COMMON TYPES OF FIRE EXTINGUISHERS
FIRE can be worse than thieves. When thieves attack your house, they may just steal household goods. But when fire attacks your house, it may destroy both your household goods and the house itself.
Thieves choose what to steal. Fire doesn’t choose what to burn. Equip your house with a fire extinguisher.
Fire has left some people homeless who once owned homes. Fire has sent some businesspeople out of business permanently. There is nothing more painful than to see your investment which took you many years to acquire being reduced to ashes in seconds by fire.
Fire can be prevented with a fire extinguisher. When fire is still small, a fire extinguisher is an effective tool to control it. Since all fires start small, it means that a fire extinguisher gives you an opportunity to control any fire so long as you detect it early when it is still small.
Let me start by emphasising that owning a fire extinguisher is very important. You don’t need a government permit to own a fire extinguisher. Anyone can own a fire extinguisher anytime - anywhere. You can possess a fire extinguisher regardless of where you live.
Fire extinguishers have become easily accessible and affordable, more affordable than buying a phone! For workplaces and public buildings, it’s a requirement by law that such places must be fitted with suitable fire extinguishers.
The job of a fire extinguisher is to put out fire. So what’s fire? When we understand what fire is, we will easily understand how fire extinguishers work to put out fire. In simplest terms, fire is burning or combustion. From the technical point of view, fire is a complex chemical reaction.
For fire to occur, it requires the combination of three elements. The first element is
fuel, second heat and third oxygen. In other words, fire occurs when, and only when, the three elements combine together.
When you remove one of the elements, fire goes off. It’s that simple. The in-depth explanation of the chemistry of fire is beyond the scope of this article.
The three elements form what is known as Fire Triangle. Fire can only go off if, and only if, one of the elements runs out or is eliminated. For instance, when you pour water on fire, you lower the temperature which means that you have removed the heat element.
Hence fire goes off. Covering fire with a fire blanket or sand prevents oxygen from meeting the burning fuel which means that you have removed the oxygen element. Hence fire goes off.
Every fire extinguisher is designed to operate on the principle of removing one of the elements usually oxygen or heat to extinguish fire.
Let’s look at the three common types of fire extinguishers. The first one is the Water Fire Extinguisher. These fire extinguishers are filled with ordinary tap water pressurised with air. They extinguish fire by removing the heat element from the Fire Triangle. The water from the fire extinguisher cools the surface of the burning fuel.
Water Fire Extinguisher are designed for Class A fires. Class A fires involve the burning of materials such as wood, paper, cloth, rubber and certain plastics only.
Never use Water Fire Extinguisher on fires of flammable liquids like petrol or cooking oil. This can make things worse by spreading fire since such flammable liquids float on top of water.
Water Fire Extinguisher must not be used on electrical fires because water is a good conductor of electricity. You can identify the Water Fire Extinguisher by its red label. All Water Fire extinguishers have a red label.
The second type the Carbon Dioxide is Fire Extinguishers. These fire extinguishers are filled with pressurised carbon dioxide. They extinguish fire by removing the oxygen element from the Fire Triangle.
The carbon dioxide, which is a non-flammable gas, displaces oxygen gas from the burning fire. Carbon Dioxide Fire Extinguishers are designed for Class B and Class C fires. Class B fires involving flammable liquids like petrol, diesel or paraffin while Class E fires involve electrical fires. It is important to remember that electrical fire doesn’t mean burning of electricity. Electricity never burns. It’s called electrical fire because the electrical components like insulators which burn.
You can identify the Carbon Dioxide Fire Extinguisher by its black label, absence of the gauge and the presence of wider nozzle. Avoid using Carbon Dioxide Fire extinguisher on Class A fires because materials may continue to smoulder and re-ignite.
You shouldn’t use them in a confined space without proper breathing apparatus because carbon dioxide is not suitable for respiration.
The third type is the Dry Chemical Powder Fire Extinguisher. These fire extinguishers put out fires by removing oxygen element. The chemical powder reacts to form a coating of a fire-retardant powder around the burning fuel.
This creates a barrier between the fuel and the oxygen. The chemical powder also interrupts the chemical reaction of fire which makes these extinguishers extremely effective.
Remember fire is a chemical reaction. They are multipurpose often designed for Class A, B and C fires. You can identify Dry Chemical Fire Extinguisher by its blue label.
Fire can reduce your entire company, house or car to ashes in a matter of minutes. It’s painful to see your hard-acquired investment go up in flames. A simple fire extinguisher can be your most powerful weapon against fire. Don’t underestimate its effectiveness.
I have a simple question for you. Do you own a fire extinguisher at home? If your answer is no, why don’t you own a fire extinguisher? Please share yours answers with me. I really want to hear from you today.
My dream is to see a fire extinguisher in every home in Zambia. Once I know challenges that prevent people from owning fire extinguishers, it will help me to find solutions. Together we can make Zambian homes truly safe.
*The author is the CEO of SafetyFocus Suppliers, a leading safety company in Zambia. For your daily safety tips, like our Facebook page on www.facbook.com/ safetyfocussuppliers.
For your comments, contact the author on cell 0955 179267 or email: k.mark@ safetyfocussuppliers.com
Let me start by emphasising that owning a fire extinguisher is very important. You don’t need a government permit to own a fire extinguisher. Anyone can own a fire extinguisher anytime - anywhere. You can possess a fire extinguisher regardless of where you live.