When
Fire extinguishers are used in the workplace to control small fires or to facilitate escape when a fire is blocking an escape path. Unless the employer has established and implemented a written fire safety policy which demands the immediate and total evacuation of employees from the workplace in case of a fire and includes an emergency action plan that meets the requirements of 29 CFR 1910.38 and a fire prevention program which meets the requirements of 29 CFR 1910.39, extinguishers must be given at work. Additionally, irrespective of whether an employer has the essential emergency action and fire prevention plans, fire extinguishers should be provided if a specific OSHA regulation requires they be supplied (as is the case in certain situations when welding is being performed).
Where
When deciding where to place fire extinguishers, you need to determine which sort of fire might occur in a particular region and the amount of hazard. The OSHA requirements for fire extinguisher supply are as follow:
· Extinguishers for Class A fires should be placed such that employees need to travel no longer than 75 ft to make it to the fire extinguisher.
· Extinguishers for Class B fires must be placed such that employees will need to travel no longer than 50 ft to reach the fire extinguisher.
· Class C fire extinguishers must be dispersed depending on the right Class A or Class B risks. Class C fires are in reality a Class A or Class B fire involving energized electrical equipment where the flame extinguishing media has to be nonconductive. Consequently, in the event the fire danger is more closely associated with a Class A type of fire, the distribution pattern for Class A extinguishers must be used, and if the fire hazard is much more closely associated with a Class B type of fire, the supply pattern for B extinguishers should be used.
· Class D fire extinguishers must be dispersed that the worker travel distance in the combustible metal working area to any extinguisher is 75 feet or less. (Per OSHA regulation, Class D fire extinguishers are required in locations where combustible metal powders, flakes, shavings, or similarly sized substances are generated at least once every fourteen days.)
When deciding the spacing of fire extinguishers in your office, remember that these are guidelines only. After reviewing the risks in your office, you may determine that spacing the extinguishers more closely compared to OSHA requirements is justified. Additionally, when using multiple-class extinguishers (ABC extinguishers, by way of instance), you will distribute extinguishers based on the hazard type-so, if an ABC extinguisher is meant to be used with Class B fire hazards, you would disperse them such that the travel distance is no less than 50 feet, rather than using the 75-foot principle for Class A.
Inspection, Maintenance, and Testing
If you decide to provide fire extinguishers at work, you must institute a program to inspect, maintain, and test them. The OSHA requirements for review, maintenance, and testing of fire extinguishers include:
All portable fire extinguishers at work must be inspected, maintained, and analyzed.
The extinguishers must be visually inspected a least once each month. This review should include ensuring that there is clear access to the extinguisher so a worker can easily reach it in the event of a fire and that the extinguisher remains in place, hasn't been damaged, and seems to be in working order (if the extinguisher has a judge, it reveals as complete and the safety pin is still in place-indicating that the fire extinguisher has not been used). Fire extinguishers that are damaged or missing ought to be replaced promptly.
Perform an annual maintenance check on mobile extinguishers. An internal evaluation of stored pressure extinguishers is not required. The date of this maintenance check ought to be recorded and the listing of this test should be kept for a year following the previous entry or the lifetime of the shell, whichever is less. Additionally, you are required to empty and keep dry chemical extinguishers (which require a 12-year hydrostatic test) every six years. (Dry chemical extinguishers that have nonrefillable, disposable containers are exempt from this requirement) Note that if recharging or hydrostatic testing is performed, the six-year requirement begins from that date.
Provide a replacement extinguisher when portable fire extinguishers are removed from service for maintenance and recharging. The replacement should be of the same (or equivalent) type (for example, an ABC extinguisher may be used as a replacement for a Class C fire extinguisher but one that is rated for Class A fires only cannot).
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