ELI5: Explain Like I'm 5

Fire sprinkler system

A fire sprinkler system is like a superhero that is always ready to save us from a fire. You know how when you water a plant, you use a hose or a watering can? It's just like that.

The fire sprinkler system is a network of pipes that are installed all over a building. These pipes carry water to every room and every corner of the building. But there's a catch! The water in these pipes is not just any water you drink or bathe with. It's special, powerful water that is only used in the event of a fire.

Now, if there's a fire in the building, the sprinkler system is designed to automatically detect it. It uses a little device called a sprinkler head. The sprinkler head is like a little firefighter that sits high up on the wall, near the ceiling.

When the sprinkler head senses heat from the fire, it opens up like a flower and starts to spray water. And not just a little bit of water. The sprinkler system can spray a lot of water, about 20 to 40 gallons per minute! And that's a lot of water to put out a fire.

The water from the sprinkler head sprays out in a wide pattern, like a big raindrop. It covers a big area and cools down the fire. It also puts out the fire by soaking up all the heat and starving it of oxygen. Once the fire is out, the sprinkler system stops spraying water.

So that's what a fire sprinkler system does. It's like a superhero that's always ready to save us from a fire. And just like superheroes, it's always there, quietly doing its job, even when we don't notice it.