Most Kentucky businesses with a fire alarm need the whole system inspected and tested once a year. NFPA 72 calls for a yearly test, and in Kentucky the local fire marshal has the last word. Some parts get checked more often, depending on the system.
That yearly visit is the one time somebody puts hands on every piece of the alarm and makes sure it still does its job. A fire alarm has two jobs, really. It finds the fire early, and it tells everybody in the building to get out. If one detector or one horn has quit, you won't know it until the day you need it.
How often does a fire alarm need to be inspected in Kentucky?
Once a year for the full inspection and test. That's the plain answer for most commercial buildings. The national standard is NFPA 72, and it's what most inspectors work from. In Kentucky, the local fire marshal decides how it's applied to your building, so if your marshal has asked for something more, that's what counts.
Depending on the system, a few parts get looked at more often than once a year. We'll tell you what applies to yours when we're there.
What gets tested at the yearly inspection
The panel is the brain of the system. The detectors and pull stations tell it something's wrong, and the horns and strobes tell the people. At the yearly inspection we test all of it:
- The alarm panel
- The panel's backup batteries
- Every smoke and heat detector
- Every pull station
- Every horn and strobe
- The tie-in to any suppression system, so a release sets off the building alarm
When something fails, we don't just write it down and leave. We fix it or replace it. A detector that won't trip or a strobe that stays dark gets taken care of, and the report shows what was done.
How the visit goes (and why your doors stay open)
Before any horn goes off, we tell your people. Nobody should be grabbing their coat over a test. Then we work through the building one device at a time. The panel and its batteries get tested, and every detector, pull station, horn, and strobe gets checked.
We note what passed and what didn't. What we can fix that day, we fix. When we leave, the system has been inspected and serviced, and we leave a report with you. Keep it with your building papers, because somebody is going to ask for it.
Your doors stay open the whole time. Customers keep coming in, and the work keeps going.
If your system is coming due, or you aren't sure when it was last done, call 1-800-348-9604 and we'll get it on the calendar.
Who's asking for it — the fire marshal, your insurer, your landlord
Usually it's one of three people. The fire marshal may ask to see the last inspection when they come through. Insurers often ask for the inspection report, sometimes at renewal and sometimes after a claim. And if you lease, your landlord or property manager may want a copy for their own files.
All three want the same thing. They want to see that the system was tested within the last year and that anything that failed got fixed. The report from the visit covers that.
Trouble signals and false alarms between inspections
A lot can happen between yearly visits. A panel starts beeping with a trouble signal. A detector keeps going off when there's no smoke. A strobe in the back hallway goes dark. Don't just silence it and hope.
Call us. We handle repairs, trouble signals, and false alarms, and our 24-hour emergency service covers the ones that can't wait until morning.
We can also watch the system for you. Our monitoring runs 24 hours a day. We monitor security systems too, though we don't monitor cameras. More on fire alarm inspection, service and monitoring, and on how alarms and security fit together.
Taking over from another company
Maybe the company that installed your system stopped coming around. Maybe nobody can find the last report. That happens more than you'd think.
We take over systems someone else put in. We'll come out, inspect what's there, and take care of it from that point on. You don't need to replace a working system just because you're changing who services it.
One company for the alarm and the extinguishers
The same company that inspects your alarm can inspect and service your extinguishers, and your exit and emergency lights too. It all goes on one calendar. We keep the due dates. You don't have to think about them.
We work out of three shops, in Paducah, Madisonville, and Princeton, Indiana, and cover businesses across Kentucky, Illinois, Indiana, Tennessee, Missouri, and Alabama. If you're in western Kentucky, here's more on fire alarm inspection in Paducah. We've been at this since 1984, and we're 5-Star Rated on Google.
Questions
- Do we have to close during the inspection?
- No. We tell your people before the horns go off, and you stay open while we work.
- How long has First-Line been doing this?
- Since 1984. That's over 40 years of inspecting and servicing fire protection for businesses in this part of the country.
- Can you inspect a system someone else installed?
- Yes. We inspect what's there, fix what needs fixing, and take care of it from then on.
Need your alarm inspected and serviced?
Call 1-800-348-9604 or get a free quote. Tell us where the building is and what's on the wall. We'll take it from there.