Fri May 27, 2011 1:49 pm
As far as a Whelen not being louder than a T-Bolt, it all depends upon how many speaker cells the Whelen has, as the decibal rating can be equal to, or a few decibals greater than, a T-Bolt. I think that the Whelen 2810s and 2910s have decibal ratings of 129 or 130 at 100 feet, whereas a T-Bolt is rated at 126 or 127 decibals at 100 feet.
There are also two seperate sound modes that Whelen sirens use: one for test purposes and one for actual emergencies, and this was clarified to me by a Whelen rep a few months ago. The test mode is quieter, though it's still loud, but for actual emergencies the siren is much louder. I can attest to this, as I live about a quarter of a mile away from a Whelen WPS-2806, and when we have a Tornado Warning the siren is MUCH louder than on the monthly test day. Seriously, when we have a Tornado Warning it's balls to the wall louder! It's a big difference than when it's just a test.
This past Sunday evening we were under a Tornado Warning (part of the same system that caused the Joplin tornado) at 5:45, but I noticed that the siren was quieter, like in its test mode, and even my 12 year old daughter noticed this (she's not even a siren freak!), since she was in her bedroom with the door closed. She said that had she been sleeping she wouldn't have been woken up. I had to go to her bedroom and tell her that the sirens were going off.
So, as far as a Whelen not being louder than a T-Bolt, there are variables to consider.