30 CFR § 57.4201
Inspection.
(a) Firefighting equipment shall be inspected according to the
following schedules:
(1) Fire extinguishers shall be inspected visually at
least once a month to determine that they are fully charged and operable.
(2) At least once every twelve months, maintenance checks
shall be made of mechanical parts, the amount and condition of extinguishing
agent and expellant, and the condition of the hose, nozzle, and vessel to
determine that the fire extinguishers will operate effectively.
(3) Fire extinguishers shall be hydrostatically tested
according to Table C-1 or a schedule based on the manufacturer's
specifications to determine the integrity of extinguishing agent vessels.
(4) Water pipes, valves, outlets, hydrants, and hoses that
are part of the mine's firefighting system shall be visually inspected at
least once every three months for damage or deterioration and use-tested at
least once every twelve months to determine that they remain functional.
(5) Fire suppression systems shall be inspected at least
once every twelve months. An inspection schedule based on the manufacturer's
specifications or the equivalent shall be established for individual
components of a system and followed to determine that the system remains
functional. Surface fire suppression systems are exempt from these inspection
requirements if the systems are used solely for the protection of property
and no persons would be affected by a fire.
(b) At the completion of each inspection or test required by this
standard, the person making the inspection or test shall certify that the
inspection or test has been made and the date on which it was made.
Certifications of hydrostatic testing shall be retained until the fire
extinguisher is retested or permanently removed from service. Other
certifications shall be retained for one year.
Table C-1--Hydrostatic Test Intervals
for Fire Extinguishers
+-------------------------------------------------------+
| Test |
| Extinguisher type interval |
| (years) |
+-------------------------------------------------------+
| Soda Acid 5 |
| |
| Cartridge-Operated Water and/or Antifreeze 5 |
| |
| Wetting Agent 5 |
| |
| Foam |
| 5 |
| AFFF (Aqueous Film Forming Foam) 5 |
| |
| Loaded Stream 5 |
| |
| Dry-Chemical with Stainless Steel Shells 5 |
| |
| Carbon Dioxide 5 |
| |
| Dry-Chemical, Stored Pressure, with Mild |
| Steel Shells, Brazed Brass Shells, or |
| Aluminum Shells 12 |
| |
| Dry-Chemical, Cartridge or Cylinder Operated, |
| with Mild Steel Shells 12 |
| |
| Bromotrifluoromethane-Halon 1301 12 |
| |
| Bromochlorodifluoromethane-Halon 1211 12 |
| |
| Dry-Powder, Cartridge or Cylinder-Operated, |
| with Mild Steel Shells1 12 |
+-------------------------------------------------------+
1 Except for stainless steel and steel used for compressed gas
cylinders, all other steel shells are defined as "mild steel" shells.