How often do fire extinguishers need to be inspected?
| When | What | 29 CFR |
|---|---|---|
| Each month | Visual inspection of each portable extinguisher | 1910.157(e)(2) |
| Each year | Maintenance check, with the date recorded; stored pressure units need no internal examination | 1910.157(e)(3) |
| Every 6 years | Stored pressure dry chemical units that need a 12-year hydrostatic test are emptied and maintained; the count restarts after a recharge or hydrostatic test | 1910.157(e)(4) |
| Table L-1 intervals | Hydrostatic test, by trained persons with suitable equipment | 1910.157(f)(1), (f)(2) |
| While a unit is away | Alternate equivalent protection in its place | 1910.157(e)(5) |
The employer keeps each extinguisher fully charged, operable and in its designated place except during use (29 CFR 1910.157(c)(4)). The full text of the standard, paragraph by paragraph, is on the 29 CFR 1910.157 page, and the workplace fire safety guide places extinguishers among the other fire rules: exits, alarms and the fire prevention plan.
Who can inspect fire extinguishers?
OSHA makes the employer responsible for the inspection, maintenance and testing of every portable extinguisher in the workplace (29 CFR 1910.157(e)(1)) and names no certification for the monthly check: an employee you assign and show what to look for can do it. The annual maintenance check is usually done by a fire equipment service company, and hydrostatic testing is performed by trained persons with suitable testing equipment and facilities (1910.157(f)(1)). State and local fire codes may add licensing rules for the people who service extinguishers.
How to inspect a fire extinguisher each month
- Find it where it belongs. Mounted, in its designated place, with its location identified (1910.157(c)(1)).
- Check the way to it. Nothing in front of it, nothing hiding it: readily accessible means a worker can reach it without getting hurt.
- Read the gauge. On a stored pressure extinguisher the needle sits in the operable range, which the maker usually marks in green. The standard asks that each unit be fully charged and operable (1910.157(c)(4)).
- Look at the hardware. Pin and tamper seal in place, no dents, corrosion or leaks, hose not cracked, nozzle clear, instructions legible. These checks come from the manufacturers' instructions.
- Check the annual date. The last maintenance check is within the year, and its date is recorded (1910.157(e)(3)).
- Initial the month on the log , or write the defect and pull the unit, with equivalent protection in its place until it is back (1910.157(e)(5)).
Fire extinguishers on a construction site
Construction work follows 29 CFR 1926.150, not 1910.157. Extinguishers are inspected periodically and maintained in accordance with NFPA No. 10A-1970 (1926.150(c)(1)(viii)). The construction standard sets its own numbers:
- one extinguisher rated not less than 2A for each 3,000 square feet of protected building area, and no more than 100 feet of travel to the nearest one (1926.150(c)(1)(i));
- at least one on each floor, and in a multistory building one next to a stairway (1926.150(c)(1)(iv));
- one rated not less than 10B within 50 feet wherever more than 5 gallons of flammable or combustible liquids or 5 pounds of flammable gas are used, fuel tanks of vehicles excepted (1926.150(c)(1)(vi)).
The guide how many fire extinguishers a construction site needs works through these numbers on real floor plans, and the 29 CFR 1926.150 page has the rest of the construction fire protection rules.
Training, when employees are expected to use them
Where extinguishers are provided for employee use, employees get an educational program on the general principles of extinguisher use and the hazards of incipient stage fire fighting (29 CFR 1910.157(g)(1)), upon initial employment and at least annually thereafter (1910.157(g)(2)). An employer whose written fire safety policy calls for the immediate and total evacuation of employees, with an emergency action plan and a fire prevention plan, and who has no extinguishers in the workplace, is exempt from 1910.157 unless another part 1910 standard requires an extinguisher (1910.157(b)(1)).
That choice is worth making on purpose. The article on the OSHA standards that call for an emergency action plan lists the triggers, and the free emergency action plan builder writes the plan for either path.
