Fire Extinguishers Safety for a Successful Fire Inspection

All properties are required by law to conduct thorough fire safety inspections regularly and they need to pass this inspection in order to be deemed safe for occupation. These inspections determine whether the property has adequate protections in place to prevent fire and if they have easily-accessible solutions to help occupants in the event of the fire.

At Boston Ironworks, we encourage customers to make sure their property has all the mechanisms needed in place to ensure fire safety. Here are some facts you need to know about fire extinguishers to pass a Boston fire inspection.

1. Types of fire extinguishers

Class A fires with ordinary combustible materials like cloth, wood, paper, etc. need A-B-C extinguishers or can be snuffed out with pressurized water.
Class B fires involving flammable liquids like gasoline, oil, kerosene also require A-B-C extinguishers, B-C dry chemicals, or carbon dioxide.
Class C fires that involve energized electrical circuits like electrical wiring, electric motors, electrical wiring, and other such electrical components need “A-B-C” fire extinguishers, “B-C” dry chemical, and carbon dioxide.
Class D fires are caused by reactive metals and can be extinguished by “D” extinguishers and nothing else.
Class K fires involve oils and fats and usually occur in kitchens. They require K extinguishers.

In order to pass the Boston fire inspection, a building must have extinguishers that fit into the category required for the particular property. Experts can help explain what kind of extinguishers you need to maintain fire safety on your property.

Checking regularly

All fire extinguishers should be checked to ensure they work well and aren’t beyond their expiry date. It’s easy to ignore extinguishers and that can only cause problems in case of a fire breakout. Property owners can assign a specific person to inspect the extinguishers every month to make sure they’re in order. These are the factors you need to check:

The extinguisher should be visible and access should be easy.
The locking pin should be intact.
The tamper seal should be unbroken.
The extinguisher shouldn’t have any signs of physical damage, leakage, corrosion, etc.

Services and replacement

Fire extinguishers should be replaced when they’re too old because these extinguishers will be ineffective against the fire. Property owners should ensure the professionals write the service date on the tag to ensure it is up-to-date.

For questions and enquiries on Boston fire inspection, you can call Boston Ironworks at 617 657 3117. You can also fill in this contact us form. We’ll get in touch with you as soon as possible.