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The Fire Alarm Museum

Possibly the only Virtual Fire Alarm Museum in current existence, this is an online archive of obsolete, unusual and interesting components that have been removed from sites or rescued from store-rooms here in the UK, and were otherwise headed for the rubbish bin. Some of the older and more hard to find items have been purchased from online auctions as well. Most old break-glass units and smoke detectors are largely worthless, but I am rather fascinated by the differences in the technology as the years progressed and hope others might find it interesting too. It might also prove to be of some technical interest to the fire alarm industry.

Much of the collection is catalogued (you may notice the little ID tags and labels on the exhibits in the photos below) and the long term plan is to individually photograph the items and present them for viewing here on this site. It has grown large over the years and currently numbers over 800 catalogued items and more yet to be processed, so this will take quite some time. For now, here is just part of the collection, featuring components by Tann, Gents, Chubb, Nittan, Hochiki, System-Sensor, Menvier, Apollo and many more. Click for larger versions:

Update - May 2008 - just some new group shots showing the panels, detectors and bells that are still in need of a good sorting out...

Table overflowing with call-points, smoke and heat detectors and a few sounders More items and some panels on display shelves in the Technical Office Selection of panels including the remains of one of the largest Tann Synchronome CMS systems

Control panels up on display More panels up on display The Big Wall Of Sound

A few more panels including some unusual ones Selection of items in the Technical Room Down on the floor, some newly received panels and one used for device testing


Here are the original group photos from summer 2005:

Manual call-points Smoke detectors and a few sounders

Heat Detectors Wider view of the display in the Technical Office

Control panels More control panels


...and this was most of the collection back in the early 2000s:

The original Fire Alarm Museum display


The Museum currently exists in reality as these informal arrangements of its exhibits in and around the Technical Department at Tann Synchronome`s premises in Caldicot, with the rest of it in storage awaiting a bit of a tidy-up or otherwise safely out of harm`s way. At present there is no real physical Fire Alarm Museum you can come and visit (though many visitors to Tann Synchronome cannot help but notice and comment on that large amount of panels on display along the wall), but I have long term plans for displays and demonstrations of some of the exhibits, some time way off in the future.


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Copyright (c)2004-2008 by Chris W. Millinship. Please ask for permission to use any of this site`s content elsewhere.
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