3 Crucial Fire Extinguisher Inspection Areas
Posted on: 6 January 2021
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Productivity in the workplace goes hand in hand with safety. With enough and effective safety measures in place, employees are more productive. For instance, staff are less likely to perform well if they keep worrying about fire incidences in the workplace. It is why safety managers make fire equipment available for annual inspections by government or private inspectors. An inspector makes their report based on findings, which establish whether a workplace is safe or not. Safety inspectors look at different fire equipment, but this article focuses on inspection areas of a fire extinguisher.
Fire Extinguisher Location
Most workplace safety managers believe that fire extinguisher inspections only focus on the equipment. However, a fire extinguisher's location is also crucial. Notably, the first thing that safety inspectors look at before anything else is a fire extinguishers' location. There are two elements to this: expected location and amount, based on a premises' size. Firstly, fire extinguishers must be placed precisely where your wardens expect to find them. Secondly, an inspector determines whether you have enough fire extinguishers to cover an entire workplace. Safety experts recommend that wardens should be close to a fire extinguisher at any given time, regardless of a facility's size.
Safety Seals
Another area that safety inspectors focus on during an annual fire extinguisher inspections are the safety seals, particularly the locking pin and the tamper seal. The locking pin prevents the accidental turn-on of a fire extinguisher, which is even possible by leaning against it. On the other hand, the tamper seal loops through an extinguisher's top lever, which protects the locking pin. The tamper seal must always be intact for a fire extinguisher is to pass an inspection. If it is not, you must find a replacement seal from a licensed station.
Pressure
Checking a fire extinguisher's pressure is easy, but most people do not often do it. Although some safety managers inspect the pressure regularly, annual inspectors cannot give it a pass. The pressure gauge level of a full fire extinguisher tank should be in the green zone. It ensures that there is enough pressure to control or put out a fire. If the gauge is in the red zone, a fire extinguisher lacks enough pressure to spray the foam; hence, failing an inspection. In such cases, you must send the equipment for refilling.
Keep these things in mind when you need need to get a fire safety statement for your business.