NFPA 72 Inspection, Testing, Maintenance, and Documentation
What the exam tests
NFPA 72 inspection, testing, and maintenance (ITM) tests frequencies, acceptance testing, sensitivity testing, recordkeeping, and impairment procedures.
Core rules
- ITM begins with acceptance testing after installation and continues through periodic inspection, testing, and maintenance.
- Smoke detectors require a sensitivity test after installation, within one year, and at the interval required thereafter, commonly every alternate year, unless a performance-based program is approved.
- Annual testing is common for initiating devices, notification appliances, and control equipment, but some components have monthly, quarterly, or semiannual requirements.
- Batteries require inspection and load testing; a battery that fails capacity must be replaced.
- Records must identify the device, test method, result, date, and tester, and be available to the authority having jurisdiction.
Worked example
During an annual inspection, a smoke detector's measured sensitivity is outside the manufacturer's listed range. The technician cannot simply note "tested." The detector is cleaned, recalibrated, or replaced, then retested and the result documented. If the device cannot be restored, it is listed as a deficiency with a correction date.
Traps
Treating the annual inspection as the only test; skipping sensitivity testing because the detector alarms; failing to notify the monitoring company before testing; not documenting deficiencies; and using a load test that does not match the battery manufacturer's method.