Hi

On the neck of my 6kg powder fire extinguisher there is a date stamp showing 2002. Do I have to get the extinguisher serviced by the beginning or end of the year?

The date is probably the manufacturing date. I bought the extinguisher in 2003. Which date is important for servicing? The manufacturing date or the sale date of the fire extinguisher?

Thanks for your help

Service intervals for dry powder (other than the CO2 cylinder) should be taken as,

The Basic Service - Standard powder 12 Months from the the date of commisioning or the last service.

Extended Service - Standard powder - 5 years from the date of commissioning or 6 years from the date of manufacture and subsequently every 5 years from the date of the last extended service.

Extended Service - Powder primary sealed - 10 years from the date of commisioning or 11 years from the date of manufacture and subsequently every 10 years from the date of the last extended service.

The service tolerance accepted is + or - one month so in your case I would use the commissioning date.