wheather stations are typically air grates found at the entrance to a building in the United States, Canada and various other countries. The purpose of these devices is to prevent entry into unoccupied buildings where heaters or space heaters have been left on or without proper ventilation.
Types of wheather stations
- Mechanical wheather stations
This type of wheather station uses a mechanism to recognize wheather conditions. When there is no fire or heat present, the door can be opened. When it does detect smoke or fire, the door will remain closed even if the temperature is below freezing. The advantage of this type of system is that it can be configured to prevent access based on a number of conditions and override those conditions in case of emergency.
- Optical wheather stations
A camera uses infrared light to scan for heat produced by a fire and sound an alarm if it detects motion. The major advantage of optical wheather stations is that they have no moving parts like mechanical wheather stations do.
- HVAC wheather stations
This type of station uses heat tunnel to detect heat and ventilation to stop any cooling and blocking of rooms when temperatures exceed the set temperature.
Benefits of wheather stations
- The most obvious benefit is fire prevention
By keeping people from entering the rooms that contain heaters, the risk of fire is minimized. If there is a fire, the station will automatically close the doors preventing people inside from escaping.
- When wheather stations are used correctly, they can also serve as an evacuation alert
Since most wheather stations are accessible to all people who enter the building, they can be used as an evacuation alert for people with disabilities who may not be able to exit a room on their own. Additionally, if there is an actual fire or smoke alarm has been triggered the wheather station will automatically close this door so that those inside do not attempt to escape through it. This prevents damage to complex systems and equipment from allowing air flow that could harm those inside or lead them into areas where they are at risk of further injury.
- They are a visual reminder that heating equipment should be turned off when not in use
All of the above reasons for having wheather stations in the first place can be undermined if people neglect to turn off heaters. Simply seeing wheather stations can serve as a reminder to turn off heaters or provide an alert if they have been left on and someone is exposed to dangerous temperatures.
- The wheather station can also be used as a fire extinguisher
When a wheather station detects smoke or fire, it will release an air flow that can be used to fight the fire that has been detected. This type of controllable rescue system will not disrupt any other systems or harm people inside by allowing air flow that could lead to re-arranging furniture and breaking things.
- Not all wheather stations are activated by heat sensors
There is no need for every wheather station in the world to have a heat sensor because some models have access doors that function if they detect motion. This might seem like a minor point, but it helps to prevent people from being trapped inside rooms because someone was able to get past the wheather station doors.
- The doors on wheather stations are made from heavy duty materials that are designed to withstand a fire or even an explosion
If there is a fire and the room that contains a heater is unable to ventilate properly, the doors on these stations will remain closed until they are manually opened. For example, if someone was in the room when an explosion occurred and they did not have access to another exit, this door could be used as an exit because only it would have remained secure.