Like many other commercial premises, hair, beauty and cosmetic salons all have a legal responsibility to ensuring that their clients, employees and suppliers are protected from the risk of fire.
Though most salons tend to be relatively small in size, which means keeping them fire safe is not too difficult, they are considered to be of medium risk due to the amount of electrical equipment which is used virtually every minute of the day. This equipment can range from hair dryers and straighteners in hair salons through to waxing pots and laser machines in beauty and cosmetic clinics.
The first step every salon owner should take therefore is to ensure all equipment is PAT tested by a certified electrician to ensure the parts are all in working order and not at risk of short-circuiting for example. You should also avoid overloading single sockets with too much equipment as this too can be dangerous and cause a fire. The best option, if you haven’t already done so, is to ensure you have enough sockets installed in your salon to cope with the equipment you and your staff use regularly. Again, a certified electrician can help with this.
It is every commercial business owner’s responsibility to have in place the correct type and numbers of fire extinguishers for their specific industry. As a general guideline, usually you will need to install two fire extinguishers on each floor of your salon. These should include a foam or water extinguisher for carbonaceous fires caused by materials such as paper or fabrics, and a CO2 extinguisher for electrical fires.
In general, fire extinguishers come in a red finish and should be mounted on a wall or in a stand to keep them safe and free from damage. However, at Hartson Fire we also offer the Contempo range of extinguishers which comes in choice of three metallic finishes including Polished Gold, Antique Copper and Stainless Steel to suit any salon style or décor. These extinguishers also come with matching stands.
As well as fire extinguishers, all salons should also have fire safety signs installed to indicate where all fire extinguishers are installed (and what they can be used on), fire exit routes and doors and fire assembly points.
If your salon is on more than one level, you need to ensure you have fire safety signs at all locations and on all floors. Fire doors should also be highlighted with appropriate signs and should be kept closed at all times, no matter how inconvenient.
So you’ve carried out a risk assessment, all your fire safety equipment and signs are in place, so what next? Firstly, you must ensure that your staff know how to use the fire extinguishers you have in place. Ask your provider to give a demonstration to all staff and ensure you have clear instructions adjacent to each extinguisher.
You will also need to ensure your fire extinguishers are checked annually, in case of accidental damage, and are serviced each year. This is a legal requirement for all commercial premises which have fire extinguishers installed. During a servicing, an engineer will test all equipment to ensure it is in good working order and will advise of any issues.
At Hartson Fire, we don’t only offer a complete range extinguishers and safety signage to salons all over South West Wales but we also offer extinguisher servicing through our dedicated team of fully trained engineers. As soon as you become a client of Hartson Fire, you will be added to our database so we get the alerts to say when your extinguishers need servicing, so you don’t even need to think about this from year on year. We will then make an appointment within the 12 month timescale to ensure your equipment is in full working order and ready to keep you and your clients fire safe.
Call us today on the number below to book an appointment to get your extinguishers installed or checked today:
