Fire Extinguisher In Garage

[chewy]

I will be moving into a new home in July and have a detached two car garage. Was thinking about buying a 5 or 10 lb fire extinguisher to keep in the garage.

Anyone else keep one for safety?

Curious Chewy

[kgb]

Thanks for reminding me! When I bought my house I had to buy one for the kitchen. Now I want one for the garage and one for my car. I forgot all about it.

[grimmster]

Have one in my garage, kitchen and utility room, although, i need to have them all inspected again, been to long....

[ExplEddieBauer]

We have a 10 pound one in our garage, as well as first and second floor of our house.

[TooFastGTP]

I keep one in garage...for the house i have a sprikler system and really do not see the point for an extinguisher

[Brad B.]

I actually have 2 large ones mounted plus a small one in the older cars. Can't be too safe.

[Deemo]

Is there a minimum temperature restriction?
I need one to withstand a good Canadian winter.
Brad - that's the wirdest looking exting.....oh never mind.
You mean the red thing above the hand cleaner...not that funny looking silver thing.

[DaGonz]

Dry chemical extinguishers are not temperature sensitive. The smaller ones are charged with nitrogen at the factory, the 20 pound size and up use carbon dioxide cartridges. Dry chemical extinguishers can be used on the following types of fires

Class A: ordinary combustibles (wood, paper, plastics)
Class B: flammable liquids (oils, gasoline, solvents)
Class C: energized electrical equipment

Dry chem extinguishers are rated for their extinguishing capabilities. A 2A, 10 BC extinguisher wil extinguish a fire in ordinary combustibles covering a two square foot area, a 10 square foot area of a flammable/combustible liquid fire. The C indicates that it can be used on energized electrical equipment. The ratings are based on the amount of fire a non trained person should be able to extinguish. In the hands of trained personnel, the area can be doubled

If you have a fire extinguisher, take it out and read the instructions from time to time. Check the operating pressure at least once a month. Some extinguishers have a pressure test pin in addition to a pressure gauge.Follow the manufacturer's instructions. If there is not enought pressure, the extinguisher will not work properly. Some extinguishers are one time use only, others can be recharged by a fire extinguisher service company. The larger sizes (10, 20 and 30 pound extinguishers) can be recharged

To operate an extinguisher, remember the mnemonic PASS

P: Pull the pin
A: Aim the extinguisher at the base of the flames
S: Squeeze the handle to expel the extinguishing agent
S: Sweep the fire extinguisher from left to right, starting at the leading edge of the fire and pushing it back

Once the fire is out, back away from the fire...never turn your back on it. Always call the fire department if you use a fire extinguisher. Let them investigate the fire and insure that it is really out ( I can't tell you how many fires I have been to that were thought to be out when someone used an extinguisher!)


TooFastGTP...

It' s great that your home has a fire sprinkler system. You should still keep a dry chemical extinguisher in the kitchen, though. A small burst from a dry chem extinguisher can extinguish a fire in it's incipient phase. A sprinkler head reacts when the ceiling temperature reaches the melting point of the fusible link or the frangible glass bulb.

Other important fire and life safety devices to have in your home are smoke detectors and carbon monoxide detectors. I have heat detectors in my garage, which are tied into to my hard wired smoke detector system.

[Deemo]

Absolutely nothing as good as having Fire-Rescue on your board

[Guess My Name]

Fire extinguishers in Kitchen and Garage.....

ABC 10#.......Bought 2FER kit....expect to replace them once a year since they safe thingy tends to creep down................

Remember them 20# ones get heavy for the little ladies to operate...............

[raymond_ho2002]

when i saw the thread title i first thought someone had waxed their fire extinguisher.. :P

[Lynn]

Gonzo0903, I am SO GLAD you're on this board. I do some disaster preparedness training in my non-Autopia life. So you can confirm or correct me on a couple of other points:

1. It's my understanding that you should "shake" the dry chem extinguishers at least monthly, in order to keep the powder loose, not caked. Is that correct?

2. The chemicals used in the ABC extinguishers are exceedingly fine (think talc) and will go everywhere. I found the clean-up very difficult (because of the fineness) when I used one -- successfully! -- and ended up with bronchitis due to breathing the chemicals.

3. In addition, it's my understanding that the chemicals used in the ABC extinguishers are quite caustic. I've heard anecdotal reports of silver being etched when the chemicals were allowed to remain. Again: Gonzo, is that true? If so, it gives a warning that we oughta do cleanup very quickly and thoroughly after an event.

4. For small, fairly "enclosed" fires (e.g., in a wastebasket or skillet or maybe even an engine bay), I keep Halon extinguishers on hand also, since they leave no residue. But they are only effecitve in the aforementioned small and enclosed spaces, not in open areas such as the garage. Gonzo, please clarify/correct/amplify as needed.