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LEV testing - user checks
Your LEV gets a thorough examination and test roughly every fourteen months - but that leaves a long gap in which a system can degrade or a fault can develop unnoticed. Simple checks that staff run themselves, day to day and week to week, are what catch problems in between, long before the next formal test.
The short answer
LEV must be thoroughly examined and tested at least every fourteen months, but faults and degradation can develop in the long gap between tests. Simple checks that staff can run themselves - daily and weekly - bridge that gap: looking and listening for obvious problems, watching any airflow indicators, checking for visible damage, blockage or filter loading, and confirming the system is switched on and drawing. These user checks are not a substitute for the statutory test but a complement to it, catching problems early rather than letting them run until the next examination.
Why the gap matters
The statutory requirement is that LEV controlling a health hazard is thoroughly examined and tested by a competent person at least every fourteen months. That formal test is essential, but it happens only periodically, which leaves a long stretch in between during which the system is relied on daily but not formally checked. And a lot can happen in fourteen months: a duct can partially block, a filter can load up, a fan can weaken, a hood can be knocked out of position, a component can fail. Any of these can quietly reduce or lose the system's capture, and none announces itself.
So the gap between statutory tests is a real vulnerability. A fault developing the day after a test could, in principle, go undetected until the next one - many months of a system not controlling exposure as it should, unnoticed. The formal test cycle keeps the system verified periodically, but it cannot catch a problem that arises between tests. That is exactly the gap that simple, frequent user checks fill: they provide the ongoing, in-between vigilance that the periodic formal test cannot, catching problems soon after they arise rather than months later.
What staff can check
The checks staff can run themselves are simple by design - they do not require the expertise or equipment of a formal test, just attention. Looking and listening is the basis: does the system sound as it normally does when running, or has the noise changed in a way that might signal a problem with the fan or airflow? Is anything visibly wrong - damage to hoods or ducting, something knocking a hood out of position, an obvious blockage? Staff who work with the system daily are well placed to notice when something is different from normal.
Where the system has airflow indicators - gauges or telltales that show whether it is drawing correctly - watching those is a key check, because they give a direct, simple sign of whether the airflow is where it should be. Checking filters for obvious loading or blockage, confirming the system is actually switched on and running when it should be, and noticing any change in how well it seems to be capturing at the source are all things staff can do without special training. The checks are about noticing the obvious signs that something has changed or gone wrong - which frequent, attentive users are ideally placed to catch.
Daily and weekly
Splitting the checks into daily and weekly gives a practical rhythm. The daily checks are the quick, routine ones done as part of using the system - confirming it is switched on and running when it should be, that it sounds and seems normal, that any airflow indicators are showing what they should, and that there is no obvious damage or problem. These take moments and fit into the normal working day, providing near-continuous basic vigilance.
The weekly checks can be slightly more considered - a closer look at the system's condition, checking filters more deliberately for loading, looking over the accessible parts for damage or wear, and taking a moment to assess whether the system is performing as it normally does. The point of the two levels is to combine constant basic attention (daily) with a regular, slightly deeper look (weekly), so both sudden problems and gradual changes are more likely to be caught. Together they give an ongoing picture of the system's condition between the formal tests.
A complement, not a substitute
It is important to be clear that these user checks do not replace the statutory thorough examination and test. The formal test is a competent, thorough, measured assessment that the law requires and that user checks cannot substitute for - it verifies the system properly, with expertise and measurement the staff checks do not have. The daily and weekly checks are a complement to it, not an alternative: they provide ongoing vigilance between the formal tests, but they do not verify the system to the standard the statutory test does.
The two work together. The statutory test verifies the system thoroughly and periodically; the user checks watch it constantly in between, catching problems early so they can be addressed rather than running until the next test. A fault the user checks catch can be fixed promptly, restoring control and often avoiding a much longer period of reduced protection. So the user checks add real value on top of the statutory testing - they close the vulnerable gap between tests - while the statutory test remains the essential, competent verification that the checks support rather than replace. Both are part of keeping LEV genuinely under control.
The takeaway
LEV must be thoroughly examined and tested at least every fourteen months, but faults and degradation can develop in the long gap between tests and go unnoticed until the next one. Simple checks staff can run themselves - looking and listening for changes, watching any airflow indicators, checking for damage, blockage and filter loading, confirming the system is on and drawing - bridge that gap, catching problems early rather than months later.
Split into a daily rhythm of quick routine checks and a weekly slightly deeper look, these user checks give ongoing vigilance between the formal tests. They are a complement to the statutory examination, not a substitute - the formal test remains the essential competent verification, while the user checks close the vulnerable gap in between. Together they keep LEV genuinely under control: verified periodically, and watched constantly, so a fault is caught soon after it arises rather than running unseen until the next test.
Questions
Because the statutory test happens only every fourteen months, and faults or degradation - a blocked duct, loaded filter, weakened fan, knocked hood - can develop in the long gap and go unnoticed until the next test. Simple user checks catch them early instead.
Simple things - whether the system sounds and seems normal, whether any airflow indicators are showing correct draw, whether there is visible damage or blockage, whether filters are obviously loaded, and whether the system is actually switched on and running when it should be.
Daily checks are quick, routine ones done as part of using the system - on and running, sounds normal, indicators correct, no obvious damage. Weekly checks are slightly more considered - a closer look at condition, filters and performance. Together they catch both sudden and gradual problems.
No. The statutory thorough examination and test is a competent, thorough, measured assessment the law requires, which user checks cannot substitute for. The daily and weekly checks are a complement - ongoing vigilance between tests, not a verification of the system to standard.
It can be addressed promptly - a fault caught early can be fixed, restoring control and often avoiding a much longer period of reduced protection that would last until the next formal test. Catching problems early is the whole value of the user checks.
Yes - where the system has them, gauges or telltales showing whether it is drawing correctly give a direct, simple sign of whether the airflow is where it should be, which is one of the clearest things staff can watch without special training.
We carry out the statutory examination and test, and can advise on the simple daily and weekly checks your staff can run in between - so problems are caught early, not months later.
