For small water, sewer and public works crews
Confined space entry permits that won't open until the crew is ready
Manhole Permit Log is confined space entry permit software for small-town water and sewer utilities that blocks a permit until every person named is trained and the gas meter has been bump-tested, then keeps the readings for the annual review.
Permit gating
The form says no before anyone climbs down
- 01
Training must be current
Every entrant, attendant and entry supervisor needs training for that duty that is still valid through the end of the permit. Anyone who lapsed isn't offered on the form.
- 02
The meter must have passed a bump test
The gas meter needs a passing bump test or calibration in the 24 hours before the permit starts. A failed test blocks it until a new one passes.
- 03
Limits are not typed in
Oxygen, flammable gas, hydrogen sulfide and carbon monoxide limits are set by the app on every permit. A reading outside them is flagged the moment it is saved.
Gas readings you can show
A reading history for every wet well and vault
Pre-entry and periodic oxygen, flammable gas, hydrogen sulfide and carbon monoxide readings are timestamped and can never be edited. A fix is a new reading that points at the old one. Open any space and see every reading ever taken in it.
Annual permit program review
A year of permits, readings and training in one packet
Save the packet as a PDF for your own review, or give the insurance pool or state inspector a link that opens it read-only until you switch it off. Dock reports and training certificates open from inside it.
The truck binder
Paper permits lose the story of each space
A permit gets completed back at the shop. The readings sit on a different sheet. The bump test lives in a dock program, if you own a dock. Training is on a sign-in sheet nobody checks until the inspector asks.
Filled in after the fact
Permits in the truck binder get completed at the shop, or not at all.
No pattern per space
Readings sit on separate sheets, so nobody can show how a wet well behaves over a year.
Bump tests in a dock program
If you own a dock at all. The test isn't tied to the permit that used the meter.
Training on a sign-in sheet
You find out who lapsed when someone has already been assigned.
Your first week
What the crew does on days one, two and five
- Day 1
Add your spaces, meters and crew
About 30 minutes. Import the meter and crew lists from a spreadsheet.
- Day 1
Log each person's training
Entrant, attendant, supervisor and rescue cards, with the expiry dates.
- Day 2
Crews open, read and cancel from a phone
At the wet well, with the permit, the readings and the cancel note in one place.
- Day 5
Export the packet when someone asks
The insurance pool's loss-control visit, the state inspector, or your own annual review.
Plans and prices
A few hundred dollars a year, paid by card or purchase order
Every role, permit gating, the packet and the read-only link come with both plans. You get 30 days to try it first, and paying yearly saves two months. If your town pays by purchase order, email hello@keeprow.com.
Department
One town or district department. Up to 20 logins, 250 spaces and 15 gas meters.
$49 /monthor $490 a year
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Several crews or a larger district. Up to 50 logins, unlimited spaces and unlimited gas meters.
$99 /monthor $990 a year
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Answers on permits, meters and records
How long must a confined space entry permit be kept?
The federal confined space standard (29 CFR 1910.146) says to keep canceled entry permits for at least one year so the permit-required confined space program can be reviewed. State plans that cover public employees follow the same rule or a stricter one. Manhole Permit Log keeps every permit and reading on file, and the yearly packet lists them together.
Does OSHA require a confined space entry permit for a manhole or lift station?
A permit is required when the space is a permit-required confined space, for example one with a hazardous atmosphere or a risk of engulfment. Federal OSHA does not cover town and district employees, but the 29 state plans that cover public workers do, and insurance pools often audit the records. Each space in the app carries its classification, and only permit-required spaces can have a permit opened.
Is there a free confined space entry permit template?
Many free confined space entry permit forms exist, and a paper one works until the binder goes missing or a permit is filled in later. This app replaces the form: the crew picks the space, the people and the meter, and the permit refuses to open if training or the bump test is out of date.
What is a bump test on a gas meter, and where is it logged?
A bump test briefly exposes the meter to a known gas to confirm its sensors respond and alarm. Log each one with the result and the calibration gas lot expiry, or attach the report from your dock. The permit checks that the meter passed in the last 24 hours.
What if the meter said 20.9 and someone wrote 20.1?
The wrong number stays on file with its time. The crew adds a second reading that points at the first and gives the reason, so an auditor sees both and nothing was quietly overwritten.
Does it work for a crew of three with no safety department?
That is who it is built for: a superintendent who is also the safety officer. One admin sets up the spaces, meters and crew, entry supervisors open and cancel permits, and crew members see only the permits they are named on.
What do we hand the insurance pool's loss-control rep?
One printable packet covering the year, or a link that opens the same packet read-only until you switch it off. The rep never needs a login.
What happens when the 30 days are up?
Nothing is lost. Until you pick a plan you can still read and export everything; adding or changing records needs a paid plan, which you choose on the Billing page.
Updated October 8, 2026
Questions before you sign up? Ask us, or start the trial.