Before you need to use a fire extinguisher read the label to make
sure you fully understand the type of fire extinguisher it is and for
which types of fires it is appropriate and safe to use on.
For example, standard water extinguishers should not be used on
electricity. However, foam and dry water mist extinguishers, though
water based, can be safely used on electrical fires, as long as they had
the dielelctrical test up to 35000V (also written 35kV) carried out and
as long as you keep a safety distance of 1m from the electrical fire.
Nevertheless, it is good practice to try to switch off the electric
supply before tackling a fire caused by electricity with any
extinguisher.
Before you can operate most portable extinguishers you need to remove
the safety pin. With hose reels you may have open a water valve before
it can be used. Make sure that before you tackle a fire you are between
the fire and exit or escape route.
Water Extinguisher
 |
Signal Red
|
| Best For |
| Fires involving organic solid materials such as wood, cloth, paper, plastics, Coal etc. |
| Danger |
| Do not use on burning fat or oil or on electrical appliances |
| How to Use |
| Point the jet at the base of the flames and keep it moving across
the area of the fire. Ensure that all areas of the fire are out. |
| How it Works |
| Water has a great effect on cooling the fuel surfaces and thereby reducing the pyrolysis rate of the fuel |
Water Spray Extinguisher (Water with additive)
 |
Signal Red
|
| Best For |
| Fires involving organic solid materials such as wood, cloth, paper,
plastics, Coal etc. These offer significantly improved fire fighting
capability than traditional jet type water fire extinguishers. Available
in 3 and 6 litres. |
| Danger |
| Do not use on burning fat or oil or on electrical appliances |
| How to Use |
| Point the jet at the base of the flames and keep it moving across
the area of the fire. Ensure that all areas of the fire are out. |
| How it Works |
| Water has a great effect on cooling the fuel surfaces and thereby
reducing the pyrolysis rate of the fuel. Instead of a jet nozzel a spray
nozzel is used, with a higher pressure, which creates a fine spray.
This allows for a given quantity of water to have a considerable
increase in the surface area presented to the fire. This makes
extinguishing more efficient by more rapid extraction of heat, formation
of steam etc. They can also contain surfactants which help the water
penetrate deep into the burning material which increase the
effectiveness of the extinguisher. |
Water Mist Extinguisher (‘Dry’ Water Mist)
 |
Signal Red on a White Background
|
| Best For |
| The first broad spectrum extinguisher to tackle A, B, C rated risks
as well as fats, deep fat fryers (Class F). Models with dielectric test
to 35k Volt can be safely used on electrical fires (up to 1000 Volt) if a
safety distance of 1m is adhered to, as their mist (de-ionised water)
does not conduct electricity and the extinguisher does not normally form
puddles, which could conduct electricity. |
| Danger |
| na |
| How to Use |
| Point the jet at the base of the flames and keep it moving across
the area of the fire. Ensure that all areas of the fire are out.The fire
draws the microscopic water particles into the fire |
| How it Works |
| Water is turned into microscopic particles in the supersonic nozzle.
The water mist is drawn to the fire where it cools and suffocates the
fire. The mist also forms a safety barrier between user and fire, which
keeps some of the heat back. |
Powder Extinguisher (Multi-Purpose)
 |
Blue
|
| Best For |
| Can be used on fires involving organic solids, liquids such as
grease, fats, oil, paint, petrol, etc but not on chip or fat pan fires.
Can also be used on gas fires. |
| Danger |
Safe on live electrical equipment, although does not penetrate the
spaces in equipment easily and the fire may re-ignite. This type of
extinguisher does not cool the fire very well and care should be taken
that the fire does not flare up again.
Smouldering material in deep seated fires such as upholstery or bedding
can cause the fire to start up again. Do not use on domestic chip or fat
pan fires.There is danger of inhalation if powder extinguishers are
used within buildings. |
| How to Use |
| Point the jet or discharge horn at the base of the flames and, with a
rapid sweeping motion, drive the fire towards the far edge until all
the flames are out. If the extinguisher has a hand control, wait until
the air clears and if you can still see the flames, attack the fire
again. |
| How it Works |
| Similarly to almost all extinguishing agents the powders acts as a
thermal ballast making the flames too cool for the chemical reactions to
continue. Some powders also provide a minor chemical inhibition,
although this effect is relatively weak. These powders thus provide
rapid knockdown of flame fronts, but may not keep the fire suppressed. |
Dry Powder Extinguisher (Special Powders)
 |
Blue
|
| Best For |
These specialist powder extinguishers are designed to tackle fires
involving combustible metals such as lithium, magnesium, sodium or
aluminium when in the form of swarf or powder.
