Ensuring that your building’s fire protection system is reliable is important not only for the safety of your employees, clients, and customers but also to avoid any fire code violations.
There may be times when your relationship with code enforcement feels like an antagonistic one, but the biggest priority of code enforcers is avoiding tragedy, not throwing a wrench in your day.
The best way to keep code enforcement at bay, of course, is to make sure you’re never violating any fire codes. And the best way to do that is to check out this simple guide to avoiding 5 common fire code violations in the workplace.
1. Keep Your Smoke Detectors and Ducts Clean
You obviously want to make sure your smoke detectors are always in working order, but there’s a bit more to it than that. When dust collects on them, they can become ineffective, which means your building is at risk of both a fire and a fire code violation.
Make sure to regularly clean both your smoke detectors and your ductwork and you should be able to keep your record with code enforcement clean, as well.
2. Take Care to Maintain Your Sprinklers
There are a number of different waypoints on the road to a fire code violation when it comes to your water-based fire protection systems. Take great care to ensure that your sprinklers are well-maintained and capable of doing their job should a fire break out.
Keep your sprinklers clear of dirt, dust, or any other material that might cause a delay in their activation or prevent them from activating at all. Also, keep in mind that sprinklers that have been painted are going to earn you an instant fire code violation. They must be replaced if you want to avoid one.
Another important thing to avoid is anything hanging from your fire sprinkler systems. This may seem like a no-brainer, but after years of people and things moving in and out of your building, it’s easy for something to wind up on the piping that you may not be aware of. Clear your fire sprinkler of any hanging items at all.
3. Don’t Block Escape Routes
It’s not all about fire sprinkler systems, fire alarms, and fire extinguishers. You also need to make sure there’s a safe and accessible escape route for the occupants of your building should a fire occur.
Some fires will not be put out until the situation has become catastrophic, so your best bet is to focus on egress and ensure that there are no obstructions that can steal precious seconds from anyone attempting to escape to safety.
4. Maintain Your Emergency Lighting
Even if you maintain a perfectly clear escape route for your occupants in the event of a fire, it may still be difficult for them to find their way out if your emergency lighting is not operable. Not only can this result in a tragedy but it will also cause a big rift between you and code enforcement. Always keep your emergency lighting in working order.
5. Make Sure Fire Extinguishers Are Working
You may have the best fire extinguishers New Jersey has to offer, but they’re useless if they’re expired or not in working condition. Take care to inspect your fire extinguishers on a regular basis so you know for certain that your building is safe and that you’re not at risk for a fire code violation.
If you want to learn more about keeping up to code, don’t waste time searching online for “fire extinguisher inspection NJ” to get the finer details. Give the team at ABC Fire & Safety a call.
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