Home Improvement

Your Guide To Fire Extinguisher Safety

Fire can cause devastating damage to property and even result in the loss of life. Fire prevention in the home and work place is vital to ensuring your family colleagues and property are kept safe from fire. Fire extinguishers are ideal for tackling small fires before they spread provided it’s safe to do so. Emergency equipment can save lives but it’s important to know how to use this equipment properly and safely to avoid causing more damage or putting your own life at risk.

There are four main types of extinguishers for fires which are power water carbon dioxide and foam.

Unfortunately no one extinguisher can combat all types of fire to find out the differences check out the guide below.

Powder

Powder extinguishers work by separating the three elements needed to create and sustain fire heat fuel and oxygen by blanketing the fuel with powder it can no longer burn. This type of equipment can deal with common kitchen fires as it can tackle wood paper gas and electrical fires.

Water

Water extinguishers work by cooling the fuel by absorbing the heat so the fire can no longer burn. Wood paper or cardboard fires can be handled with a water extinguisher. It’s dangerous to tackle an electrical fire with water as the water could conduct the electricity and electrocute you.

Carbon dioxide

CO2 fire extinguishers work by displacing the oxygen surrounding the fuel as carbon dioxide is a heavier gas than oxygen. CO2 extinguishers are designed to put out electrical and oil fires and are particularly useful for office equipment such as servers and computers as the CO2 doesn’t cause the systems to short circuit and damage other equipment.

Foam

Foam smothers fires by covering the fuel with a film which separates the fuel from the oxygen needed to create the fire. The foam also cools the fire as the water content evaporates under the heat. Foam extinguishers are best suited to burning liquid fires such as petrol. Although they can be used on electrical fires this is not advisable as the foam itself can cause extensive damage to electrical equipment.

Top tips to use your extinguisher safely

Extinguishers are designed with safety in mind but if you don’t know how to use one correctly you could end up at risk from the fire or the extinguisher. Make sure you and everyone in your family or workplace know how to use the equipment correctly and are familiar with the instructions so they are prepared in an emergency. Investing in a huge fire extinguisher which no one can lift is useless so make sure you opt for easy to carry models and install them in key risk areas such as kitchens or in hallways so they can be carried to the fire. When you fit the equipment make sure it’s out of reach of children.

Remember that you should only use a fire extinguisher when it’s safe to do so and if the fire is too large or in danger of rapidly going out of control then you should contact the fire brigade immediately.

About the writer: Steven Holmes