Fire Extinguisher Services

Fire extinguishing installations and equipment on premises

Fire extinguishers must be serviced strictly in accordance with British Standard (BS 5306-3:2009).

Fire Extinguisher Services: What does the law say?

BS 5306-3:2009. Part 3: Commissioning and maintenance of portable fire extinguishers.

  • This is the standard by which fire fighting appliances must be serviced.

Scope of the legislation

BS 5306-3-2009 includes recommendations for the initial commissioning of portable fire extinguishers and schedules for the subsequent maintenance of extinguishers installed in all locations. Technicians are also required to be trained to handle certain obsolescent types of extinguishers for which no maintenance schedules are provided.

Levels of service

There are five levels of service required in accordance with BS 5306-3-2009.

  1. Installation
  2. Maintenance
  3. Commissioning
  4. Service (Basic)
  5. Service (Extended)

Competent person

In accordance with the Regulatory Reform (Fire Safety Order) it is deemed that a competent person has:

  • The correct qualifications, training and experience, access to the relevant tools, equipment and information, manuals and knowledge of any special procedures recommended by the manufacturer of an extinguisher, to carry out the relevant maintenance.

All Basingstoke Fire Protection service technicians have undergone strict training via IFEDA/BAFE and FIA. This, along with on-going training courses, refresher training, manufacturers updates and field knowledge and experience completes our competency as required by the legislation.

Visual inspection by the responsible person

The responsible person should carry out visual inspections of all extinguishers regularly. These visual inspections should be carried out at least monthly. When circumstances require, inspections should be carried out more frequently.

NOTE 1: Fire legislation [1-3] and its associated Guidance Notes suggest that good practice is to determine whether the extinguisher has been operated and to check for damage on a weekly basis.

When carrying out these visual inspections, it should be ensured that:

  • Each fire extinguisher is correctly located in the designated place
  • Each extinguisher is unobstructed and visible
  • The operating instructions of each extinguisher are clean and legible and face outwards
  • Each extinguisher has not been operated and is not obviously damaged or has any missing parts
  • The reading of any pressure gauge or indicator fitted to an extinguisher is within operational and safety limits
  • The seals and tamper indicators of each extinguisher are not broken or missing.

The responsible person should record the results of these visual inspections and arrange for corrective action, where necessary, by a competent person. In the event of doubt, the responsible person should arrange for a competent person to examine the extinguisher.

NOTE 2: Responsible persons have obligations under fire legislation [1-3] to use a competent person to maintain extinguishing equipment in an efficient state, in efficient working order and in good repair, where it is necessary.

Please contact us now to arrange an assessment or to discuss any other fire protection needs or concerns you may have.