Certified Fire Protection Specialist (CFPS) Practice

The term for thermosensitive devices that activate at predetermined temperatures is heat detectors. These devices are specifically designed to respond to changes in temperature in their environment, often triggering an alarm or initiating a fire protection system when the temperature exceeds a certain threshold. Heat detectors can be essential in various fire safety applications because they can identify a heat source rather than relying on smoke or other combustion products.

Automatic sprinkler systems typically involve the use of heat-sensitive elements to activate water flow, but their primary function is to deliver water to suppress a fire rather than merely detect it. Smoke detectors, on the other hand, detect smoke particles in the air rather than reacting to temperature changes. Water mist systems utilize fine water droplets to cool and suppress fire, but they do not represent the concept of a thermosensitive device that activates solely based on temperature. Thus, heat detectors are the appropriate classification for such devices.