When Testing Emergency Lights......

[ProDave]

I thought you were supposed to test that they remained illuminated for a prescribed length of time (i.e to check the batteries were okay)

So today I was fixing some duff light fittings at a village hall.  A man turns up in a Chub van.

He comes in.  Finds the test switch, inserts the fish key.  Walks round checking all the EM lights are on. Wrote some things on his clip board, switched them off and went.

He can't have been there for more than 10 minutes.

I guess EM light testing has now degenerated to the depths of PA testing.  I wonder how much the hall got charged for that test?

 

[kerching]

Let me tell you a story....

A couple of years ago I did a shop refit . Part of job was to install new fire alarm. Old system was Max Clifforded and was under third party test contract to Chubb. Contract was due to end and chubb were to be potted.

Finished refit at the weekend, went back on the tuesday for a couple of extras. All call points and detectors had little stickers on them.

WTF! Chubb had been in on the monday and done their last contractual test on the "old system".......and said it needed 5 detectors replacing. I had only fitted them on the friday. When the branch manager tackled the chubb muppet about this his answer was......'well, this is the first time i have been to this shop, i usually do intruder systems!"

He was bade a fond farewell and advised to exit in a style reminiscent of a 'short and jerky procreative movement'

I believe they used to be on commission

Just warning

 

[SLIPSHOD & SLAPDASH]

The monthly test is to simply check the lights illuminate , without causing any possible damage such as flattening batteries or wearing out tubes. This seems to be what the Chubb man correctly did.

There are various tests, Weekly is just checking the charge light is illuminated, annually its a full discharge.

 

[Evans Electric]

Slapdash is right I believe , and a few of my customers used to do the weekly "Function " test themselves, keeping a record book then getting me to do the soak tests  at 1 hr  & 3 hrs .

I  also learned from a borrowed set of Emergency Ltg Regs  , that a 2 hour duration is permissable for premises that only have regular staff who know the exit routes and the fire drills etc.

Wherever the public are admitted it is 3 hours .

I did a thread on this but keeping it concise I fitted some of those Twinspot Emergency units , tested them a year later and they faded out just after 2 hours  . They were in a printing works so the 2 hour limit applied .  The usual stuff from over the waters , marked up as 3 hour NM .

 

[M107]

We do our monthly flick test just like that, turn the em's test switch on the lights flick on, turn them off sign the book job done.

Once a year they get the full 3 hour treatment.

 

[septiclecky]

Seems like you have got it wrong

 

[Andy™]

Seems like you have got it wrong

unless they also do the same the other 11 month of the year

 

[ProDave]

Okay so perhaps he was doing the monthly test.

But I can't see the point in paying someone to do that?

Then again the caretaker doesn't seem capable of changing light bulbs which is why I was there.

It's a hall to which the public are admitted so it would be 3 hours.

 

[Richard-the-Ninth]

I can only agree with what has been said.

It is right that the lights should only get a full discharge test once a year, and most people will do a monthly test themselves. Yes it is easy to do a monthly test, but they may also be under contract to chubb to have it done as part of said contract. Its surprising what some people pay for as part of a contracted service that they could easily do themselves, but its all down to money and liability.

 

[Andy™]

Does it matter over that side of the wall ?

Your from the non part ***cough*** part of the country so surely it just doesn't matter :slap

I heard the Emergency Lights in that country used CR2032's as the battery cos it was deemed more cost effective  :innocent

thought they had a small bike dynamo on the side, turn to get light

 

[NozSpark]

..... and there was me thinking that they were solar

 

[Evans Electric]

I can only agree with what has been said.

It is right that the lights should only get a full discharge test once a year, and most people will do a monthly test themselves. Yes it is easy to do a monthly test, but they may also be under contract to chubb to have it done as part of said contract. Its surprising what some people pay for as part of a contracted service that they could easily do themselves, but its all down to money and liability.

Its also surprising how many people these days are not " practical"  .  It never ceases to amaze me , I've been to places where they can't or won't change a light bulb .   

 

[SLIPSHOD & SLAPDASH]

I cant complain as we do this and a 3 monthly fire alarm test at 3 care homes. They do manage the weekly check that 'the little green light is on' themselves though. I have an uncle who has managed to fit light bulbs wrong and wedge them in the lampholder.

 

[sr4a]

We tested our EM Lighting monthly for a duration of about 30 Mins and Yearly for 3 Hrs and a full discharge every 3 years replacing any units that failed during any of these tests. These were in site offices on a site that lasted for 11 years.

 

[binky]

Big companies are good at pushing service contracts, it's where they make the most money. Lots of outfits sign-up out of ignorance or don't want the responsibilty.....

 

[ProDave]

I was doing a job in a college earlier in the week, and got talking to the caretaker (who called me in to do the job) about emergency lights.

This was because I was working on a lighting circuit so had the power to that circuit off, which bought on some of the EM fittings.  After 5 minutes they went out.

He thought "testing" them just meant once a month turning them off and checking they work. So that's all they have ever done.  Clearly a lot of them probably have duff batteries, but they never get tested properly.

Lets hope they start testing them properly now.