Fire hydrant service in Van Nuys

Whose hydrant is it?

Start with ownership. A hydrant at the curb of a public street is usually part of the public water system. A hydrant on your parcel, fed by a private fire service main that runs behind the connection to the public supply, is usually the owner's to inspect, test and keep working. NFPA 24 covers those private mains and the valves, piping and hydrants attached to them.

In Van Nuys, water service comes from the Los Angeles Department of Water and Power under its own service rules. That's the utility side. The private side is where we work.

What the yearly hydrant test covers

NFPA 25 calls for private hydrants to be inspected and flow tested every year. On a typical visit, a technician:

• checks that the hydrant is visible and reachable, with nothing parked, planted or stored around it
• takes off the caps and looks at the outlet threads and gaskets
• opens the hydrant fully, flows water until it runs clear, then closes it slowly
• watches that the barrel drains after shutoff, where the design calls for it
• writes up leaks, a stiff operating nut or damage that needs repair

Flow testing follows NFPA 291. That same standard sets the color code painted on hydrant bonnets, which tells firefighters what flow class to expect when they hook up.

Found a problem? Our page on fire hydrant repair in Van Nuys covers fixes. For the yearly visit, see annual fire hydrant testing in Van Nuys, and for upkeep between tests, read about Van Nuys fire hydrant maintenance.

Your fire department is LAFD

Van Nuys is part of the City of Los Angeles. It was annexed in 1915. That puts your property under the Los Angeles Fire Department, so LA County Fire is the wrong agency to call.

Fire and emergency response comes through LAFD's Valley Bureau, headquartered at Fire Station 115 on Sylvan Street. For paperwork, the office to know is the Fire Prevention Bureau's Valley Public Safety Unit (818-374-1110), which handles plan check questions and Fire & Life Safety Inspection Clearances for the Valley, Van Nuys included.

Adding or moving a hydrant

Planning a new hydrant or changes to a private main? Ask the Valley unit what review applies before work starts. LAFD takes plan check and clearance requests through its FIMS Customer Portal at inspect.lafd.org, and Fire Development Services keeps a Van Nuys office at 6262 Van Nuys Blvd., 2nd Floor, open by appointment only. Our fire hydrant installations in Van Nuys page covers the build side.

LAFD's fire code page still points to the 2023 Los Angeles Fire Code. A newer edition is in progress. Confirm which one applies with LAFD.

Who does the work

California work for 1 Pro Fire is done by Hedrick Fire Protection. Hedrick holds C-16 and C-10 contractor licenses and is licensed by the California State Fire Marshal under Title 19 for inspection, testing and maintenance of water-based fire protection systems.

Tell us the address, how many hydrants are on the property and when they were last tested. Call (213) 568-0188 or email socal@1profire.com

Outside Van Nuys? See fire hydrant service across Los Angeles County or fire hydrant service in Orange County. All of our local services are on the Van Nuys fire protection page.