Plenty of people look at an extinguisher, see a current date, and figure they’re covered. If you don’t work in this trade, you wouldn’t know what else to look for. So how do you know the work actually got done?
That’s a lot like taking your car in for an oil change.
A bad shop can charge you about the same money and only swap the little sticker on the windshield that says come back in 3,000 miles. A good shop drains the oil, changes the filter, puts fresh oil in, then puts the sticker on. Same sticker either way. Only one of those cars got an oil change.
Fire extinguisher inspection and service works the same way.
Every 6 years, stored-pressure extinguishers need more than a standard annual inspection. They’re discharged and get an internal examination before they’re recharged. We pull the unit and take it to the truck. We discharge it, examine the inside, replace the valve stem and O-ring, put in new agent, and recharge it. The proof isn’t the date. It’s the verification collar ring around the neck of the valve. That ring only goes on one way: the extinguisher has to be discharged and the valve taken off.
Here’s what we’ve seen ourselves in the field: a new date on the extinguisher and nothing else. No discharge. No internal work. No collar. Price is not the tell — that shortcut can still cost full price, and typically does. We have also seen stretched collar rings forced over the handle, and collar rings that were cut and taped back on. If that’s what’s on your extinguisher, how do you know the work got done?
Either way, you end up with a brand-new date on the extinguisher. A new date does not mean the extinguisher will work when you need it. The same goes for hydrostatic testing. A new date alone doesn’t prove the cylinder was tested.
When you hire someone for fire extinguisher inspection near you, ask what they do when 6-year work comes due, and ask to see the collar.
When the 6-year work is due, our certified, licensed techs do it, and you get the collar.
The short version is here: What does good service really look like?.
Book fire extinguisher service
Is the date close? Did someone ask for paperwork? Not sure the last service got done? Call 1-800-348-9604 or request a quote on firstlinefire.com. Tell us the site and we’ll get you on the calendar.
This is a real report from one of our inspections, with the customer's details blacked out.
See a sample reportWe keep up with the date.
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