What does this smoke control fan annual checklist cover?

14 items across 5 sections, covering notice and lockout, deep clean and mechanical, performance, damper actuation, 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 mechanical service lead inspects and documents; the licensed tech runs and documents the annual dedicated test with the AHJ witnessing.

When in the schedule should this walk happen?

Once a year, scheduled around the dedicated test so the fan, dampers and controls are already clean and verified before the AHJ walk.

Why do these items ask for a photo?

12 of the 14 items call for photo evidence, 14 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 smoke control fan annual inspection?

Wheel and housing cleaned around, not off, so the fan cannot make its rated pressure or airflow during the witnessed test. Damper actuators and end switches never exercised, and one fails to prove its position when the AHJ calls the sequence.

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.

Free checklist

Smoke control fan annual maintenance checklist

The annual smoke control fan service is the deep pass: the measurements, cleanings and tests a quarterly round doesn't reach. This checklist keeps the full service on record with the photos that make it defensible later. Work is commonly verified against NFPA 92, IMC (mechanical code). Confirm the edition your authority having jurisdiction has adopted.

Start free with this checklist Download as PDF

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.

Notice and lockout

Owner, occupants and monitoring told before the annual service
Monitoring company told of test signals, owner told which zones are impaired under the impairment procedure, occupants warned stair doors may pull hard, panels put in test by the qualified tech.
No photo
Lock and tag on every source before the fan is opened
Disconnect, any drive or bypass feed and the standby feed locked and tagged; each powered check runs guards on, people clear, locks off by whoever hung them, re-locked before hands go back in.

Deep clean and mechanical

Wheel, housing and dampers cleaned and fasteners re-torqued
Blades clean to bare surface, housing sound, mounting and curb hardware torque-verified and re-torqued only where found loose, curb flashing and sealant intact.
Belt set or coupling serviced for the drive type
Belts replaced as a matched set where worn or due on the manufacturer's schedule and tensioned, or the direct coupling checked for alignment and insert wear.
Bearings serviced for a fan that idles until smoke mode calls it
Shaft turned by hand to feel for drag or a flat spot from months standing idle, then bearings greased to the manufacturer's type and amount without overpacking, or noted as sealed.
No photo
Isolators and duct connections at the fan inspected
Isolators level and neither bottomed out nor seized, flexible connectors free of tears or brittle fabric that would leak at smoke-mode pressure.
Motor insulation resistance read against last year's value
Motor locked out and its leads disconnected from any drive before the test, insulation resistance read by a qualified electrical tech and compared with the prior reading, any drop reported.
Motor and drive inspected under load
Running smoothly under load with amps balanced and no heat at terminations seen by IR under the energized-work procedure; windings left to the locked-out checks.

Performance

Airflow or stair pressure difference read against the baseline
Fan airflow, or the pressure difference across closed stair doors for a pressurization fan, read on the meter and compared with the commissioning baseline.
Running amps on each phase compared with the nameplate
Current on each phase read under the site's energized-work procedure and PPE, compared with the nameplate full-load amps and last year's values, imbalance noted.
Fan failure reported at the smoke control panel
Tech simulates a fan failure by the method in the sequence of operations, the panel shows the failure, then the fan restarts and proves running again.

Damper actuation

Each control and smoke damper actuator exercised to both positions
Actuator drives fully open and fully closed, spring return works on loss of signal, end switches prove the position.

Test support and documentation

Condition documented for the tech's dedicated test
As-found condition, cleaning and any repairs photographed and logged; readings taken by the tech recorded against the fan's design intent.
Panels restored, switches in auto and monitoring told
Smoke control and fire alarm panels normal with no fault standing, fan switches in auto, and the monitoring company and owner told the system is back in service.

What usually sends this back

The failures are almost always the evidence, not the work

Wheel and housing cleaned around, not off, so the fan cannot make its rated pressure or airflow during the witnessed test.
Damper actuators and end switches never exercised, and one fails to prove its position when the AHJ calls the sequence.

Verified against

IMC (mechanical code)

Common questions

6 answers

What does this smoke control fan annual checklist cover?: 14 items across 5 sections, covering notice and lockout, deep clean and mechanical, performance, damper actuation, 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 mechanical service lead inspects and documents; the licensed tech runs and documents the annual dedicated test with the AHJ witnessing.
When in the schedule should this walk happen?: Once a year, scheduled around the dedicated test so the fan, dampers and controls are already clean and verified before the AHJ walk.
Why do these items ask for a photo?: 12 of the 14 items call for photo evidence, 14 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 smoke control fan annual inspection?: Wheel and housing cleaned around, not off, so the fan cannot make its rated pressure or airflow during the witnessed test. Damper actuators and end switches never exercised, and one fails to prove its position when the AHJ calls the sequence.
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.

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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 14 required photos exist. Approved walks roll into a branded turnover package with a tamper evident record behind every line.