What is the purpose of a jockey pump in a fire protection system?

• A. To provide primary firefighting water flow.
• B. To measure system pressure.
• C. To maintain system pressure and reduce cycling of the main fire pump when demand is low.
• D. To bleed air from the system.

Answer: (C)

Maintaining system pressure with a small, automatic pump is the main idea here. A jockey pump starts when the sprinkler system pressure drops below a set point and runs just enough to bring the pressure back up, so the larger main fire pump isn’t started for every little drop in pressure. This keeps the system ready and pressurized during low-demand periods and greatly reduces unnecessary starts and stops of the main pump, cutting wear, energy use, and nuisance cycling. It’s not intended to provide the primary firefighting flow—that’s the job of the main fire pump—nor is it a pressure sensor, a gauge, or a device to bleed air from the system. The jockey pump serves specifically to maintain pressure and minimize main-pump cycling when demand is small.