Gaseous fire suppression protects high-value and sensitive spaces by flooding an enclosure with an extinguishing gas that puts out fire without water, foam or residue. Because the agent is clean and electrically non-conductive, these systems are ideal for server rooms, control rooms, switch rooms and archives, places where a sprinkler discharge would cause as much damage as the fire itself. MEP Fire designs, supplies and installs the complete range of gaseous systems, from inert gases to chemical clean agents and CO2.
A gaseous system combines fire detection with a fixed store of extinguishing agent held in cylinders. When detectors confirm a fire, the system discharges the gas into the sealed room, reaching design concentration within seconds. Inert gases work by lowering the oxygen level below the point that sustains combustion, while chemical clean agents absorb heat to break the fire’s chain reaction. Either way the fire is suppressed rapidly and the protected equipment is left clean and undamaged.
The best agent depends on whether the room is occupied, how much space you have for cylinder storage, and your environmental priorities. Inert gases (IG-55, IG-541, IG-100, IG-01) are naturally occurring with no global warming impact, but need more cylinders. Chemical agents such as FK-5-1-12 and HFC-227ea store as a liquid, so take up far less space, though HFCs are subject to F-gas phase-down. CO2 suits unoccupied and industrial risks. We help you weigh these factors and design a compliant, cost-effective system.
Get in touch with our team of fire suppression experts to discuss your requirements and receive a tailored solution.
A fixed system that extinguishes fire by discharging an inert or chemical gas into a sealed room. The gas suppresses the fire without water, leaving no residue and causing no damage to electronics or equipment.
Inert gas and clean agent systems are designed to be safe in occupied spaces when correctly engineered to BS EN 15004. CO2 systems are lethal at extinguishing concentrations and are used only in unoccupied areas with strict safety controls.
Typically server rooms, data centres, comms and switch rooms, control rooms, UPS and battery rooms, archives, and industrial or process areas where water-based suppression is unsuitable.
Yes. Gaseous systems rely on holding the agent at design concentration for a set period, so the enclosure must be reasonably airtight. Room integrity (door fan) testing confirms it will retain the gas and MEP Fire can offer construction guidance at the design phase.
Once detection confirms a fire, systems reach full design concentration in as little as 7 seconds, suppressing the fire almost immediately.
Some other offerings by MEP that you might be interested in.
