Every fire extinguisher needs a visual inspection monthly by the property owner or employer, and a full maintenance check and new tag annually by a trained service company. Stored-pressure dry chemical units also need an internal examination every six years and hydrostatic testing every twelve years. CO₂, water and wet chemical Class K units are hydrostatically tested every five years.
Almost every compliance failure we see comes from a building knowing about one or two of these and not the rest. They are four separate requirements on four separate clocks, and an extinguisher can be fully current on one while being years overdue on another.
| Interval | What happens | Who does it |
|---|---|---|
| Monthly | Visual inspection — present, visible, pin and seal intact, gauge in the green, tag current | You or your staff. Must be recorded. |
| Annually | Full maintenance check, service and a new dated tag | A trained service company |
| Every 6 years | Internal examination — unit emptied, valve removed, shell inspected, recharged | A trained service company |
| Every 5 or 12 years | Hydrostatic pressure test of the cylinder | A licensed testing facility |
Both NFPA 10 and OSHA 1910.157 put the monthly visual inspection on the employer or property owner. It is not something the service company does — we are only there once a year.
It also has to be written down, and the records kept. In practice an OSHA or fire inspector asking to see twelve months of monthly records is a far more common problem than a failed extinguisher, because most buildings do the checks informally and record nothing.
It takes about thirty seconds per unit. Is it there. Is it visible and unobstructed. Is the pin in and the tamper seal unbroken. Is the needle in the green. Is the tag in date.
This is the requirement most Chicago businesses have never heard of, and it is entirely possible to have a wall of extinguishers with current annual tags that are all out of compliance.
Every six years a stored-pressure dry chemical extinguisher has to be emptied, opened up, examined internally, recharged and resealed. Dry chemical cakes and compacts over time — a unit that has sat on a bracket for years can look perfect, read full on the gauge, and discharge nothing but a cough of powder.
The clock runs from the manufacture date stamped on the shell, or from the last internal. If you do not know when either was, the unit has to be treated as due.
An extinguisher is a pressure vessel, and the shell fatigues and corrodes over its life. Hydrostatic testing fills it with water and pressurises it well past its working pressure to prove it is still sound.
It is a common situation and it is straightforward to fix — usually in one visit. An expired tag is one of the most frequently written fire code violations because it is the easiest thing for an inspector to see, and it can also give an insurer grounds to question a claim.
There is no penalty for calling late. Call us on 312-877-2355 and we will survey what you have, tell you what is overdue, and bring the property back into compliance.
Monthly by you or your staff as a recorded visual check, and annually by a trained service company that fits a new dated tag. Stored-pressure dry chemical units also need an internal examination every six years and hydrostatic testing every twelve years; CO2, water and wet chemical units are hydrostatically tested every five.
The employer or property owner, under OSHA 1910.157 and NFPA 10 — not the service company. The checks must be recorded and the records kept available for inspection.
Every six years a stored-pressure dry chemical extinguisher must be emptied, opened, examined internally, recharged and resealed. It is separate from the annual service and separate from hydrostatic testing, and it is the requirement most often missed — a unit can carry a current annual tag and still be overdue for it.
There is no single expiry date, but a unit reaches the end of its life when it fails an internal examination or a hydrostatic test, when the valve or shell is damaged beyond repair, or when it is a disposable model that was never rechargeable. A well-maintained commercial extinguisher can stay in service for decades.
Call 312-877-2355 during business hours. We'll tell you what applies to you — there's no charge for a straight answer on the phone.
1840 N Clybourn Ave · Chicago, IL 60614
