A risk assessment tells you what could go wrong. Monitoring proves, month after month, that your controls are working. If an auditor, insurer or inspector asked for your records today, could you hand them over?
Water Hygiene Services runs planned Legionella monitoring for hot and cold water systems across Leeds and West Yorkshire. Our surveyors visit on a fixed schedule, carry out the checks your written scheme calls for, and keep the site logbook complete and inspection-ready. Our work follows HSG274, supporting ACoP L8.
What is Legionella monitoring?
Legionella monitoring is the routine checking and recording of your water systems to confirm that the control measures set by your risk assessment are working. HSG274 expects a written scheme once the risks have been assessed, and sets out the checks and how often they are usually done.
Monitoring is also your early warning. A falling hot water temperature or a little-used outlet that has stopped being flushed is easy to correct early. Left alone, it becomes a compliance failure or a health risk.
The legal duty stays with you as duty holder. We carry out the checks and keep the evidence, so you can show the duty is being met.
What does a monitoring programme include?
Every programme is built from your risk assessment. A typical programme covers the following.
- Temperature monitoring: hot and cold water at representative outlets, usually monthly, and at calorifiers, tanks and returns.
- Flushing: weekly running of little-used outlets, so water does not stand.
- Shower heads and spray taps: cleaning and descaling, usually quarterly.
- Calorifier inspection: usually annually, including the base drain.
- Cold water storage tank inspection: usually annually, for condition, cleanliness and temperature.
- Thermostatic mixing valves: checks at least annually.
- Logbook and records: every check written up so that nothing is missing when you need it.
- Risk assessment review: whenever the system changes, and regularly in any case.
What temperatures are we looking for?
HSG274 Part 2 gives the figures we check against. Legionella grows between about 20 and 45 degrees Celsius, so the aim is to keep water outside that range.
- Hot water stored at 60 degrees or above.
- Hot water reaching outlets at 50 degrees or above within one minute (55 degrees or above in healthcare premises).
- Cold water below 20 degrees within two minutes of running.
Where a reading is outside the limit, we tell you the same day and recommend the next step, which may be flushing, adjustment, cleaning or remedial works.
What happens at a monitoring visit?
- We agree the visit date and arrange access with your site team.
- Temperatures and flushing are checked and logged at the outlets in your scheme.
- Tanks, calorifiers and other plant are inspected as the programme requires.
- Anything out of range is reported to you straight away, with a recommended action.
- The logbook is updated and you receive a copy of the results.
How is monitoring priced?
Price depends on the number of outlets, the amount of plant and how many visits a year your risk assessment calls for. We quote each site individually, in writing.
Where we work
We monitor sites across Leeds, Yorkshire, the North East, the North West, the East Midlands and Humberside, roughly 100 miles from Leeds along the M62 corridor, from Newcastle to Nottingham and across to Humberside, and sometimes further.
Frequently asked questions
How often should Legionella monitoring be done?
It depends on the system and your risk assessment. As a guide, flushing is weekly, temperatures monthly, and tanks, calorifiers and valves at least annually. Higher-risk buildings, such as care homes and hospitals, need more.
Can you take over monitoring from another contractor?
Yes. We review your risk assessment and existing records, agree a programme and start from a clean logbook.
Do we need water sampling as well?
Not always. Your risk assessment says whether sampling is needed. See our UKAS water sampling page.
What records should we keep?
The risk assessment, the written scheme, monitoring logs, temperature and flushing records, cleaning and maintenance reports and any sampling results. We keep these up to date for you.
Book a monitoring visit
To discuss your site, use the quote form.
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Very happy with their very high standard of work Water Hygiene Services have been carrying out legionella risk assessments for us for a couple of years now. We have been very happy with their very high standard of work, their ability to work to tight deadlines and the general professional service they provide
