It is known throughout the healthcare industry that medical gas master alarms are an integral part of every healthcare facility’s medical gas system. 
 

Without medical gas master alarms, facility personnel would be uninformed about life safety issues such as a depletion of source gas (oxygen), or when there was a problem with a medical air or vacuum system.
 

As you may know, two master alarm panels are required in all Level 1 healthcare facilities, but do you know what signals are required in the 2005 edition of NFPA 99, Standards for Healthcare Facilities?

 

Gas manifolds with no (emergency) reserve header are required to have a main line high, a main line low and a change over alarm.

 

Liquid or cryogenic manifolds with a reserve header are required to have a main line high, a main line low, a changeover, a reserve in use and a reserve pressure low alarm.

 

Liquid or cryogenic Bulk systems with a liquid or cryogenic reserve are required to have a main line high, a main line low, a main supply low, a reserve in use, a reserve supply low and a reserve pressure low alarm.

 

Liquid or cryogenic Bulk systems with a high pressure cylinder reserve are required to have a main line high, a main line low, a main supply low, and a reserve in use.

 

Medical Air Compressors are required to have a main line high, main line low, a dew-point high and a general malfunction alarm. The general malfunction alarm is a combination of the lag pump running, high temperature (non-liquid ring systems), liquid level high (liquid ring systems) and high carbon monoxide alarms.

 

Medical-Surgical Vacuum and WAGD systems are required to have a main line low alarm and a local or general malfunction alarm. The local or general malfunction alarm includes the lag pump running alarm.

 

These alarms are required by code, but even more important, they allow facility staff the necessary time to address a potential issue before it becomes a life safety issue. A facility without these alarm signals would be equivalent to driving your car with your eyes closed and no seatbelt on.

 

Open your Eyes and Buckle up, patients’ lives depend on it!

 

By:

 

Jay D’Agostino

ASSE 6020 Medical Gas Inspector

ASSE 6030 Medical Gas Systems Verifier

Vice President of Operations