Fire Inspection Checklist For Maintenance (Free to download)
Fire inspections are a vital part of fire protection maintenance. However, without the right checklist in place, it can be hard to juggle all the moving parts of your maintenance. Fire protection checklists are key to ensuring that you adhere to regulations and standards without the hassle.
Frayed wires, too many extension cords and inadequate fire protection equipment can all result in fire hazards. With the correct field service management and checklists, you can improve your maintenance and boost the consistency in your business. In this guide we will dive into the key components of a thorough fire inspection that you need to know.
10 Tasks You Should Include In Your Maintenance Checklist For Your Fire Protection
For a fire inspection checklist you need to have the right steps in place to ensure that you don’t miss any step, big or small. In the fire protection industry there are vital steps you need to include in your checklist:
1. Exit lights
Exit lights are one of the key fire protection steps that should be included in every inspection checklist for your facility maintenance. In your maintenance, emergency exit lights need to be clearly visible even in the event of a power outage. As part of this step, you will need to ensure there are available extra batteries for all the exit signs and lights.
2. Path of egress
To meet the fire code requirements for your area, you will need to ensure that you have the correct amount of safety exits. You need to inspect exits and paths of egress to make sure there are no blockages in the event of a fire. Three important safety aspects of the inspection will include:
- An exit door no less than 28 inches wide (US standards) or no less than 750mm (AUS/UK standards)
- Easy access to fire doors – ensuring there are no obstructions
- Easy access to exit doors – ensuring they are unlocked
3. Fire extinguishers
Fire extinguishers are another important aspect of fire protection. Fire extinguishers have the ability to stop small spot fires before they can grow to larger hazards. During inspections, you will need to inspect:
- Expiry dates
- Minimum number of extinguisher are accounted for
- They meet the required size
- They have been regularly serviced
- They are mounted correctly on the wall or cabinet
- They meet the correct fire hazards on your site
4. Fire sprinklers
A fire sprinkler system will also need to be included in your checklist for your fire maintenance. In your facility or building management, you will need to ensure that your sprinkler systems have the correct clearance. Blocked or obstructed sprinkler systems or sprinkler heads will not be effective to extinguish a fire. Storing items too close or too high to your sprinkler system can result in issues.
5. Fire alarm controls
As part of your fire alarm system, there will be an alarm panel somewhere on site. This panel is just as important to check as it is for your fire extinguishers or sprinkler systems. Electrical panels need to be checked for current inspection tags, damaged wiring, the correct warning emergency lighting and ensure that there isn’t any debris surrounding the area.
6. Correct storage of liquids and chemicals
Many businesses will have flammable liquids or chemicals on site as a result of their industry or even common cleaning products. Within buildings and facilities, chemicals and flammable liquids will only act as fuel to your fire. Your checklist should include methods for correct storage to help reduce the chance of fire damage.
7. Water supply
For your sprinkler system to work properly, you will need a good water supply. You will need to include steps to inspect hoses, tanks, valves and fittings to ensure that if in the result of a fire, the water supply will not be hindered.
8. Overloading equipment
As part of your fire protection checklist, you will also need to ensure that you don’t have overloaded sockets and electrical cords on site. Inspect for overloaded power strips and make sure that there aren’t too many extension cords plugged into each other. Overloading is a common cause of fires as the circuits will be carrying too much electrical energy and can result in heat that can start a fire in the internal wires.
9. Occupancy limitations
You will need to know your standards and codes as per the type of building to determine what the occupancy levels are. For commercial, business, healthcare or education, there are different limitations to the amount of people legally allowed within the space. As part of your maintenance inspection, you will need to be familiar with this and ensure that the site is keeping to the correct numbers.
10. Housekeeping and fire safety
As part of your maintenance fire protection checklist you will also need to include some general housekeeping and safety procedures. These could include tasks like cleaning debris from the site, ensuring rubbish is correctly disposed of, having fire drills in place, or removing vegetation from around gutters. Simple tasks such as these can help reduce the chance of a fire occurring or spreading.
The Importance Of Fire Protection Inspection
Fire safety plans are important in keeping up with regulatory compliance and ensuring that everyone who uses the building will be safe. Inspections can be key to picking up on possible defects or hazards before a fire has the chance to occur. Imagine if a fire ignited in a warehouse, but because the fire extinguishers were out of date, they were left without correct protection. Fire protection maintenance is vital to ensuring that this scenario would never happen.
A well performed fire safety inspection checklist will help to determine:
- Where or how fires can start on site
- Ensure the correct fire precautions are in place
- Ensure easy exit in case of emergency
With the right inspection checklist, you can create consistency and accuracy in your maintenance work. When it comes to fire protection, a little mistake could end in damaged equipment, lawsuits or even the loss of lives.
Fire Marshal Duties
A fire marshal is typically the one responsible for maintaining and inspecting sites with checklists such as described above. A fire marshal will typically have a broad knowledge of fire protection equipment. It is vital to keep up to date with the latest fire protection training and regulations.
Key takeaways
Fire protection is important in keeping us safe, but without the correct fire protection inspections and checklists, fire protection equipment can become faulty. With the right checklist in your workflow, your maintenance inspections will be more effective.
To ensure that your fire protection checklist is effective, you will need to cover:
- Exit lighting
- Path of egress
- Fire extinguishers
- Fire sprinkler system
- Fire alarm controls
- Storage of combustible liquids
- Water supply
- Overloaded equipment
- Occupancy limits
- General housekeeping duties
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