PSC deficiency code 07113: Fire pumps and its pipes
Area 07 Fire safety
This code covers the main fire pumps and the fire main that carries water to the hydrants: pump, suction, priming, relief valve, isolating valves and the pipes on deck and in the engine room. The emergency fire pump has its own code. Inspectors often ask for two hoses to be run out and charged, which tests all of this in a few minutes.
What the inspector looks at
- Does the pump start locally and from the remote position (often the bridge), and does it prime?
- Is there good pressure at the hydrants, including the highest and most distant ones, with two jets running?
- Is the fire main free of leaks, doublers, rubber patches and temporary clamps?
- Do the isolating valve between the machinery space and the deck and the section valves operate, and are they marked?
- Are pressure gauges fitted and working?
- Is the relief valve in place where required, and are drains on deck lines working in cold climates?
Common findings
- Fire main leaking on main deck / temporary repair with rubber and clamps
- Insufficient water pressure at hydrants
- Main fire pump unable to prime / take suction
- Remote start of fire pump from bridge not working
- Fire main isolation valve seized
- Pressure gauge at fire pump missing or defective
The rule behind it
SOLAS Chapter II-2, Regulation 10 sets the requirements for fire pumps, fire mains, isolating valves and hydrants, including the number of pumps, their capacity and pressure at the hydrants. SOLAS II-2 Regulation 14 requires the system to be maintained and ready for immediate use. Permanent repairs to the fire main should be acceptable to class.
Action codes you are likely to see
A valve freed or a gauge replaced during the visit can be marked 10. A leaking pipe with a temporary clamp is usually 17 or 16, with the inspector expecting a permanent repair or a class-agreed plan. Fire pumps are among the areas the IMO port State control procedures list as examples of possible detention, so a fire main that can't deliver water to the deck, or main pumps that don't work, is likely to be coded 30. Corrosion of the fire main can also lead to RO responsibility being considered. See action taken codes.
How to close it
Overhaul or repair the pump (impeller, seals, priming unit, remote start) and record the work. Replace wasted pipe sections permanently; doublers or clamps are at most a temporary measure and need class agreement. After the repair, carry out a pressure test with hoses at the far hydrants and record the result. If class attended, keep their report; for an RO-related finding the RO's attendance is normally part of closing it. File everything with the Form B. Check the emergency fire pump in the same test, because the inspector often does.