.1.4 Where sprinklers have been in service for 75 years, they shall be replaced or representative samples from one or more sample areas shall be submitted to a recognized testing laboratory acceptable to the authority having jurisdiction for field service testing. Test procedures shall be repeated at 5-year intervals.

5.3.1.1.1.5 Dry sprinklers that have been in service for 10 years shall be tested or replaced. If maintained and serviced, they shall be retested at 10-year intervals.

Answer 2

Yes, and it of course depends on the type of sprinkler that you own and the very composition of the water that the sprinkler receives over its lifespan. Now, when I refer to type, I am for the most part referring just to material composition. Now if you have a cheap or poorly made sprinkler, you should naturally expect it to break after abuse due to pets, children, wildlife, or any other malicious force fit enough to destroy a cheap plastic sprinkler. However, most sprinklers on the market also have some mechanical function that diverts and distributes the flow of water. Even though this may become inoperable for a number of reason, it really depends on what that function happens to be, and the exact means by which the energy in the flowing water causes such kinetisis (movement). Then again, hard water also happens to be a problem in many areas of the US. Mineral deposits can disrupt both the water-driven mechanical functions of any sprinkler and the nozzles through which the streams of water exit, over time diminishing the sprinklers hydraulic performance. If this happens, soak the sprinkler in a tub of water filled with CLR or any other remedial solution you see fit. These are available at any hardware store, if not any grocery store, and should be able to remove calcium, lime, and rust deposits in a rather short amount of time. If that doesn't work, then I suppose its time to get a new sprinkler.

Answer 3

By lifespan, you mean to say it is alive? Sprinkler heads are nonliving, thus they don't have life spans! Sorry, a bit of fun for us biologists. I thought it was funny in a bad kind of way...anyway.

Probably. Everything eventually stops working. Period. For example, our inground sprinkling system stopped working after a car ran over the heads. We also had a few bust during an ice storm. So yea, they can break. It depends on the environment they are kept in, the condition they are kept in, the mineral contents of the water that pass through them, and if you have any teenagers with cars aiming for your functioning sprinkler system as to how long they will "live".

Answer 4

Anything mechanical, has moving parts, etc, has a lifespan. The length of that lifespan will be a function of the number of service cycles that sprinkler head encounters (how much and how often you use it), and its location (e.g. sprinkler heads in high traffic areas will be at higher risk than low traffic areas).

Answer 5

Are you talking about lawn irrigation, or putting out fires in buildings?

If you are talking about putting out fires in buildings, I would say it might, but if it does it's a pretty long time.

I mean, it has no moving parts, and if it discharges, the plug and liquid ampule have to replaced, or the head has to be replaced. (I don't know which is actually done in the field).

I suppose it might be possible where the plug could get fused in the orifice, but I doubt it, since that would be the critical failure point of the head design itself.

As to the question about triggering, the properties of the melting link or the liquid in the ampule if it is a newer type should never change, so they should always melt or boil at their rated temperature.