What Not Knowing Could Cost You
Ask most business owners when their fire extinguisher was last serviced, and you’ll usually get one of two answers: a rough guess, or a shrug.
It’s an easy thing to lose track of. Extinguishers sit quietly in a corner or on a wall bracket for months, sometimes years, without needing a second thought.
The problem is that “I’m not sure” isn’t really an answer your business can afford to give, particularly if that extinguisher is ever called on in an emergency or questioned after one.
How to Check Your Fire Extinguisher’s Expiration Date
Every serviced extinguisher in New Zealand should carry a tag or sticker recording the date of its last inspection and, usually, when the next one is due. Take a look at yours and you’re checking for a few things:
- A service date within the last 12 months
- The technician or company who carried it out
- A pressure gauge sitting in the green zone, not the red
- No obvious damage, corrosion or a missing pin
If the tag shows a date over a year old, or there’s no tag at all, that’s your answer: it’s overdue, and it needs professional attention.
For the full breakdown of how often different extinguisher types need servicing under NZS 4503:2005, our guide on how often fire extinguishers should be serviced in New Zealand covers it in detail.
Why “I Don’t Know” Is the Real Risk
A missed service is one thing. Not knowing whether it’s been missed is another, and it’s the more common problem.
Under the NZ Health and Safety at Work Act 2015, businesses have a duty to provide and maintain safety equipment, so far as is reasonably practicable - including fire extinguishers. If something goes wrong and there’s no record showing it was properly maintained, that’s a difficult gap to explain, whether it’s an inspection, an insurance claim following a fire, or simply a staff member reaching for equipment that fails to work when they need it most.
Fire and Emergency New Zealand’s guidance for building owners reinforces the same point: fire protection equipment needs to be properly maintained, not just installed and forgotten. A dusty tag or a gap in your records isn’t just a compliance headache, it’s a sign the extinguisher itself may not be ready to perform.
What a Professional Fire Extinguisher Service Checks
A professional service carried out by Fireco’s expert technicians goes well beyond a glance at the gauge. It typically covers:
- Full inspection of the cylinder, hose, nozzle and pin
- Pressure and weight checks
- Recharging or refilling if it’s been discharged or is under-pressurised
- Updating the service tag with the date and next due date
That last point matters as much as the check itself. A properly maintained tag is your evidence trail, and it’s what makes the next audit, insurance review or BWOF check straightforward instead of stressful.
Fireco’s Fire Equipment Servicing - Keeping You Safe and Compliant
The easiest way to never again find yourself asking “when was this last done?” is to get your fire extinguishers onto a proper maintenance schedule with a fire safety provider who tracks it for you - that’s where we can help.
Fireco’s fire equipment servicing covers inspection, testing, recharging and tagging for extinguishers across Northland and Auckland, on a schedule that keeps your records current and your equipment genuinely ready.
Whether it’s one extinguisher in a small office or a full fleet across multiple sites, we’ll get you compliant and keep you that way. Looking to order fire extinguishers for your business? We can help with that too.
Not sure when yours was last serviced? Talk to the Fireco team and we’ll help you find out, and get it sorted.
