Fire alarms play a critical role in the safety and security of your home or business. The last thing you want during an emergency situation is for your fire alarm to not be working, which makes it important for you to prioritize regular inspection of your alarms to ensure they are in good working condition.
How often do you need to book a fire alarm inspection, and why is fire alarm service so important?
Here’s an overview of what you should know about caring for your fire alarm system to ensure its proper function and reliability.
Servicing a fire alarm
Fire alarms need to be functioning properly if they are to be able to alert people of fires and prevent unnecessary loss of life and injury. Most local municipalities require certain commercial buildings to have fire alarm systems and to make sure they actually function properly. This means fire alarm service is necessary to abide by those regulations and avoid potential fines.
Fire alarm service is also crucial for preventing false alarms. The longer an alarm goes without attention, the more likely it is to set off a false alarm, which in itself can be a safety risk—or at the very least an avoidable nuisance.
Industry experts generally recommend a fire alarm be inspected by a competent professional every six months, but for larger buildings that have more complex systems with multiple alarms, it is recommended to have the system inspected on a quarterly basis.
Self-testing
In addition to having a professional come out to examine the condition of your fire alarm, it is also important to engage in regular self-testing. Regular tests are important for checking the condition of the fire alarm and should involve activating at least one fire alarm call point. The inspector should check to make sure the alarm sounds and the panel gets the signal. When doing these checks yourself, perform the check from a different call point every time, and make a note in a log that you completed the test.
These tests are also a good opportunity to practice fire drills with the occupants of your building, whether they are alerted to the test in advance or not.
If you perform one of these self tests and discover something wrong with the fire alarm, you will need to report the problem to your fire alarm servicing company immediately. Common examples of issues that pop up in these tests include: fire alarm panels showing a fault or making a sound; a lack of power traveling to the fire alarm panel; alarms going off when there is no fire or no testing being done.
Interested in learning more about the importance of fire alarm service? We encourage you to contact our team at Carpet Capital Multi-System, Inc. with any questions you have about maintaining a fire alarm and getting a professional out to check its condition. We look forward to working with you and answering your questions to help you keep your facilities safe.