What OSHA cited most on fire extinguishers in FY2025
| Paragraph | What it covers | FY2025 citations |
|---|---|---|
| 1910.157(c)(1) | Extinguishers provided, mounted, located and identified so they are readily accessible | 663 |
| 1910.157(e)(2) | Monthly visual inspection | 486 |
| 1910.157(e)(3) | Annual maintenance check and its record | 431 |
| 1910.157(g)(1) | Training program where extinguishers are provided for employee use | 177 |
| 1910.157(c)(4) | Kept fully charged, operable and in place | 69 |
| 1910.157(g)(2) | Training upon initial employment and at least annually | 65 |
| 1926.150(c)(1)(i) | Construction: one 2A extinguisher per 3,000 sq ft, 100 ft travel distance | 51 |
| 1926.150(c)(1)(iv) | Construction: at least one on each floor, by a stairway in multistory buildings | 39 |
| 1926.150(c)(1)(viii) | Construction: inspected periodically and maintained per NFPA No. 10A-1970 | 33 |
| 1926.150(a)(4) | Construction: equipment periodically inspected and maintained; defective equipment replaced | 14 |
| 1926.150(c)(1)(vi) | Construction: a 10B extinguisher within 50 ft of flammable liquids or gas in use | 9 |
| 1926.150(a)(3) | Construction: firefighting equipment conspicuously located | 8 |
1910.157: 1,953 citations in FY2025 at 1,495 inspections, 189 of them at construction sites (NAICS 23). 1926.150: 160 citations in FY2025 at 158 inspections, 155 of them at construction sites (NAICS 23). Citation items issued Oct 1, 2024 to Sep 30, 2025, counted by HazComFast on U.S. Department of Labor enforcement data (extracted Oct 13, 2026). Inspected establishments, not the whole industry.
Questions about fire extinguisher inspections
How often do fire extinguishers need to be inspected?
In general industry, portable extinguishers are visually inspected monthly (29 CFR 1910.157(e)(2)) and get an annual maintenance check (1910.157(e)(3)). Stored pressure dry chemical extinguishers that require a 12-year hydrostatic test are also emptied and maintained every 6 years (1910.157(e)(4)), and extinguishers are hydrostatically tested at the intervals of Table L-1 (1910.157(f)(2)).
Does OSHA require a fire extinguisher inspection tag?
OSHA asks the employer to record the annual maintenance date and keep that record one year after the last entry or the life of the shell, whichever is less (29 CFR 1910.157(e)(3)). It does not prescribe a tag: a tag on the extinguisher is one way to keep the record, and a log like the annual record in this template is another.
Do I have to keep records of the monthly inspections?
1910.157(e)(2) asks for the monthly visual inspection but does not ask for a written record of it. A dated log is still the simplest way to show an inspector, an insurer or a fire marshal that the inspections took place.
Who can do the monthly fire extinguisher inspection?
The employer is responsible for the inspection, maintenance and testing of all portable extinguishers in the workplace (29 CFR 1910.157(e)(1)), and the standard names no certification for the monthly check: a trained employee can do it. Hydrostatic testing is performed by trained persons with suitable testing equipment and facilities (1910.157(f)(1)). State and local fire codes may require a licensed company for maintenance.
What are the fire extinguisher inspection rules on a construction site?
On construction work, 29 CFR 1926.150(c)(1)(viii) says extinguishers are inspected periodically and maintained in accordance with NFPA No. 10A-1970. The construction standard does not repeat the monthly rule of 1910.157(e)(2); a monthly round on this log is one way to meet the periodic inspection.
How many fire extinguishers does a construction site need?
At least one rated not less than 2A for each 3,000 square feet of protected building area, with no point more than 100 feet of travel from one (29 CFR 1926.150(c)(1)(i)); at least one on each floor, next to a stairway in multistory buildings (1926.150(c)(1)(iv)); and one rated not less than 10B within 50 feet wherever more than 5 gallons of flammable or combustible liquids or 5 pounds of flammable gas are used (1926.150(c)(1)(vi)).
Sources and verification
- 29 CFR 1910.157, Portable fire extinguishers
- 29 CFR 1926.150, Fire protection (construction)
- 29 CFR 1910.38, Emergency action plans
Verified against the eCFR on Oct 20, 2026 (title 29 current to Oct 16, 2026). State Plan states enforce their own standards, which may go further than the federal ones. Not legal advice.
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