On May 2, 2017, the Colorado Springs Fire Department (CSFD), Division of the Fire Marshal issued a new administrative ruling 2017-1 regulating the use of carbon dioxide (CO2) and inert gases in beverage dispensing applications. This ruling was codified with the adoption of the 2018 Colorado Springs Fire Code Amendments on June 4th, 2018. This new regulation is in response to incidents in restaurants, convenience stores, and other locations around the nation involving hazardous concentrations of CO2 and inert gas that have led to injuries and even death to customers, employees, and emergency responders.

Effective June 4th, 2018, existing CO2 and inert gas systems used in beverage dispensing or other applications with a capacity of more than one hundred pounds of CO2 in use, located within existing buildings in the City of Colorado Springs shall be retrofitted and modified to comply with Colorado Springs Fire Code Section 5307.

Businesses that use CO2 and/or inert gas subject to the requirements of Colorado Springs Fire Code Section 5307 shall complete one of the following to be considered in compliance:

  1. Its CO2 and/or inert gas system shall have a current operational permit that demonstrates it had been permitted, approved, and inspected per Section 5307 requirements.
  2. The system must be brought into compliance: a. It shall formally submit a permit application containing construction drawings and specifications to the Colorado Springs Fire Department Division of the Fire Marshal for approval. b. Once the permit application is approved, the system must be installed, inspected, and signed off.
  3. Its location shall reduce the system in-use quantity of carbon dioxide (CO2) and/or inert gas to one hundred (100) pounds or less.

Businesses that use a CO2 and/or inert gas system with a capacity of greater than 100 pounds and do not currently comply with these requirements must submit a permit application to the Colorado Springs Fire Department Division of the Fire Marshal prior to their next annual inspection, or as directed by the fire code official. Construction drawings and specifications must be formally submitted with the permit application for review. The Colorado Springs Fire Department may seek any available remedies authorized in the Colorado Springs Fire Code to businesses that use CO2 and/or inert gas systems regulated by Section 5307 and fail to comply by their next annual inspection date or as directed by the fire code official.

Please contact the Colorado Springs Fire Department, Division of the Fire Marshal at 719-385-5978 if there are any questions regarding proposed alternatives or issues with meeting the new code requirements

Documents

Guidance: Requirements for carbon dioxide and other inert gas systems.

Compressed Gas Questionnaire: Form required to be submitted with plans when Carbon Dioxide is, or will be used for beverage dispensing, atmosphere enrichment or any other use.

Frequently Asked Questions

As a follow-up to the Industry Bulletin issued by the Colorado Springs Fire Department (CSFD) July 24th , 2018, the following is provided for clarification and next steps: