Fire alarm fundamentals
Start here. No experience assumed, none required.
The electrical theory, the devices, and the vocabulary that everything else in this learning center is built on. If you have never worked on a fire alarm system, begin here and do not skip the math, because the math is what separates a parts changer from a technician.
12 lessons · 48 challenge questions · about 2.2 hours · Start here
Trade fundamentals. Not tied to any single code edition.
What you will be able to do
- Use Ohm's law confidently on real fire alarm circuits
- Calculate voltage drop and understand why the last appliance on the run is the one that fails
- Size a battery set from a standby and alarm load, including the derating factor
- Identify every common initiating device and notification appliance, and say what each is for
- Read a system matrix and describe what a panel will do before you test it
Course outline
Electrical fundamentals
- Ohm's law, and what it means on a fire alarm circuit
- Voltage drop, and why the last device fails first
- Battery calculations
The devices
- Initiating devices: smoke, heat and manual
- Notification appliances: audible and visible
- Sprinkler system connections
The system as a whole
- Inside the panel
- Emergency control functions
- Getting the signal out of the building
- Reading a system matrix
Doing the work
- Wiring practice that passes inspection
- Your first inspection