Fire Extinguisher Maintenance: an Essential Part of Fire Safety

Saturday, September 29, 2007 |

In a nutshell, yes! We all know how annoying it is when something doesn't work as it should do, but in a fire situation, it is imperative that every piece of fire prevention equipment works first time, every time. Regular fire extinguisher maintenance is vital for ensuring your business fire extinguishers are ready for action if required.

Fire Extinguisher Maintenance: Your Business And The Law

Current fire regulations under the Regulatory Reform (Fire Safety) Order 2005 state that all fire safety equipment must be "maintained in an efficient state, in efficient working order and in good repair."

Fire extinguisher maintenance includes checking for exhausted extinguishers that may not have been reported as used, checking that anti-tamper tags are in place, and that the fire extinguishers themselves are physically in good condition and ready for use – you’d be amazed how many safety pins get bent and stuck in place without being spotted!

The British Standard 5306 part 3 requires that maintenance of all your fire extinguishers is conducted by a 'competent person'. If you do not have such a fully-trained service engineer in-house, you should employ an external maintenance contractor or a fire extinguisher replacement service.

What Does Effective Fire Extinguisher Maintenance Involve?

The effective maintenance of fire extinguishers includes many separate checks on gauges, moving parts, tubes, valves, and operating mechanisms, amongst others. The fire extinguishers also need to be thoroughly checked for signs of corrosion.

Fire extinguisher maintenance tests must be carried out annually, and an extended service carried out every five years for most types of fire extinguishers. This includes a full discharge test, where the extinguisher is operated under test conditions, its performance recorded, any faulty or worn parts replaced, the extinguisher refilled, and returned to service.

What Is Best For My Business, Fire Extinguisher Maintenance Or Replacement?

We all know time is money, and fire extinguisher maintenance is a time-consuming business - and potentially a messy one too. Discharge tests can leave you with used foam or powder onsite, to be disposed of at your cost, and annual inspections can involve extinguisher engineers on site at your business for hours at a time.

A fire extinguisher replacement service is quite common these days. Instead of checking your extinguishers on site, your existing fire extinguishers are simply exchanged for fully tested and maintained refurbished fire extinguishers. There is no involved checking on site, no messy discharge tests, and minimal disruption to your business.

The cost of a replacement fire extinguisher should never be more than a normal discharge and refill fee. Since you always receive fully operational extinguishers that are tested and refilled offsite, the costs of any parts that need replacing in your 'old' fire extinguishers is born by the replacement company, saving you more money on each and every fire extinguisher you own.

What If My Fire Extinguishers Are 'Unfit For Service' (UFS)?

Fire extinguishers do have a limited life span, due to the corrosive and pressurized contents. Seals can fail and welds corrode, and although regular fire extinguisher maintenance can spot these problems early, there may come a time when your fire extinguisher will need to be completely removed from service.

A fire extinguisher replacement programme should ensure that none of your fire extinguishers reach this state, but if they do, any UFS extinguishers should be replaced with new ones.

Nowadays, it often costs less to buy new extinguishers online than have the extended service.

Most extinguishers would expect to last for 10 years but some are of lower quality and there is nothing more frustrating than having to replace an item one year after a costly service visit. Always get an on-the-spot price before approving extended service and then compare the new online prices before deciding.

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