A monthly fire extinguisher inspection is a quick visual check of every extinguisher on the premises: is it where it should be, can you get to it, is it charged, has anyone tampered with it, and is its service in date. It is not a service. This form gives you one entry per extinguisher so you can walk the round and say what you see at each one, and you can fill it in here and download the finished record as a PDF without creating an account.
The monthly check is not the annual service
Two different jobs share the word "inspection", and mixing them up is the most common gap in extinguisher records.
The monthly check is visual. Anyone on site who has been shown what to look for can do it: the unit is present, reachable, sealed, charged by its gauge or weight, undamaged and in date. It takes a minute per extinguisher and nothing is opened or discharged.
The periodic maintenance is done by a trained, certified technician. They weigh and examine the unit, check the internals on the manufacturer's schedule, carry out discharge or pressure tests at longer intervals, and replace the service tag. Most regimes require it at least once a year.
The widely used standards frame this split slightly differently — NFPA 10 in the US, BS 5306-3 in the UK and AS 1851 in Australia (where routine servicing is commonly six-monthly) are the usual references. This form records the monthly visual check. It does not certify compliance with any standard; your local rules, your insurer and your fire risk assessment set what is required.
One entry per extinguisher, and why
A single line reading "all extinguishers checked, OK" is worthless the day one of them is found missing. Each unit here gets its own entry — location, type, the checks, a photo of its tag, and a result — so the record shows which unit, where, and what was wrong with it.
The type-specific checks only appear when they apply. A CO2 extinguisher has no pressure gauge and is checked by weight; a dry powder unit gets asked whether the powder has been loosened. Anything that does not apply is N/A and never counts against the score.
Speak while you walk, and the record writes itself: "Warehouse, north wall by dock door 3, 9 kg powder, pin and seal fine, needle in the green, tag says March" is one breath standing in front of it.
What fails most often
Six faults account for nearly everything a monthly round turns up:
- Access — a pallet, a trolley or a stack of boxes in front of it. The most common fault and the easiest to fix on the spot.
- Missing — taken to another area, used and put back empty, or never replaced after the last fire.
- Pin or tamper seal gone — assume it has been discharged, even if the gauge still looks right.
- Gauge out of the green — overcharged or losing pressure; either way it goes back to the technician.
- Service out of date — a full, sealed extinguisher with an expired tag still fails.
- Wrong type for the hazard — water beside electrical equipment, or no wet chemical unit by a deep fat fryer.
When one fails
Take it out of use and put a spare in its place if you have one — an empty bracket is worse than a faulty unit only if nobody knows it is empty. Then record what you did: replaced from spares, removed and reported, or service company called. The form asks for this on every failed unit, because a fault with no outcome is the entry that gets questioned later.
Common questions
How often do fire extinguishers need to be inspected?
A visual check about once a month by someone on site, plus periodic maintenance by a certified technician — typically annual, six-monthly in some regimes — and pressure or discharge tests at longer intervals set by the extinguisher type. Check your local requirements; this form covers the monthly check.
Who can do the monthly extinguisher check?
Anyone competent on site — a facilities person, a fire warden, a supervisor — who has been shown what to look for. No certification is needed for the visual check. Servicing, recharging and testing are different and need a trained technician.
How do I check a CO2 extinguisher with no gauge?
By weight. CO2 units are not fitted with a pressure gauge, so the technician weighs them at service. On a monthly check, lift it: if it feels noticeably light compared with a known full unit, or the seal is broken, report it. Mark the gauge check N/A.
Should I turn a dry powder extinguisher upside down?
Some manufacturers and regimes recommend inverting stored-pressure powder units a few times so the powder does not settle into a solid mass. Follow the maker's instructions and do it gently — never bang the cylinder.
Does the monthly check have to be written on the tag?
Many sites initial and date the tag or a card on the unit each month; others keep a register. Either way the point is a dated record per unit. The PDF from this form, with a photo of each tag, serves as that register.
What if an extinguisher is missing?
Record the location it should be at, tell whoever is responsible for fire safety on site the same day, and put a spare in its place if one is available. Then find out why — a missing unit has usually been used and not reported.