There are three special powders based on graphite, copper and sodium chloride. |
| Danger |
| Do not allow water to come in contact with the burning
metal and the powder must be gently applied. Sodium Chloride is not
recommended for Lithium. |
| How to Use |
| The lance enables the user to tackle fire at a safe distance and the
low velocity applicator to reduce the energy of the jet allowing the
powder to gently smother the surface of the burning material thus
avoiding scattering of high temperature particles and stimulating the
formation of a crust. The method of application is completely different
from a standard extinguisher and user training is required. They are not
suitable for use on live electrical fires. |
| How it Works |
| This extinguisher works by forming a crust which insulates the metal
to prevent access to other combustible material nearby and smothering
the fire to prevent oxygen from the atmosphere reacting with the metal |
Foam Extinguisher (AFFF)
 |
Cream
|
| Best For |
| Fires involving solids and burning liquids, such as paint and petrol
but not suitable for chip or fat pan fires. Safe on fires caused by
electricity if tested to 35kV (dielectric test) and a 1m safety distance
is adhered to. |
| Danger |
| Do not use on chip or fat pan fires. |
| How to Use |
| For fires involving solids, point the jet at the base of the flames
and keep it moving across the area of the fire. Ensure that all areas of
the fire are out. For fires involving liquids, do not aim the jet
straight into the liquid. Where the liquid on fire is in a container,
point the jet at the inside edge of the container or on a nearby surface
above the burning liquid. Allow the foam to build up and flow across
the liquid. |
| How it Works |
| They are mainly water based, with a foaming agent so that the foam
can float on top of the burning liquid and break the interaction between
the flames and the fuel surface. |
Carbon Dioxide Extinguisher
 |
Black
|
| Best For |
| Live electrical equipment, although it allows re-ignition of hot
plastics. Now mainly used on large computer servers, although care has
to be taken not to asphyxiate people when using the extinguisher in
small server rooms. |
| Danger |
| Do not use on chip or fat pan fires, as it carries burning fat out
of container. This type of extinguisher does not cool the fire very well
and you need to ensure that the fire does not start up again. Fumes
from CO2 extinguishers can asphyxiate if used in confined spaces:
ventilate the area as soon as the fire has been controlled.Only use CO2
extinguishers with frost-free horns, as the hand holding the horn can
otherwise be frozen to the horn, as the gas is getting very cold during
the discharge. |
| How to Use |
| The discharge horn should be directed at the base of the flames and the jet kept moving across the area of the fire. |
| How it Works |
| Carbon dioxide extinguisher works by suffocating the fire. Carbon
dioxide displaces oxygen in the air. However, once discharged, the CO2
will dissipate quickly and allow access for oxygen again, which can
re-ignite the fire. |
Wet Chemical
 |
Canary Yellow
|
| Best For |
| Wet chemical fire extinguishers are ideal for Class F fires,
involving cooking oils and fats, such as lard, olive oil, sunflower oil,
maize oil and butter. |
| Danger |
| Check manufacturer’s instructions for suitability of use. These
extinguishers are usually not recommended for class B fires such as
petrol, although Gloria has produced a 3l wet chemical extinguisher with B rating. |
| How to Use |
| Apply the wet chemical using the extended applicator in slow
circular movements, which give a gentle, yet highly effective
application. Apply the fine spray onto the burning fat until the surface
of the burning cooking oil changes into a soapy like substance which
prevents re-ignition. The gentle application helps to prevent burning
oil splashing out of the container. Make sure that you empty the entire
content of the wet chemical extinguisher onto the oil/fat, as the fire
can re-ignite otherwise. |
| How it Works |
Most class F extinguishers contain a solution of potassium acetate,
sometimes with some potassium citrate or potassium bicarbonate. The
extinguishers spray the agent out as a fine mist. The mist acts to cool
the flame front, while the potassium salts saponify the surface of the
burning cooking oil, producing a layer of foam over the surface. This
solution thus provides a similar blanketing effect to a foam
extinguisher, but with a greater cooling effect. The saponification only
works on animal fats and vegetable oils, so most class F extinguishers
cannot be used for class B fires. The misting also helps to prevent
splashing the blazing oil.
Tests have established that a 6 litre wet chemical fire extinguisher
with a 75F rating can deal with a fat fire of maximum 0.11 m2 surface
area. |
Fire Blanket
 |
Fire Blanket Fire blankets are made of fire resistant
materials. They are particularly useful for smothering flammable liquid
fires or for wrapping round a person whose clothing is on fire. Fire
blankets conforming to British Standard BS EN 1869 : 1997 are suitable
for use in the home BS 7944 : 1999 is suitable for industrial use. These
will be marked to show whether they should be thrown away after use or
used again after cleaning in accordance with the manufacturers
instructions. |
| Best For |
| Fires involving both solids and liquids. Particularly good for small
clothing fires and for chip and fat pan fires providing the blanket
completely covers the fire. |
| Danger |
| If the blanket does not completely cover the fire, it will not be able to extinguish the fire. |
| How to Use |
| Place carefully over the fire. Keep your hands shielded from the fire. Do not waft the fire towards you. |
| How it Works |
| Smothers the fire and prevents oxygen getting to the fire. |
Hose Reel
 |
Hose Reel |
| Best For |
| Fires involving organic solid materials such as wood, cloth, paper, plastics, coal etc. |
| Danger |
| Do not use on burning fat or oil or on electrical appliances before the electric supply has been isolated. |
| How to Use |
| Point the jet at the base of the flames and keep it moving across
the area of the fire. Ensure that all areas of the fire are out. |
| How it Works |
| Water has a great effect on cooling the fuel surfaces and thereby reducing the pyrolysis rate of the fuel |
Fire Buckets
 |
A simple bucket of water can be used on Class A type of
fires either to supplement a water extinguisher or as a first attack if
an extinguisher is not immediately available. It also can be filled with
dry sand and used as an absorbing agent or to dam a flow of flammable
liquid. They do have serious disadvantages as they are often misused,
left empty or allowed to be used as a refuse container. |
| Best For |
| Wood, Cloth, Paper, Plastics, Coal |
| Danger |
| Do not use on burning fat or oil or on electrical appliances before the electric supply has been isolated. |
| How to Use |
| Throw at the base of the flames. Ensure that all areas of the fire are out. |
| How it Works |
| Water has a great effect on cooling the fuel surfaces and thereby reducing the pyrolysis rate of the fuel |
