On top of responding to calls from anything such as a broken toilet flush handle, smoke/co detectors with the dead battery warning beeping to multiple alarm fires here's a short list of what else gets done.
At the start of every tour the rig has to be checked to make sure all tools and equipment is in proper working order and clean no rust. Also radio batteries will get changed and saws and hurst tools started. At 0900 and 1800(6pm for you civilians) is roll call where the officer will give out riding positions and go over any recent news, updates and any safety issues that may pertain to the upcoming hours such as expected high winds and weather reports.
Every morning after roll call committee work(house cleaning) gets done, clean the kitchen, bunkroom, bathrooms, offices and other areas of the house. It basically comes down to taking pride in your work and living area.
Every Monday (department wide) ladder companies do the life saving rope, it gets taken out of the bag, sometimes drilled on and then repacked while all engine companies will do their ropes on Tuesdays.
Tuesdays as mentioned above engine companies will repack their ropes.
The rest of the days each house have their own routines that get done on these days. Some companies will recharge all of their batteries on a specific day. What I mean by this is normally when you check the tools if the battery is low you'll charge it, but on the specific day you'll throw the batteries on the charger even if fully charged to get a full charge and try to keep the battery conditioned.
Building inspections are done 3 times a week and hydrants are inspected roughly once a week.
Weekends each house has MUD during one of these days and will go out in their areas and go over specific details about a building or operation pertaining to a specific area.
During the tour some companies will drill on any number of things from fire operations to being safe on a fireground.
Also meals have to be picked up, prepped, cooked and eaten. We don't get lunch or dinner time outs. We're still available to respond. Sometimes you may get relocated and not have a chance to eat till after midnight, by then the meal that was started is either ruined or your to worn down to give a damn.
When there is not much going on guys will workout, study and just relax. After all the best tool on the fireground is a well rested FF. Would you want someone running around all day doing FF things to be 100% at 4 in the morning after working 20+ hrs with no rest? I know I wouldn't. Also senior guys will have a list of things that need to get done too.
Once a year we have annual inspections where the division commander comes down and kinda does a white glove inspection. Firehouse doors get a fresh coat of red paint, yellow lines both inside and outside get redone, floors stripped then new wax applied, basements cleaned out and everything in between receive the 5 star treatment. The cleaning for annual inspections usually starts anywhere from 3 weeks to 2 months away. Compartments on the rigs even get the 5 star treatment and ladders get pulled off the rigs, cleaned, painted and oiled.
Then there's companies with second pieces that have some more work to get done.
There's also education day, annual medical days, training at the rock, training teams that come to firehouses and days that your sitting on standby for "what if" situations, Like the present UN meetings where companies are on standby hoping that the bad guys don't do anything.
