Concept · Zone J · Procedures and logs
The fire safety log book: format, entries and how long to keep it
A shelter’s log books are what an FDNY inspector reads to see that the drills, patrols, tests, staff training and plan reviews actually took place (Source: Study Material §16). The procedures these entries record are on the Zone J page (Procedures and logs).
Plan ref J1Updated October 25, 2026
What counts as the log book
The Study Material names more than one book. Taking the alarm off-line and back on-line goes in the alarm log book. Drills and staff training go in the Fire Safety Plan log book (Source: Study Material §7.1).
An entry for a test or a visual inspection is made by the person who did it. F-80 Certificate of Fitness holders may maintain the log books (Source: Study Material p. 21).
Fire guards must keep records of their patrols (Source: Study Material §4.1). The fire guard vs fire watch page explains which patrol is which. Extinguishers keep their monthly record on their own tag; the extinguisher tags page shows what goes on it.
Entries the book must hold
- Fire watch patrols
- Fire drills
- Standpipe and sprinkler inspection, testing and servicing
- Fire alarm inspection, testing and servicing
- Fire department connection testing
- Smoke detector inspection, testing and servicing
- Portable fire extinguisher testing and servicing
- FEP staff training
- Proof of flame-resistant decorations
- Each review of the emergency preparedness plan
- Each time the plan is put into action
Would this entry pass an inspection?
Checkpoint round
0 of 8 checked · 0 cleared
Practice questions written for study, not taken from the test. The real F-80 is a multiple-choice test on a touch-screen computer at FDNY Headquarters.
Picture an inspector reading the page a year from now. Strike any option that leaves that reader guessing.
How the checkpoint round works
Read the options first and rule out the ones that break a rule, then pick from what is left. After you answer, the debrief explains every option and scores your strikes. Keys: 1–5 or A–E answer, Shift with a number rules that option out, the arrow keys move.
Checkpoint 1 of 8
Checkpoint 01
During an FDNY inspection, the inspector issues a violation about the physical format of the shelter’s fire safety log book. Which condition breaks the log book rules?
Rule out what you can with the ✕ buttons, then choose. The debrief for every option opens here.
- AKeeping the book near the panel and available to the FDNY is good practice, not a violation.
- BThe rule allows a bound book or another approved form of recordkeeping, so an approved electronic system complies.
- CBound with consecutively numbered pages is exactly the required format.
- DCorrect: The log must be a bound book with consecutively numbered pages; loose-leaf pages can be removed or swapped without a trace.
Checkpoint 02
FDNY inspectors arrive unannounced. The fire safety log book is locked in a manager’s office off site, and staff have only a PDF copy. Which statement is correct?
Rule out what you can with the ✕ buttons, then choose. The debrief for every option opens here.
- ASignatures are not the issue; the record has to be on the premises and immediately available.
- BRecords must be available to the FDNY at all times, weekends included.
- CCorrect: Log books stay on the premises and must be produced on request; a book locked offsite fails that.
- DThere is no 24-hour grace period; records are made available upon request.
Checkpoint 03
During a log book review, the coordinator checks an impairment entry from the previous week. Which missing item is a serious gap that must be corrected?
Rule out what you can with the ✕ buttons, then choose. The debrief for every option opens here.
- APersonal phone numbers of the guards are not part of the impairment record.
- BSerial numbers of parts are vendor detail; the log needs the outage and how it was closed.
- CWhich tools the vendor used does not matter to the record; what matters is that the system was tested and restored.
- DCorrect: An impairment is closed only after tests show the system works, so the entry needs the restoration time and how it was verified.
Checkpoint 04
FDNY inspectors request proof of corrective actions taken for a deficiency discovered during a drill two years ago. How should the coordinator respond?
Rule out what you can with the ✕ buttons, then choose. The debrief for every option opens here.
- ACorrect: Log books are kept on the premises for 3 years from the last entry, so a two-year-old drill record should be there.
- BDrill deficiencies are part of the required drill entry; there is no waiver.
- CThe shelter keeps its own log books on site; the vendor’s records do not replace them.
- DOne year is wrong; the retention period is 3 years from the last entry.
Checkpoint 05
A standpipe system is taken out of service, requiring a continuous fire watch. How must the personnel conducting the fire watch properly document their patrols in the log book?
Rule out what you can with the ✕ buttons, then choose. The debrief for every option opens here.
- AA summary without times cannot show that each area was patrolled every hour.
- BCorrect: Fire watch patrols are a required log entry, and timing each round shows the hourly coverage and who did it.
- CStart and restoration times describe the outage, not the patrols made during it.
- DThe alarm panel is not a log system, and with the standpipe out it cannot show patrols.
Checkpoint 06
The coordinator starts a new log book for the shelter. Which information must be written at the beginning of it?
Rule out what you can with the ✕ buttons, then choose. The debrief for every option opens here.
- AResident lists change daily and are not among the items written at the start of the log book.
- BCorrect: The start of the log book records the shelter address, the alarm system’s approval date and maker, and the central station’s account number, name, phone and supervisor.
- CStaff home phone numbers are not required anywhere in the log book.
- DDevice serial numbers are not among the items written at the beginning of the log book.
Checkpoint 07
After a partial evacuation drill, a coordinator writes “drill passed successfully” in the log book. Why does this entry fail to meet the log book requirements?
Rule out what you can with the ✕ buttons, then choose. The debrief for every option opens here.
- AWeather is not a required drill entry.
- BThe entry names the coordinator who ran the drill and their certificate number, not a superintendent’s signature.
- CCorrect: A drill entry needs facts: date and time, who assisted, how many took part, delays and deficiencies, and the evacuation time.
- DThe panel’s maker is recorded once at the front of the log book, not in each drill entry.
Checkpoint 08
How long must a shelter keep its log books, such as the Fire Safety Plan log book, on the premises?
Rule out what you can with the ✕ buttons, then choose. The debrief for every option opens here.
- ACorrect: the clock runs from the last entry, so a book in use stays on site until 3 years after it was last written in.
- BOne year is too short, and the count starts from the last entry, not the first.
- CThe number is right but the start point is wrong; counting from the first entry would let a book in use leave too early.
- DFive years is longer than the Study Material asks; the rule is 3 years from the last entry.
A drill entry, field by field
Fire Safety Plan log book, drill entry (sample values)
| Coordinator and C of F number | Date and time | FEP staff (name, title) | Occupants taking part | Evaluation: delays, deficiencies | Evacuation time |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| A. Rivera, C of F no. 000000 | Mar 12, 2:15 AM | L. Chen, fire guard; D. Okafor, case manager | 64 | Stair B door slow to open; reported | 9 min |
The six items come from Source: Study Material §16. The evacuation time is needed only if an evacuation was done. The values are made up. What goes on page one of a new book is shown on the Zone J page (Procedures and logs).
Format, place and how long
The Fire Safety Plan log book is a bound book with consecutive numbered pages, or another form of approved recordkeeping (Source: Study Material §6). A bound, numbered page cannot be removed without leaving a gap. The books stay on the premises, ready for any FDNY representative who asks, for 3 years from the last entry (Source: Study Material §16). The NYC Fire Code has its own, separate rule for how long a fire watch record is kept. They are different rules. On this site, log book retention is taught from the Study Material.
Where the rule is written
- Source: Study Material §16Retention, page one, required entries and drill fields of a log book.
- Source: Study Material §6The bound Fire Safety Plan log book with numbered pages.
- Source: Study Material §7.1Off-line and on-line entries in the alarm log book.
- Source: NYC Fire CodeThe Fire Code also allows an approved electronic format. Checked October 2026.
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