Why do I need a log if I already did the inspection?

Because in an inspection an undocumented test and a test that never happened look the same. Most life-safety rules specify not only the interval but the record it produces and how long that record must be kept, so the log is part of the requirement rather than an administrative extra.

What should a facility inspection log include?

The task and what it involves, the interval, the date it was performed, who performed it and whether they were permitted to, the result, and any reading or note. Where a check fails, the record should also show what was done about it and when it was corrected — a failed entry with nothing after it is what an inspector reads closely.

How long do I keep inspection records?

It varies by system and by the rule that requires the test — many life-safety records carry a minimum retention of several years. Each log sheet generated here states the retention period recorded for that specific task alongside the code reference, so the answer travels with the record rather than living in somebody's memory.

Compliance log book

The Compliance Calendar says when. This is what you write it on — the right sheets, at the right frequency, with the code and retention on each.

What kind of facility?

This selects the systems a facility of that type usually has. You adjust it below.

An undocumented test is an untested system

That is the whole reason this exists. You ran the monthly check, you can’t produce a log, and on the day it counts as not run. Most life-safety rules specify three things and people remember one: the interval, the record it produces, and how long that record is kept. This generates the record.

Built from the same rules as the calendar

Every sheet comes from the verified rule set already behind the Compliance Calendar — the same intervals, the same code references, the same notes on who is permitted to perform each task, and the retention period recorded against it. No second source and no second opinion, so the two tools cannot drift apart and tell you different things.

Only tasks that recur at least once a year get a sheet. A five-year internal obstruction investigation belongs on the calendar, not in a log book.

Fillable, or a clipboard

Tick it off on a phone at the panel and the sheet prints with the work already on it, or print it blank and fill it in with a pen — both are how this actually gets used, so both work. Nothing is uploaded and no account is needed.

Where it meets the other tools

The Compliance Calendar schedules these; this records them. The PM checklist covers the maintenance that isn’t code-driven. A failure here becomes a work order, and the work log is the proof it was put right.

And when the same check keeps failing, that has stopped being a maintenance item — a generator failing its load test, emergency lights failing the 90-minute discharge, a panel kept alive on salvaged parts. That is a line on the capital plan. Drill records for licensed facilities sit alongside the emergency plan they belong to, and completed hot work permits file with these same records.

General information, not code or legal advice. Intervals, codes and retention periods carry the verification date shown on each sheet; your authority having jurisdiction may set different requirements, and adopted code editions vary by jurisdiction. Confirm before relying on any of it.

Questions people ask

Why do I need a log if I already did the inspection?: Because in an inspection an undocumented test and a test that never happened look the same. Most life-safety rules specify not only the interval but the record it produces and how long that record must be kept, so the log is part of the requirement rather than an administrative extra.
What should a facility inspection log include?: The task and what it involves, the interval, the date it was performed, who performed it and whether they were permitted to, the result, and any reading or note. Where a check fails, the record should also show what was done about it and when it was corrected — a failed entry with nothing after it is what an inspector reads closely.
How long do I keep inspection records?: It varies by system and by the rule that requires the test — many life-safety records carry a minimum retention of several years. Each log sheet generated here states the retention period recorded for that specific task alongside the code reference, so the answer travels with the record rather than living in somebody's memory.