In a building with a multilane standpipe system, how does each zone get water supply?

• A. Each zone will have its own automatic water supply
• B. All zones are fed from a common supply with manual isolation
• C. Water is supplied by portable tanks when needed
• D. Only one zone is active at a time

Answer: (A)

In a multilane standpipe system, each zone is designed to be independently pressurized, so every portion of the building has immediate access to water without waiting or interfering with other zones. This means every vertical lane or lane group that serves a zone has its own automatic water supply hooked up to the building’s supply (often with pumps, controls, and check valves) to maintain pressure and volume automatically when that zone is used. Firefighters can pull hoses on multiple floors or sections at the same time without one zone starving another.

The idea that all zones share a single supply with manual isolation would delay water delivery and rely on operator action to open or close valves, which isn’t reliable in a firefight. Portable tanks aren’t part of standard standpipe operation, which is built into the building’s fixed water system. And allowing only one zone to be active at a time would hinder firefighting efforts across a large building where multiple zones might need water simultaneously.