4.4 The Three-Stage Installation Inspection (§ 34.618)

Why This Section Matters

Section 34.618 is short, self-contained, and entirely numeric — the kind of rule that generates several questions. It is also genuinely unusual: most states rely on the AHJ's rough-in and final inspections, while Texas requires the licensed firm itself to perform and document three staged self-inspections.

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1. The Three Inspections

"The following inspections shall be performed by the licensed firm in order to assure proper installation techniques are followed:"

The ordering language is the exam material. Each inspection is defined by what has just finished and what has not yet started. Answer choices that swap "prior to" and "after," or that place inspection 3 after energizing, are wrong.

   Back-boxes set
        |
        v
   [ INSPECTION 1 ]   <-- before any cable is pulled
        |
   Cable installed
        |
        v
   [ INSPECTION 2 ]   <-- before any device goes on
        |
   Devices installed
        |
        v
   [ INSPECTION 3 ]   <-- before the system is activated
        |
   System energized -> acceptance test -> certification

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2. Who Performs Them and How They Are Documented

"The above-referenced inspections shall be performed by a licensed fire alarm technician or planner and be documented on the inspection form."

The rule attaches the "Fire Alarm System Installation Inspection Form" as a graphic. Note who may perform: a licensed fire alarm technician or planner — an unlicensed helper cannot sign off, and the inspection is a firm obligation, not the AHJ's.

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3. The Ten-Day Corrective Action Trigger

"The registered firm shall notify the authority having jurisdiction if initiation of corrective action does not take place within ten calendar days."

Parse it precisely:

• The trigger is failure to initiate corrective action — not failure to complete it.
• The clock is ten calendar days, not business days.
• The notification runs to the authority having jurisdiction, and the duty is on the registered firm.

This is one of only a handful of AHJ-notification duties in Subchapter F. The others live in the label rules: yellow label notice within five business days (§ 34.623(c)), red label written notice by the next business day if inoperable or within three business days for a fault or impairment (§ 34.624(c)), and label-removal notice within five business days (§§ 34.623(d), 34.624(d)).

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4. Retention: Five Years From Certification

"The completed form shall be kept on file at the licensed firm's office for a period of five years from the date of system certification."

The clock starts at system certification, not at the date of the inspection. Two related retention periods often appear as distractors: two years for service, maintenance, and testing records (§ 34.616(d)) and the life of the system or ten years for the installation certificate copy (§ 34.617(2)).

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5. How the Three Inspections Fit the Whole Job

 Plans by APS / RAS / Texas PE            (§ 34.619)
        |
 Permit and plan review by local AHJ      (§ 6002.003(d))
        |
 Back-boxes -> INSPECTION 1               (§ 34.618(1))
 Cable       -> INSPECTION 2              (§ 34.618(2))
 Devices     -> INSPECTION 3              (§ 34.618(3))
        |
 Final acceptance test, certifying licensee present   (§ 34.616(b)(1))
        |
 Installation certificate SF035           (§ 34.617)
   - original on site
   - AHJ copy within 10 days
   - company copy: life of system or 10 years
        |
 Installation label inside panel cover    (§ 34.620)
        |
 Inspection/test label after AHJ acceptance  (§ 34.622(c))

Notice § 34.622(c): for a new installation, an inspection/test label may only be applied after the system has been accepted by the local AHJ. The staged inspections, the acceptance test, the certificate, and the labels are a single ordered sequence — and TFM11 likes to ask you to put that sequence in order.

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6. Worked Fact Pattern

A crew sets all back-boxes on Monday and begins pulling cable Tuesday morning without an inspection. On Thursday the licensed technician walks the job, finds three boxes at the wrong height, and documents them. Corrective action has not begun 12 calendar days later.

Two violations:

1. Inspection 1 was not performed at the required milestone. It must occur at completion of back-box installation and prior to the start of cable installation; a Thursday walkthrough after cable pulling began does not satisfy § 34.618(1).
2. The AHJ notification duty triggered. Corrective action was not initiated within ten calendar days, so the registered firm must notify the authority having jurisdiction.

The completed inspection form still must be kept at the firm's office for five years from the date of system certification.