The federal walkthrough rule in 40 CFR 280.36 names two pieces of equipment and no job title. Connecticut takes the same monthly idea and makes it considerably more specific: a named person, a fifteen item form, a minimum gap between inspections, and three years of records kept at the site. This is what a state-level monthly inspection looks like when the state writes the checklist, and it is worth reading even if you operate elsewhere, because it shows where a program can go beyond the federal floor.
Jurisdiction note. The specifics below are Connecticut, from RCSA 22a-449(d)-103(b) and the state's own inspection form. If you operate in another state, the federal walkthrough in 280.36 is your floor and your regulator sets what sits above it.
A named person, and a minimum gap
RCSA 22a-449(d)-103(b) requires monthly inspections be conducted by a Class B operator at each UST facility. Part IV of the state form asks for the date, the operator's name, and their signature.
Then the rule that catches people up: monthly inspections cannot be completed within 7 days of a previous monthly inspection. That closes the obvious workaround. A site that has missed several months cannot produce a stack of reports in one afternoon, because inspections signed inside a week of each other do not count as separate months.
The practical reading is that the monthly inspection is a habit rather than a task, and a missed month is genuinely missed. There is no way to make it up.
What gets walked
The form works tank by tank and dispenser by dispenser, pass or fail on each. Around the tank:
- Spill kit. All components present and in good condition.
- Grade-level covers. Present, in good condition, seated firmly, on the correct tank.
- Drop tube. In good condition, smooth, no ragged edges.
- Water check. No water present in the tank.
- Tank gauge stick. Clearly readable, not warped or broken, calibrated to eighth-inch increments.
- Stage I vapor recovery. The poppet, or dry break, seals tightly.
- Vent risers and caps. Properly installed, no visible damage, vent pipe solidly supported and vertical.
- Spill buckets. No oil, water or debris. Drain valve in good condition where present. Dry interstitial space on double walled.
At the dispensers:
- Piping containment sumps and under-dispenser containment sumps. No oil, water or debris, and sensors properly placed.
- Dispenser hoses. No tears, leaks, holes, kinks or crimps.
- Dispenser cabinet interiors. No evidence of leaking components, and no oil, water or debris.
Then the systems: transfer and dispensing areas, confirming suspected and confirmed releases have been reported and cleaned up; the alarm panels, confirming the leak and product monitoring systems operate; and the leak detection method itself, whether that is an automatic tank gauge with test reports attached, inventory control with weekly reconciliation, or continuous interstitial monitoring with the sensor status report attached.
The 700-hour rectifier check
Sites with impressed current corrosion protection get two lines that are worth the whole form.
Record the volt and amp readings, and confirm they are consistent with previous months. Then record the hour meter reading, and confirm it increases by about 700 hours each month.
Seven hundred hours is roughly a month of continuous running. A rectifier that reads 300 hours more than last month was switched off for half of it, and no voltage reading taken on the day of the inspection would reveal that. The hour meter is the only line on the form that reports on the time between inspections rather than the moment of it.
It also pairs with the federal 60-day requirement in 40 CFR 280.31(c), which asks for an inspection every 60 days to confirm the equipment is running. Doing it monthly satisfies that and puts it on a date somebody can remember.
A fail is the start of a clock
The form is explicit about what a failure means. Any item not in compliance, or recorded as a fail, obliges the owner or operator to take all actions necessary to correct it, and the report has to note what has been or will be done.
Then the deadline: action must be performed as soon as possible, and where it will take longer than 30 days after discovery, the report has to carry an explanation of why.
That converts the inspection from a record of condition into a record of response. A form with three fails and an empty notes section is worse than no form, because it documents that somebody knew.
Three years, on site
Connecticut requires the reports be maintained on-site for no less than three years. The federal walkthrough retention under 280.36(b) is one year.
Two things follow. A Connecticut site clearing its binder annually is destroying records it is required to hold. And a multi-state operator running one retention policy is running the wrong one somewhere. Where the federal and state periods differ, the longer applies for that site.
How FastDragon handles it
The monthly inspection is a checklist walked on a phone, in the order the person walks the site: tanks first, then dispensers, then the systems. A fail takes a photograph where it was taken and a note that goes on the record.
A failed point stays open as an issue with an owner and a date rather than closing when the inspection closes, so the 30-day question has an answer. The checklist itself is yours to edit, which is what makes the state's own item list usable rather than approximated.
Common questions
Who is allowed to do the monthly inspection?
In Connecticut, a Class B operator. RCSA 22a-449(d)-103(b) requires monthly inspections be conducted by a Class B Operator at each UST facility, and Part IV of the state's form asks for that person's name and signature. The federal walkthrough rule in 40 CFR 280.36 names no job title, which is one reason the answer differs by state.
Can I do two monthly inspections close together to catch up?
Not in Connecticut. The state's checklist says monthly inspections cannot be completed within 7 days of a previous monthly inspection. Doing eleven inspections in December to fix a year of gaps produces eleven records that do not count.
How long are the reports kept?
Connecticut requires inspection reports be maintained on-site for no less than 3 years. The federal walkthrough retention in 40 CFR 280.36(b) is one year. Where the two differ, the longer one governs for a site in that state.
What happens if something fails?
The owner or operator has to take all actions necessary to correct it, and the report has to note what has been or will be done. Connecticut adds a deadline of sorts: action must be performed as soon as possible, and where it will take longer than 30 days after discovery, the report has to explain why.
What is the rectifier hour reading for?
On impressed current corrosion protection, the Connecticut form asks you to record volt and amp readings and confirm they are consistent with previous months, then record the hour meter reading and confirm it increases by about 700 hours each month. Roughly 700 hours is a month of continuous running. A reading that climbed by 300 says the rectifier was off for half the month, which no voltage reading taken on inspection day would tell you.