AED Readiness: Pads, Batteries, and the Expiration Calendar Nobody Owns

Every AED program has the same weak point. The device was bought with good intent, mounted by the front desk, and photographed for the safety committee. Then the pads expired, the battery followed, and the status light changed on a Tuesday when nobody was looking. AED pads and batteries are consumables with hard expiration dates, and in most buildings no one owns the calendar that tracks them.

The device already does its part

Modern AEDs self-test without being asked. The Philips HeartStart OnSite runs self-tests daily, weekly and monthly, shows a blinking green Ready light when it passes, and chirps when it needs maintenance. The Cardiac Science Powerheart G5 shows battery, pad and device status on its Rescue Ready indicator. The Defibtech Lifeline tests preconnected pads daily. The failure is the human step: nobody walks over to look, and nobody has the replacement on order when the light changes.

Minnesota puts the obligation in statute. Minn. Stat. 403.51 requires the owner of a public access AED to register it within 30 working days, maintain it, including replacement of dead batteries and pads, comply with manufacturer recall and safety notices, and keep an emergency response plan. The statute defines a "maintenance program" as one that alerts the owner before electrodes and batteries expire, or replaces them. A dead battery is not a supply problem. It is a compliance problem.

AED pads and batteries: shelf life by model

Shelf life varies more than buyers expect. Zoll built the AED Plus and AED 3 around five-year consumables. Philips, Cardiac Science and Defibtech pads run about two years, so those units hit the calendar more than twice as often.

Two details trip people up.

Batteries carry three dates: manufacture, install-by and expiration. Philips states its M5070A battery has a shelf life of at least five years from manufacture and four years of typical standby once installed by the install-by date. A battery that sat in a closet for three years will not give you four more on the wall. Log the install date.

The Zoll AED Plus battery is a set of ten off-the-shelf Duracell 123a lithium cells in two banks of five, one backing up the other. The five-year figure assumes all ten go in together. Replace them as a set.

Monthly readiness checks and who owns them

Zoll's guidance is a monthly visual inspection, and some states require more. Two minutes per unit:

1. Status indicator shows a pass on the last self-test.
2. Pads present, sealed, connected if the model calls for it, and in date.
3. Battery in date, install date logged.
4. Housing and cables free of cracks, cuts or exposed wire.
5. Rescue kit complete: razor, scissors, gloves, barrier mask.
6. Cabinet alarm or strobe works, if fitted.
7. Initial and date the log.

The checklist is never the problem. Ownership is. Assign one named person per device, with a named backup, and put the check on both calendars. In a school district that is the health office. In a plant, the safety coordinator. In an office building, facilities. Zoll's guidance is blunt: the owner or entity that acquired the AED is responsible for its maintenance, and the records need to be accurate and available.

Fleets of ten or more units outgrow a clipboard. The Zoll AED 3 offers WiFi and reports status daily, and Zoll's PlusTrac program tracks inspections and sends expiration notices across sites. Philips and Defibtech units still need the walk, so the calendar has to live somewhere shared.

Pediatric pads and cabinets

If children under 8 years old or under 55 pounds (25 kg) are routinely in the building, you need a pediatric option. Zoll, Cardiac Science, Philips and Defibtech all state that threshold. Elementary schools, daycares, pediatric clinics, churches with nurseries and youth sports facilities qualify.

The pediatric option is a second consumable on the same calendar. Separate pediatric pads on a Powerheart G5 or a Lifeline expire on their own two-year clock, usually out of sync with the adult pads. The Zoll AED 3 and Philips FRx avoid the second SKU: the AED 3 uses child mode with the same CPR Uni-padz, and the FRx uses an Infant/Child Key with the same pads. Philips lists its Infant/Child SMART Pads cartridge for the OnSite as prescription-only in the United States; Keystone quotes Rx-only accessories to licensed facilities and programs with medical direction on file.

Cabinets keep the unit visible, hold it at a stable temperature, and sound an alarm when the door opens. The cabinet's alarm battery is one more item with a date. Put it on the same log.

Buy pads and batteries approved for your model

FDA requires premarket approval for AEDs and their accessories and publishes tables of approved devices. FDA also warns that compatible accessories for AEDs that never received approval may no longer be available after February 3, 2022. If you cannot get approved pads for an older unit, the fix is a new AED, not an aftermarket pad. Keystone quotes manufacturer pads and batteries matched to the model and serial you send us.

Standing order for replacements

The permanent fix takes the calendar out of one person's head and puts it in a supply agreement.

1. Inventory every unit. Model, serial, location, owner, pad expiration, battery expiration and install date, pediatric pad expiration, cabinet alarm battery date.
2. Set the trigger at 60 to 90 days before each expiration.
3. Put it on a standing order. Keystone builds the schedule from your inventory and ships the right pads and batteries ahead of each date, from Edina or direct from the manufacturer, with stated lead times on every line.
4. Reconcile once a year. Add new units, retire orphaned ones, update owners.

Same-day quotes during business hours. Net 30 for approved accounts. One invoice per replacement cycle instead of a scramble per device.

What Keystone supplies

Keystone Supply Group, Edina, Minnesota, supplies Zoll AED 3, AED Plus and AED Pro, Cardiac Science Powerheart G5, Philips HeartStart FRx and OnSite, Defibtech Lifeline, trainers, pads, batteries and cabinets to school districts, manufacturers, senior living, clinics and public agencies. See the AEDs and medical equipment page for the line. AEDs are prescription devices in most states; tell us whether medical direction is in place and we quote accordingly.

Browse AEDs, pads, batteries and cabinets or send your AED inventory for a quote. Orders@KeystoneSupplyGroup.com, (320) 808-3686.

Sources

• Zoll, AED Plus: https://www.zoll.com/en-us/products/emergency-care/aeds/aed-plus
• Zoll, ZOLL AED 3: https://www.zoll.com/en-us/products/emergency-care/aeds/zoll-aed-3
• Zoll, How to Maintain an AED, Checklist and Tips: https://www.zoll.com/en-us/other-resources-and-links/how-to-maintain-aed
• Zoll, Powerheart G5 AED: https://www.zoll.com/en-us/products/emergency-care/aeds/powerheart-g5
• Philips, HeartStart OnSite AED defibrillator: https://www.usa.philips.com/healthcare/product/HCM5066A/heartstart-onsite-aed-defibrillator
• Philips, HeartStart FRx AED defibrillator: https://www.usa.philips.com/healthcare/product/HC861304/heartstart-frx-aed-defibrillator
• Philips, HeartStart OnSite/Home/FRx Battery M5070A: https://aedshop.philips.com/us/989803121381.html
• Defibtech, Lifeline AED: https://www.defibtech.com/products/lifeline-aed/
• AED.com, Zoll AED Plus Type 123 Lithium Batteries: https://www.aed.com/zoll-aed-plus-type-123-lithium-batteries.html
• FDA, Automated External Defibrillators (AEDs): https://www.fda.gov/medical-devices/cardiovascular-devices/automated-external-defibrillators-aeds
• Minnesota Statutes 403.51, Automatic External Defibrillation; Registration: https://www.revisor.mn.gov/statutes/cite/403.51