NVIC 07-70: Inspection and maintenance of marine portable extinguishers

Last reviewed: October 14, 2026

This circular is Coast Guard guidance that stresses proper inspection and maintenance of marine type portable fire extinguishers. It says crews should inspect extinguishers monthly and that failures in use should be reported by letter to a Coast Guard Officer in Charge, Marine Inspection.

Applies toThe text addresses vessel crews and Coast Guard inspectors concerning marine type portable fire extinguishers.

What it says

  1. The purpose of this circular is to emphasize the importance of proper inspection and maintenance of marine type portable fire extinguishers.

    “The purpose of this circular is to emphasize the importance of proper inspection and maintenance of marine type portable fire extinguishers.”

  2. Routine annual inspections supplemented by monthly spot checks should uncover most defective extinguishers.

    “Routine annual inspections supplemented by monthly spot checks should uncover most defective extinguishers.”

  3. A vessel's crew should inspect extinguishers monthly, or more often when circumstances require, to check that they are in their designated places and have not been actuated or tampered with, and to detect obvious physical damage, corrosion or other impairment.

    “extinguishers should be inspected by a vessel's crew monthly or at more frequent intervals when circumstances require to ensure they are in their designated places”

  4. Any extinguisher showing defects should be given a complete maintenance check.

    “Any extinguisher showing defects should be given a complete maintenance check.”

  5. The vessel's crew and Coast Guard inspectors should give particular attention to inspecting extinguishers that have stainless steel shells.

    “Particular attention should be given by the vessel's crew and Coast Guard inspectors to the inspection of extinguishers which have stainless steel shells.”

  6. The dome and the bottom under the skirt are the areas that require close inspection on a stainless steel shell extinguisher.

    “The areas that require close inspection are the dome and the bottom under the skirt.”

  7. If an extinguisher fails in use, a responsible party on the vessel should send a report of the failure by letter to a Coast Guard Officer in Charge, Marine Inspection.

    “If an extinguisher fails in use a report of the failure should be transmitted by a responsible party on the vessel to a Coast Guard Officer in Charge, Marine Inspection via letter.”

Common questions

How often should a vessel's crew inspect portable fire extinguishers?

The circular says the crew should inspect extinguishers monthly, or at more frequent intervals when circumstances require.

“extinguishers should be inspected by a vessel's crew monthly or at more frequent intervals when circumstances require”

Why do stainless steel extinguishers need special attention?

Stainless steel is subject to stress corrosion cracking when exposed to corrosive environmental conditions. If the cracking goes undetected, the extinguisher becomes a serious hazard.

“If stress corrosion cracking occurs and is undetected the extinguisher becomes a serious hazard.”

What should be done if a fire extinguisher fails in use?

A responsible party on the vessel should send a letter reporting the failure to a Coast Guard Officer in Charge, Marine Inspection. That officer will then transmit the failure to Coast Guard Headquarters on Coast Guard Form CG-2752(2-62).

“The Officer in Charge, Marine Inspection will then transmit the failure to Coast Guard Headquarters on Coast Guard Form CG-2752(2-62)”

The text of NVIC 07-70

U.S. Coast Guard, NVIC 07-70 (main body; enclosures not shown)

Marine Type Portable Fire Extinguishers

DEPARTMENT OF TRANSPORTATION UNITED STATES COAST GUARD Address reply to: COMMANDANT (MMT-3) U.S. COAST GUARD WASHINGTON, D.C. 20591 • NVC 7-70 14 OCT 1970 NAVIGATION AND VESSEL INSPECTION CIRCULAR 7-70 Subject: Marine Type Portable Fire Extinguishers

Marine Type Portable Fire Extinguishers — Purpose. The purpose of this circular is to emphasize the importance of proper inspection and maintenance of marine type portable fire extinguishers.

Purpose. The purpose of this circular is to emphasize the importance of proper inspection and maintenance of marine type portable fire extinguishers.

Marine Type Portable Fire Extinguishers — Background. In recent months several reports have been received concerning defective marine type portable fire extinguishers. Unfortunately defects are often discovered when an extinguisher is needed the most. Routine annual inspections supplemented by monthly spot checks should uncover most defective extinguishers.

Background. In recent months several reports have been received concerning defective marine type portable fire extinguishers. Unfortunately defects are often discovered when an extinguisher is needed the most. Routine annual inspections supplemented by monthly spot checks should uncover most defective extinguishers.

Marine Type Portable Fire Extinguishers — Discussion. The purpose of a well-planned and well-executed maintenance program is to afford maximum probability that an extinguisher:

a. Will operate properly between the time intervals established for maintenance examinations in the environment to which it is exposed. b. Will not constitute a potential hazard to persons in its vicinity, or to operators or rechargers of extinguishers. In this regard extinguishers should be inspected by a vessel's crew monthly or at more frequent intervals when circumstances require to ensure they are in their designated places, to ensure they have not been actuated or tampered with, and to detect any obvious physical damage, corrosion or other impairment. Any extinguisher showing defects should be given a complete maintenance check. Particular attention should be given by the vessel's crew and Coast Guard inspectors to the inspection of extinguishers which have stainless steel shells. Stainless steel is subject to stress corrosion cracking when exposed to corrosive environmental conditions. If stress corrosion cracking occurs and is undetected the extinguisher becomes a serious hazard. This is especially true of extinguishers that are pressurized immediately before use such as the chemical foam, soda and acid, and the cartridge operated dry chemical types. The extremely rapid build up of pressure could cause a defective shell to rupture. The attached photograph is of a stainless steel shell extinguisher that failed. Note the hair line corrosion cracks. The areas that require close inspection are the dome and the bottom under the skirt. These pieces are cold formed and subject to locked in stresses.

Marine Type Portable Fire Extinguishers — Action. If an extinguisher fails in use a report of the failure should be transmitted by a responsible party on the vessel to a Coast Guard Officer in Charge, Marine Inspection via letter. The Officer in Charge, Marine Inspection will then transmit the failure to Coast Guard Headquarters on Coast Guard Form CG-2752(2-62) "Report of Equipment Failure on Inspected Vessel" through the appropriate channels.

W.M. BENKART Captain, U.S. Coast Guard Acting Chief, Office of Merchant Marine Safety Dist: (SDL NO. 91) A: None B: n(47); c(10); q(6); eg(3) bp(1) C: mo(6); gy(1) D: i(2); k(1) E: o(2) F: a(1) List CG-12 [FIGURE — no transcribable text]

The plain-English explanation on this page was written with AI from the regulation text above and checked automatically before publishing: every quote appears in the text, every number comes from it, and a second model confirmed each statement adds nothing the text doesn't say. The regulation text governs. RegKnot is not affiliated with the U.S. Coast Guard.