Most people assume a fire inspection exists to find something wrong. It doesn’t. An inspection confirms your systems are in compliance and will perform properly in the event of an emergency. Painted sprinkler heads and blocked sprinkler heads are two of the most frequent reasons a fire inspection turns one up.
Not every building has an issue, and not every visit ends with a deficiency report. However, when an issue is found, it can often have a negative effect on how the system works. Left unaddressed, it can put people and property at risk. The good news is that most deficiencies are corrected quickly and easily once they’re found.
Below is what we encounter most often during inspections. Keep in mind that every building is different, so deficiencies can vary.
Painted or Corroded Sprinkler Heads
A sprinkler head activates when heat melts a fusible element or breaks a glass bulb inside it. Paint and corrosion buildup can block or cover that element. Either way, the head may not activate the way it’s designed to, and that’s flagged as a deficiency the moment an inspector spots it.
Painted sprinkler heads show up often in hotels, schools, restaurants, and apartment complexes, or anywhere painting or renovation work has recently been done without masking off the sprinkler head first. It’s a fast mistake to make and an easy one to miss until an inspection catches it. Once a head is painted over, there’s no cleaning it off and calling it fixed. It must be replaced in order to pass NFPA standards.
Our technicians catch painted and corroded heads on the spot during inspection. We’ll talk to you on-site about what we found, then send it to you again in the written inspection report.
Learn more: Fire Sprinkler Inspection
Blocked Sprinkler Heads
Sprinkler heads need clear space around them to work correctly. Storage and inventory stacked too close interferes with water distribution when a head activates. Whether it’s intentional or not, it results in a deficiency on the inspection report.
Blocked sprinkler heads show up most in closets and storage areas. It’s not limited to any one type of business or building type either. Schools, grocery stores, and retail locations deal with it regularly. Someone needs a place to put extra product or supplies, the space near the ceiling looks unused, and a box ends up where it shouldn’t be.
The fix is simple: clear the area around the head. Our team flags it during the inspection and walks you through what needs to move. No special equipment, no repair, just space.
Other Reasons Inspections Turn Up a Deficiency
Painted and blocked sprinkler heads aren’t the only issues our team runs into. Below is what else shows up on a typical inspection, grouped by system, in no particular order.
Sprinkler Systems
- Missing 5-year sprinkler inspections. Annual inspections are well known, but the more extensive 5-year internal inspection is easy to lose track of. It includes an internal evaluation of piping and check valves. If this inspection is overdue, we’ll walk you through why it’s needed and the next steps to take to resolve the issue.
- Out-of-date pressure gauges. A sprinkler system’s pressure gauge helps confirm the system is holding normal water pressure. An inaccurate or damaged gauge can hide a real problem or suggest one that isn’t actually there, which is why a faulty or outdated gauge gets flagged and replaced. Our inspectors check gauges during every visit.
- Missing escutcheons or cover plates. The escutcheon or cover plate around a sprinkler head is easy to overlook during a renovation or a ceiling repair. A missing plate is a documented code deficiency, not a cosmetic issue.
Fire Alarm and Life Safety Systems
- Painted-over smoke detectors and alarm devices. Similar issues to painted sprinkler heads arise. Paint or other material blocks the sensing chamber, and a blocked detector may not sense smoke the way it’s designed to, delaying the alarm’s activation.
- Expired alarm system batteries. Control panels and notification devices run on batteries when there is no power to the panel during an outage, storm, or similar event. Once that battery has expired, the system’s backup power is compromised. The panel may not be able to notify emergency services if the power goes out.
- No active monitoring. A fire alarm that sounds inside the building but doesn’t notify a monitoring center is only doing half its job. We check for active, connected monitoring on every inspection , confirming that both the people in the building being notified to evacuate, but the fire department is also being notified of the emergency
- Emergency lighting battery failures. Most emergency lighting runs on battery backup that needs to hold a charge. A failing battery is the kind of problem nobody notices until the power goes out, which is the worst time to find out.
Learn more: Fire Alarm Inspection and Testing
Fire Extinguishers
- Missed extinguisher service intervals. While annual fire extinguisher inspections are the standard, they’re only part of the maintenance schedule. Additional services, such as 6-year maintenance and 12-year hydrostatic testing, are also required to keep the extinguisher compliant and reliable in the event of a fire.
Learn more: Fire Extinguisher Inspection
Backflow Preventers
- Failing check valves. Backflow preventers protect general water supply. A failing check valve is one of the more common issues found during inspection. Left alone, it’s an immediate failure.
- Packing leaks on valve controls. Some backflow preventer control or shut-off valves are sealed with packing material that wears out over time. It’s a maintenance issue more than a safety failure on its own, but it still needs to be corrected.
What Happens When You Don’t Understand an Inspection Report
Occasionally a client finds areas of an inspection report with deficiencies they don’t understand. If a system passed inspection last year and fails this year, the first question is usually some version of “Why wasn’t this written up before?”
A lot can change between one inspection and the next. Consider whether:
- The system has simply aged
- Renovation contractors blocked, painted over, or damaged part of the system
- The city did nearby construction or repairs
- A storm affected any system components
- The system activated, which can call for updates or repairs
That is why inspections are required by your local jurisdiction and NFPA, the National Fire Protection Association.
If Kauffman Co. wasn’t the contractor who performed that prior inspection, we can’t speak to how thorough it was or what the previous inspector did and didn’t check. We thoroughly document what we find and why it matters, so there’s no question about what’s being flagged and what it takes to fix it.
Painted heads get replaced. Blocked heads get cleared. Old gauges get swapped. Batteries get changed. Backflow valves get corrected. Most of what fails a fire inspection has a simple fix once you know what to look for. If it’s been a while since your last inspection, or you’re not sure what shape your systems are in, Kauffman Co. covers all major fire protection system inspections for customers throughout Texas and the Greater Gulf Coast Area
One Call. Complete Fire Protection.
(713) 937-4144 or contact us online.
Questions Building Owners Ask After a Failed Inspection
A failed inspection is stressful, and most of the questions we hear come from that stress.
Is my business going to get shut down?
In most cases, no. Inspectors don’t control the Fire Marshal’s decisions, but we’ll do our best to communicate with you and the Fire Marshal to ensure your building stays safe for occupancy.
How long will this take to be fixed?
It depends on the deficiency. Some corrections happen the same day, on the spot, if a technician has the part on the truck. Others require parts to be ordered and a follow-up visit. We’ll tell you the timeline as soon as we know and work with you to schedule the repair immediately.
Does an inspector automatically look for something wrong?
No. An inspection exists to confirm compliance, not to manufacture a deficiency. Plenty of buildings pass without a single issue. When something does turn up, it’s because it’s genuinely there, not because we’re trying to find something.
How do I pass a fire inspection the first time?
While not always possible due to normal wear and tear, there are a few small things you can do. Ensure sprinkler heads remain unpainted and clear of touch-ups during renovations. Keep sprinkler heads clear of obstruction, especially in storage areas. Stay current on the less obvious intervals too, such as the 5-year internal sprinkler inspection and the extinguisher’s 6-year maintenance and 12-year hydrostatic test, etc. Failing an inspection is not always preventable but taking these steps can ensure your system doesn’t fail for these easily preventable issues.
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