Free checklist
Lightning protection system quarterly maintenance checklist
A quarterly lightning protection system round is short on purpose: it catches the wear items that fail between annual services. This checklist is sized for a tech with a phone. Every item says what to look at and the photo that proves the round happened. Work is commonly verified against NFPA 780, the applicable building code. Confirm the edition your authority having jurisdiction has adopted.
The checklist
Every item, and the photo evidence it needs
The photo count on each row is what RTI would require before the item can be submitted. Work the list here and watch the gate hold, or load it into RTI and let it enforce the real thing.
Before going on the roof
Roof access made under the site's fall protection procedure
Roof reached by the permitted route, tie-off or guardrail near edges as the procedure requires, someone below knows who is up, and no roof work with thunderstorms in the area.
No photoRoof work and storms since the last round reviewed
Roofing, rooftop equipment and facade jobs since the last round listed along with any reported strike, so those areas get a closer look on the walk.
No photo
Air terminals and conductors
Air terminals present, secure and plumb
Each terminal in place at its location, standing plumb, base secured to the roof, tip and fittings intact and not corroded through.
Conductor routing and clips intact
Cable runs following their path, held by clips at intervals, no loose spans, sharp bends, breaks or lengths lying in ponding water.
Conductor runs level or downward with no upward pockets
Each run heading level or downward toward ground, with no upward U or pocket left by a rerouted section or a detour around new rooftop equipment.
Splices and connectors along the runs checked
Each splicer or connector seated on the conductor with its bolts tight, none split, missing or pulled apart, and no conductor end left loose beside it.
Bonding
Bonding connections at fittings observed
Bonding jumpers and connectors tight, no loose or missing hardware, dissimilar-metal fittings not showing heavy corrosion.
Roof-mounted metal bonded into the system
Rooftop units, rails, ladders and metal curbs bonded where required, any new equipment since the last round checked for a connection.
Downleads and grounds
Down-conductor routing and protection checked
Down conductors held to the wall, guard protecting the lower run, no loose clips, splices pulled apart or missing sections.
Down conductors counted against the system drawing
Each downlead on the system drawing found on the walk, none removed or cut by facade, gutter or signage work since the last round.
No photoBase of each downlead checked at its ground termination
Where each down conductor meets its test joint or ground connector, fittings tight and unpainted and the conductor unbroken into the ground.
Ground connections and test wells accessible
Ground connections and test wells located, lids intact and reachable, connections not buried, flooded or corroded away.
No photo
Findings and records
Damage and missing parts reported with their locations
Each loose terminal, broken clip, unbonded unit or damaged guard reported to the owner with its roof area and photo, so a repair is ordered.
No photoRound logged for the qualified inspector's next visit
Findings and repairs made since the last inspection kept with the system record, so the inspector starts from what the rounds found.
No photo
What usually sends this back
The failures are almost always the evidence, not the work
- An air terminal knocked off plumb or missing entirely after a roof repair, its base adhesive let go and never re-secured.
- A run of conductor pulled loose from its cable clips and left lying across the membrane where foot traffic or ponding will chew it.
- New rooftop metal, a curb or a rail added by another trade and never bonded into the system.
Verified against
Common questions
6 answers
- What does this lightning protection system quarterly checklist cover?
- 14 items across 5 sections, covering before going on the roof, air terminals and conductors, bonding, downleads and grounds, and more. Each item spells out what the person walking the job is actually looking for, not just a box to tick.
- Who should run this inspection?
- The facilities or roofing maintenance tech on the quarterly roof round, after other roof work has come and gone.
- When in the schedule should this walk happen?
- Every quarter, run with the roof and rooftop-equipment walk since it's roof work by other trades that most often knocks a conductor or terminal loose.
- Why do these items ask for a photo?
- 8 of the 14 items call for photo evidence, 10 photos in all. A checklist answer without the photo is a claim; the photo is what makes the record worth something in a dispute and lets a reviewer approve work without re-walking the job.
- What most often fails a lightning protection system quarterly inspection?
- An air terminal knocked off plumb or missing entirely after a roof repair, its base adhesive let go and never re-secured. A run of conductor pulled loose from its cable clips and left lying across the membrane where foot traffic or ponding will chew it. New rooftop metal, a curb or a rail added by another trade and never bonded into the system.
- Can I use this checklist in RTI?
- Yes. Start a free RTI workspace, build this list as a checklist, and the Photo Gate holds the submit button until every mandatory item is answered and its photos are attached. Approved inspections roll into a branded turnover package with a tamper evident audit trail.
Run it with the Photo Gate
A checklist nobody can submit half-finished
Load this list into RTI, stick a QR tag on the area it covers, and the submit button stays locked until every mandatory item is answered and the 10 required photos exist. Approved walks roll into a branded turnover package with a tamper evident record behind every line.
See all 508 checklists · 6741 items and 5984 photo requirements in total.