Fire Alarm Pull Box Identification

Usually Red

• The National Fire Protection Association does not require that fire alarm pull boxes be colored red, as the color and labeling requirements fall under the jurisdiction of local building code writers. Most manufacturers and code writers, however, choose to require that fire alarm pull boxes be colored red somewhere on the exterior. Other identifying colors or marks may be required as well, such as New York's mandate that fire alarm boxes feature a white diagonal band across a red background.

What's Required Red

• The 2010 edition of NFPA 72 states that the only thing required to be colored red is "the circuit disconnect means" in commercial fire alarm systems. It also mandates that city street fire alarms of municipal systems be colored red. Check with your local commercial building code writers to learn if other sections of a fire alarm pull box are required to be red.

Identifying Words

• Fire alarm pull boxes are clearly identified as such, with the phrase "Fire Alarm" featured prominently in bold, capitalized letters. The word "pull" is almost always present on the bar that triggers the alarm, which notifies nearby fire stations of a blaze. Other information, such as emergency contacts or where fire safety equipment is located, may also be clearly printed on the exterior of fire alarm pull boxes.

Additional Components

• Current Technologies Ltd. notes that modern pull boxes often have other alarm or emergency service components. Emergency telephones, fire or smoke detectors and visual or audible alarms are often incorporated into pull boxes to alert those on-site as well as local fire stations.