Frequently Asked Questions
Salamander solutions and deployments are unique to each customer and facility.
If there are questions beyond those which are covered below,
please connect with us using the information at the bottom of this page.
- You own or manage a facility with a wet or dry fire sprinkler system in a location subject to freezing conditions
- You want to protect your occupants, assets and income stream(s) from the risks and costs associated with pipe freeze, including discharge, repair, downtime, remediation and restoration
- Real-time data would help you make informed decisions
- You want to lower energy, labor and travel costs without sacrificing safety or management obligations
- Checking in on a property does not have to include being ‘on-site’
- You are looking for solutions that can scale and move throughout your portfolio
- You recognize the value of small investments and precautionary measures against the larger risks of downside alternatives.
What type of notifications does the Salamander Control System send out, and are they customizable?
- Salamander Reservoirs are not substitutes for ordinary system maintenance as outlined by the National Fire Protection Association (NFPA). Salamander customers are obligated to regularly inspect and maintain their life safety fire sprinkler systems, including their Salamander components.
- Salamander Reservoirs are auxiliary devices designed to monitor the internal conditions within fire life safety systems.
- Salamander Reservoirs must be installed by licensed professionals in accordance with the documentation provided by JTJ Tech, LLC and in accordance with applicable governmental approvals.
- Owners and managers requesting approval to install Salamander Reservoirs are taking voluntary, proactive steps beyond existing code requirements to ensure that the life safety measures in place are working as designed, keeping their occupants protected and safe.
- Owners and managers requesting approval to install Salamander Reservoirs are also protecting their properties against pipe freeze, discharge and associated repair, downtime, remediation and restoration costs.
- By reducing the risks of pipe freeze, Salamander customers are also reducing the risk of false alarms, freeze-based discharges (as opposed to fire-based discharges) and subsequent dispatches to emergency personnel and first responders who may be needed at a real emergency.
“In my professional opinion, as both the Fire Marshall and Building Code Official, the Salamander solution was in an intriguing, innovative way to address an issue for the fire sprinkler industry: freeze-related system failures. …I found the system performance to be impressive. The data collected by your system, along with the technology used to transmit the data, clearly provides a fire protection system owner with a powerful tool to be used to protect systems from freeze-related compromise or damage. The addition of the design professional’s seal on the Salamander Reservoir’s engineered drawings provides an added level of validity to your system’s design. … I look forward to seeing this system prevent future fire sprinkler system failures” –John G. Frantz, CFEI, BCO, Fire Marshal, Building Code Official, South Whitehall Township, Pennsylvania
![]() To install in existing drained system, begin by drilling 1.5” hole in the pipe to accommodate a 1.5” threaded mechanical tee. This tee will then receive a pipe nipple, ball valve and the Salamander Reservoir. |
![]() After the mechanical tee has been installed, thread a pipe nipple, ball valve and the Salamander Reservoir. Leave the large ball valve in the closed position until all seals are good and watertight. The Salamander Reservoir should be oriented with its ball valve at the top of the reservoir to bleed air as it gets filled with water from the system. |
![]() Slowly open the large ball valve between the system and the Salamander Reservoir just enough to begin filling the Salamander Reservoir with water. Slowly open the ball valve at the top of the Salamander Reservoir to bleed the air out as the reservoir begins to fill with water from the system. The reservoir is full of water when water begins to come out from the top bleed valve. At this point, the Salamander Reservoir will also be at equal pressure with the rest of the system. Close and plug the ball valve on the Salamander Reservoir. |
![]() Fully open the ball valve between the system and the Salamander Reservoir and ensure connectivity between the Salamander Reservoir and the Salamander Control System and secure the sensor battery pack. |


Lehigh Valley LaunchBox: lehighvalley.psu.edu/lehigh-valley-launchbox
Invent Penn State initiative: invent.psu.edu