Compared
with the prior year, sauna fires in Redwoods-insured organizations increased
100% in 2003 and 300% year-to-date in 2004.
The causes of loss have included electrical malfunction, clothing and/or
towels being dried over the heating element, newspapers being left in the
sauna, and pyrolytic decomposition (charring of the wood so that its
ignition temperature is dangerously reduced).
The severity has ranged from relatively minor to very major, including a
partial closure of the facility. Sauna
fires are preventable and there are several steps that your association can
take to prevent them from occurring in your facilities. Some measures are:
1. Establish a locker room monitoring
procedure that requires multiple staff members to walk through the locker rooms
on a frequent basis (i.e., at least every thirty minutes) to check inside the
sauna. Implementing and documenting such
a protocol will also address several other risk management needs including
abuse prevention, theft deterrence, and guest safety in the steam room or
sauna. The locker room
monitoring form found on our web
site can be used for documentation.
2. Post signs stating that newspapers,
magazines, and other reading materials are not allowed in the sauna. Enforcement will be required by your
staff…change is often difficult to implement.
3. Post signs warning against the
drying of clothing or towels over the heating units.
4. Inspect your sauna(s) looking for
charring or excessive discoloration of the wood, especially near the heating
elements. Determine the cause of the problem,
correct the condition that caused it, and replace any charred wood with
material meeting manufacturer’s guidelines.
Wooden components are frequently too close to the heat
source and have to be removed or given additional clearance. Sometimes a heat shield must be installed behind
the heating element to adequately protect the wood behind it.
5. If you have automatic fire sprinkler
protection in your facility a sprinkler head should have been installed in the
sauna(s). If one is not found there you
should contact the company that services your system and have one installed.
6.
If your facility does not have automatic fire sprinkler protection then
you should implement the following relatively inexpensive alteration. Extend the nearest domestic water line so
that a high-temperature fire sprinkler head can be installed in the sauna. The line extension should be equipped with a
backflow preventer and should have a shutoff valve to isolate it from the rest
of your system. Normally one sprinkler
head per sauna is all that is needed.
Check your local plumbing codes to verify the acceptability of such an
installation in your jurisdiction.