How Often Should Fire Extinguishers be Serviced?
The U.S. fire department reports over 3,300 fires each year that happen in commercial buildings.
As scary as this can be, some of those fires don’t have to get out of hand and cause damage to the entire property. This is only going to be the case if you are keeping track of your fire extinguishers and know how to use them.
In this guide, we’ll walk you through the importance of fire extinguisher maintenance and how often you should be getting your fire extinguisher serviced. This way, you can have peace of mind that your property is safe in case something unexpected occurs.
Reasons Why Fire Extinguisher Maintenance Is So Important
Fire extinguisher maintenance is not something that you should forget about. It’s something that can save you, your building, and everyone in it if a fire were to pop up.
Here are many of the reasons why fire extinguisher maintenance is so important.
Functional Operation
One of the most important reasons that you need to get fire extinguisher maintenance is to ensure that it operates and functions properly.
This is an important safety device that you want to make sure works in case of an incident. Without maintenance, you never know if you will be able to use the extinguisher in the case of an emergency.
Cost-effectiveness
Regular maintenance of fire extinguishers can also prevent damage to your property. Not only that, but it will also protect your equipment.
By regularly checking and getting maintenance on your fire extinguisher, you could save money from potential repairs or replacements due to a fire. Instead, you spend money on the maintenance to prevent spending even more on repairs to a building.
Compliance
Local and national regulations typically require regular maintenance of fire extinguishers. In order to comply with these regulations, you have to get regular maintenance.
Not only is this going to help your establishment, but it is what keeps you on the good side of the legal system. You can face fines, legal liabilities, and even the closure of your business if you do not meet these requirements.
It is best to do your research in your local area to see what the laws are.
How Often Should Fire Extinguishers Be Serviced?
Fire extinguishers have to be serviced at different intervals. However, it is important that you are aware of the different types of services and time frames so that you can stay up-to-date with the services that are needed.
You should visually inspect your fire extinguisher once per month. You should then have a fire extinguisher service come out and check your fire extinguisher for specific safety measures.
And then lastly, you should have an internal service once every five, six, or 12 years depending on the type of extinguisher you have.
How Fire Extinguishers Are Serviced
There are a few different ways that regular fire extinguisher maintenance can take place. When you call a professional, they will do several things to check.
Visual Check by Employer
However, it’s important to note that if the fire extinguisher is in a commercial building, it needs to be inspected once per month according to the OSHA.
To do this, you simply have to make sure of the following:
- The extinguisher is in the right location
- There is no damage to the extinguisher
- There are no obstructions or things blocking access to the extinguisher
- It is fully charged and operational
Again, this is something that is important not to skip as it could be how you save the building or employers from a fire if one were to start.
Yearly Maintenance Inspections
A fire extinguisher should be inspected more thoroughly by a fire protection company at least once per year.
This means that a professional service will come into your workplace or building to examine and repair the fire extinguishers if needed.
This should never be done by yourself. You must have it done professionally in order to ensure compliance with governmental laws as well as to ensure the utmost safety in your building.
The fire protection service will have the proper tools and training to make sure that they are able to recognize anything that is wrong with the fire extinguishers. They can then fix them if need be.
Internal Maintenance Inspection
An internal maintenance inspection should be done every five, six, or 12 years depending on the type of equipment that you have.
This inspection also needs to be done by a professional service company as well.
But what is internal maintenance inspection and how does this differ from the yearly maintenance inspections?
This internal maintenance inspection testing has to do with discharging the entire fire extinguisher to test and inspect the components inside of it to make sure it is all working correctly.
The fire extinguisher cylinders also need to be hydrostatically tested to make sure they are safely able to contain the pressure.
Fire Extinguisher Maintenance
Now you know a bit more about fire extinguisher maintenance as well as how often you need to get it done.
There are a lot of reasons to get this maintenance done, and it should always be done professionally.
If you are in need of fire extinguisher maintenance, don’t hesitate to contact us at Castle Sprinkler and Alarm for your needs. We offer fire extinguisher maintenance that is compliant and professionally done. You won’t have to worry about the safety of your building after our services!