The fire safety log book, and the monthly check that goes in it
If you are the person responsible for a building, the law does not just ask you to have fire extinguishers. It asks you to be able to show that they work. This page sets out what that means in practice, what your service provider owes you, and the monthly check you are expected to do yourself – with a sheet you can print.
What the law actually asks of you
Under the Regulatory Reform (Fire Safety) Order 2005 – and the equivalent legislation in Scotland and Northern Ireland – the Responsible Person must provide appropriate fire-fighting equipment at all times and keep it in an efficient state, in efficient working order and in good repair, maintained by a competent person. Records of maintenance must be kept and made available to the enforcing authority.
A fire officer will not ask whether your extinguishers work. They will ask how you know.
That is the whole point of the paperwork. The annual service proves a competent person has been. The monthly record proves somebody looked in between. Together they are the answer to the question.
The monthly check is yours, not the engineer’s
Your service provider comes once a year. The other eleven months are yours. It is not a technical job and it does not need training – it is six things you can see by standing in front of the unit, and it takes under a minute each.
Anything that fails a check, or any unit that has been used, gets reported to your service provider for corrective action. Write down that you reported it, and when.
These are the same six checks a service company is required to hand over in writing under BS 5306-3:2017 clause 11.
- In its place, and you can see itThe unit is in its designated position, unobstructed, and visible.
- Instructions facing out, and readableThe operating instructions face outwards and are legible.
- Gauge in the greenThe pressure indicator, where one is fitted, reads in the green band.
- Pin and seal intactThe safety pin and the tamper seal are both still in place.
- No damage to body, hose or nozzleNothing corroded, split, dented or blocked.
- Serviced within the last 12 monthsThe maintenance label shows a basic service inside the last year.
A monthly check sheet you can print
Free, no sign-up, nothing to install. Print it, put it in the log book, and fill one in each month. One sheet covers one round of the building.
Swipe the sheet sideways to see the tick columns, or print it.
| What to look at, on every unit | OK | Attention | Missing |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1. The unit is in its designated position, unobstructed, and visible. | |||
| 2. The operating instructions face outwards and are legible. | |||
| 3. The pressure indicator, where one is fitted, reads in the green band. | |||
| 4. The safety pin and the tamper seal are both still in place. | |||
| 5. Nothing corroded, split, dented or blocked. | |||
| 6. The maintenance label shows a basic service inside the last year. |
Keep completed sheets with your fire risk assessment. There is no set retention period in the Order; most enforcing officers expect to see at least the last twelve months.
What your service provider owes you
BS 5306-3 does not stop at servicing the units. Clause 11 requires the service company to give the Responsible Person written instructions for the monthly check. If you have never been given them, you are entitled to ask.
The written monthly inspection instructions for your site.
An asset register – every unit, its type, rating, location and next due date.
A corrective action notice in writing for anything that failed.
A service company that cannot produce these is making your record-keeping your problem.
How often each unit needs a technician
The interval is not the same for every extinguisher – it depends what is inside it. These are the BS 5306-3:2017 intervals, and they are the ones Fire Safe works the due dates out from.
| Service | Interval | Which units, and what happens |
|---|---|---|
| Basic service | Every 12 months | Every extinguisher, every fire blanket, every hose reel. Carried out by a competent person. |
| Extended service | Every 5 years | Water, water-based and standard powder extinguishers. The unit is discharged, stripped and refilled. |
| Extended service (primary-sealed powder) | Every 10 years | A primary-sealed powder extinguisher goes to 10 years rather than 5. |
| Overhaul | Every 10 years | CO2 extinguishers only. A hydraulic pressure test. A CO2 unit has no 5-year extended service. |
| Hose reel pressure test | Every 5 years | The maximum working pressure test required by BS EN 671-3. |
| Fire blanket replacement | Consider at 7 years | FIA code of practice to BS EN 1869. A blanket has no extended service and no overhaul. |
The six records worth keeping
Between them these answer every question an enforcing officer is likely to ask about your extinguishers.
You get this when a new extinguisher is first put on the wall. It records that the right unit was chosen for the risk, and that it was checked and put into service correctly.
The report from each maintenance visit. This is the one most people mean when they say ‘the fire extinguisher certificate’.
Every unit on the site in one list, with its type, size, rating, location and next due date. This is the document that tells you what you actually have.
Issued when a unit fails. It puts the fault in writing, so you have a record of what needs doing and when you were told.
Your own monthly check, written down. Not the engineer’s job.
Where the whole lot lives, alongside your fire risk assessment.
Fire Safe prints all six
Fire Safe is the iPhone and iPad app for engineers who service portable fire extinguishers. It keeps the site register, works out every due date from BS 5306-3 and the unit type, and prints the commissioning certificate, service certificate, asset register, corrective action notice, monthly visual inspection record and log book.
- Every extinguisher on a site in one list, sorted by what is due first
- QR and NFC tags on each unit – scan one to open its history
- Reads the make, model and rating off a manufacturer’s label with the camera
- Works out the class A cover BS 5306-8 asks for and states the shortfall
- Fire blankets and hose reels in the same register
Questions people ask
Do I have to do the monthly check myself?
It has to be done by the Responsible Person or somebody they nominate. It does not have to be you personally, and it does not have to be a fire technician – it is a visual check, not a service.
What if I miss a month?
Do the check, record it, and carry on. A gap in the record is far better explained than an empty folder. What you cannot do is fill in months that were never checked.
Is a digital log book acceptable?
Yes. The Order asks you to keep records and make them available to the enforcing authority. It does not say they have to be on paper. A PDF you can produce on request is a record.
How long do I need to keep the records?
The Order sets no retention period. In practice, keep at least the last twelve months of monthly checks and the last three years of service certificates, alongside your fire risk assessment.
Who counts as a competent person for the annual service?
Someone with the training, equipment and knowledge to do it – which in practice means a fire extinguisher engineer. Third-party certification such as BAFE is one way of demonstrating it, but it is not a legal requirement in itself.
My extinguisher gauge is in the green. Does it still need servicing?
Yes. The gauge tells you the unit is pressurised. It does not tell you the powder has not caked, the hose is clear or the seals are sound – which is what the basic service checks.