FAQ
Legislation, HMOs, loft and attic conversions, care homes, new build, heritage and saunas — the questions we’re asked most, answered plainly and checked against the actual regulations.
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FAQ
How water mist works and where we work. See the full mist vs sprinklers comparison →
For the buildings we work in — homes, flats, HMOs, hotels and fit-outs — yes. For large industrial or high-hazard sites a sprinkler system is often the required choice, and we’ll tell you if that’s your building.
It’s very unlikely. Each nozzle is sealed by a glass bulb that only bursts at around 57°C, and only the nozzle at the fire opens — cooking steam or burnt toast won’t set the system off.
Up to 70% less than a sprinkler system. Mist breaks water into 50–150 micron droplets, which absorb heat far faster than sprinkler drops, so much less water does the same job — and far less is left to clean up.
We install across the west of Scotland — Glasgow and the Clyde, Ayrshire, Argyll, Dumfries & Galloway and up the west Highlands — and cover the islands by arrangement. Design and consultancy work, including reviewing drawings sent through our portal, is available UK-wide.
FAQ
What Standard 2.15 requires, and what has changed recently. Read the full legislation guide →
For the building types named in Standard 2.15: buildings containing flats or maisonettes, social housing dwellings, shared multi-occupancy residential buildings, sheltered housing complexes, residential care buildings, school buildings and enclosed shopping centres. It applies to new building work and conversions that need a building warrant.
BSI withdrew BS 8458:2015 on 7 July 2025, and BS EN 14972-17:2025 is now the current BSI standard. A withdrawn standard doesn’t invalidate systems designed to it, and Scotland’s Standard 2.15 guidance has continued to cite BS 8458 for watermist design. Every design should be checked against the handbook edition in force when the warrant is submitted — we do that as standard.
A Direction that came into force on 25 November 2024 dispenses most conversions — including turning an attic into a room — and certain ground-storey extensions from the suppression requirement, provided set fire safety conditions are met.
Your local authority verifier, case by case, based on the design put in front of them. That’s why the design documentation matters as much as the hardware — and we produce it as standard.
Standard 2.15 applies to a “shared multi-occupancy residential building” — one where more than six people live as their main home and share kitchens or bathrooms. It applies when work needs a building warrant, such as a new build, a conversion to shared accommodation or a change of use. Building standards alone don’t make an existing HMO retrofit, though your licensing authority may ask for it.
It can. A certified system strengthens the fire safety case behind your licence, and we document every HMO system so building control and your licensing officer both get what they need to see.
Usually not, since 25 November 2024. The dispensation doesn’t apply if the building already has a suppression system, has a storey at 18 metres or more, or the conversion creates more than one additional dwelling. Conditions come with it: above 4.5 metres you need an LD1 fire alarm system and a protected enclosure, and a flat on a common escape route needs extra protection at the stair or entrance door.
Same project, different name. The Scottish Government’s Direction calls it “attic space”, which is why we use both terms on this site.
FAQ
Protection for residents who may need more time to get out. More on care homes →
It can, though it isn’t the default. The Standard 2.15 guidance names BS 9251 sprinkler systems for residential care buildings. Water mist can be used as a tested, approved alternative, with a design case we build for building control and your verifier.
For new developments, yes — sheltered housing complexes are named in Standard 2.15. Existing stock is usually driven by the fire risk assessment and the landlord’s fire strategy rather than the standard directly.
FAQ
Specification, documentation and programme. More for specifiers →
Yes. Buildings containing flats or maisonettes and social housing dwellings are named in Standard 2.15, so it’s a statutory requirement, not a specification choice.
No. That trade-off under BS 9991 is sprinkler-only, and we’d rather tell you before you’ve drawn it. Water mist covers most of the other Standard 2.15 triggers.
Yes. We provide the design risk information for the suppression element, ready to drop into your pre-construction information and health and safety file.
FAQ
Simon and Richard’s Law and listed buildings. More on heritage buildings →
A change to Standard 2.15, in force since 6 April 2026, requiring automatic fire suppression in traditionally constructed buildings converted to hotel use with 15 or more rooms used for sleeping accommodation. It’s named after Simon Midgley and Richard Dyson, who died in the 2017 Cameron House Hotel fire.
Listed status doesn’t exempt a building from Standard 2.15. What changes is the approach: guidance expects the installation to respect the building’s fabric and cultural significance.
Possibly. If the work affects the building’s special character, you’re likely to need Listed Building Consent from your planning authority, separate from your building warrant. Check early, as it affects programme.
It depends on access. If running water and power to the sauna is straightforward, the mains-fed pump system is usually more space-efficient. If it isn’t — a listed building, a late-stage retrofit, restricted penetrations — the standalone cylinder system needs neither.
Yes. Both system types work the same way for steam rooms; the survey looks at different risks, such as the steam generator and humidity-related electrical faults.
Not always. For new builds and straightforward rooms, drawings or photos are often enough for an initial design and indicative price. Retrofits in older buildings often need a survey first. The survey is chargeable, and the fee is deducted from your installation if the project goes ahead.
Photos of the space, floor plans, PDFs or CAD exports. Upload them through our portal, and we’ll tell you if we need anything else.
Residential and domestic water mist systems, designed to the standard Scotland’s building standards cite.
Fitted and commissioned by qualified plumbers, backed by 19 years of frontline firefighting.
Design and consultancy for architects, builders and developers.
Call us, send your drawings, or book a survey — we’ll give you a straight answer, including when you don’t need a system at all.
