Fire extinguisher needed

[Minxy]

Forgot to say, popped into our local Aldi and they had quite a few so snaffled one after checking the gauge first, one of them had obviously leaked as it's gauge was at 0 and there was powder on the others, we gave the faulty one to the shop manager and he was going to have a look at the rest to make sure they were okay, so if you DO buy one make sure it is in the 'green' zone.

 

[kev54]

Fire Safety Stick for us https://firesafetystick.com (and a blanket for the chip-pan we never use ). They are a bit expensive, but the cheapo ones have a much shorter lifespan (and sometimes annual maintenance) - and you need a different one for each type of fire - not so with the stick.

 

[Charlie57]

The Fire Stick whilst looking expensive looks very effective, whilst not causing any damage like powder or water

 

[Mzracer]

Just be cautious with powder. It’s a corrosive substance so if you do need to use it be sure to clean things down

There speaks a man who knows what he is talking about.

 

[Mzracer]

I would be very reluctant to use a dry powder fire extinguisher in a motor home, the powder is very corrosive and pretty well anything metallic gets seriously corroded.

With no pride I can tell you that I have fought a few fires in my time, Co2 is my goto extinguisher and at one fire that I put out in a factory there was a choice of extinguisher, it was like being in a Chinese take away with the menu !!

I would say that sometimes you need a bit more extinguisher with Co2 as all that they do is take the oxygen away, once that oxygen comes back the fire can start again.

In that factory fire (that had an electrical cable running through it) then me and another guy used 6 of the normal-sized (not domestic sized) Co2 fire extinguishers to put out the fire.

The main thing with firefighting is to act quickly, don't dither and fight the base of the fire. This way you catch the fire before it gets too big, if the fire gets beyond the handheld extinguisher then you have to wait for the fire brigade and that is depressing.

I speak from hard-gained experience. Co2 for me every time.

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[jumar]

I would be very reluctant to use a dry powder fire extinguisher in a motor home, the powder is very corrosive and pretty well anything metallic gets seriously corroded.

With no pride I can tell you that I have fought a few fires in my time, Co2 is my goto extinguisher and at one fire that I put out in a factory there was a choice of extinguisher, it was like being in a Chinese take away with the menu !!

I would say that sometimes you need a bit more extinguisher with Co2 as all that they do is take the oxygen away, once that oxygen comes back the fire can start again.

In that factory fire (that had an electrical cable running through it) then me and another guy used 6 of the normal-sized (not domestic sized) Co2 fire extinguishers to put out the fire.

The main thing with firefighting is to act quickly, don't dither and fight the base of the fire. This way you catch the fire before it gets too big, if the fire gets beyond the handheld extinguisher then you have to wait for the fire brigade and that is depressing.

I speak from hard-gained experience. Co2 for me every time.

I wouldn't totally agree with all of your posting....but as you have had first hand experience in using Co2 that in itself is rewarding.
My personal feeling gained through my experience is not to worry too much about the mess caused by using Dry Powder, as Fire damage is far more serious...
All extinguishing media becomes a hazard to the user In confined spaces, if the prime objective is to starve the the fire of oxygen, this could be in itself a danger to the user..
I agree that Co2 is very effective and causes little damage, but this type of appliance is bulky, quite heavy and therefore not suitable for motorhome use...
DP, AFFF are my choices...once again learned from experience, I carry one of each, but if suitably trained, other simple means of extinguishing a fire are readily available... smothering for example...I extinguished a gas BBQ fire only last year in an adjoining motorhome...if the occupants were to have thrown yet another DRY cloth/ Towel on to it, we could have had something much more serious. So let's not forget the dampened tea towel or Fire Blanket....videos are available on how to use them correctly, with the emphasis on protecting the user.
Don't know why you would become depressed waiting for the Fire Service, other than to say that Campsites and Rally fields are in rural locations, where the response time is obviously greater. If an attempt to extinguish a fire in a MH had failed and the Fire Service were alerted, you may be faced with a total right off, the prime objective of the Fire Service is to Save life and protect property, but containment and preventing spread may be the case. Stay safe...motorhomes can be replaced, lives cannot.

 

[Mzracer]

jumar

I think my point that I probably did not make well was that yes getting the fire out and preservation of life is the most important thing, but the damage caused by Dry Powder extinguishers is considerable and often more damage than that of a small fire which is not life threatening.

Wet towels are very good at extinguishing small fires. Actually, the most recent fire I put out was with wet towels, again not my doing but a laser cutting machine was on fire in a garage, I went for the only fire extinguisher to hand which was dry powder but it failed (too old, time expired), initially I held the fire back with some aluminium sheets but finally extinguished it with wet towels, very effective. It was a mercy that the DP extinguisher did not go off as there was a lot of equipment in that garage that would have been destroyed by the powder.

Being depressed by waiting for the fire brigade? well, the biggest fire that I put out would have burnt the factory down if we stood outside and waited for the fire brigade, they took 18 minutes to get to the fire and this was in Horndean, Hampshire which is not a rural location, watching something burn into the ground is very depressing again I have this experience !!

As I said I would far prefer not to have had the pressure and mild dangers of fighting these fires and they have never been my doing, I was just there like you were for the BBQ fire.

 

[jumar]

jumar

I think my point that I probably did not make well was that yes getting the fire out and preservation of life is the most important thing, but the damage caused by Dry Powder extinguishers is considerable and often more damage than that of a small fire which is not life threatening.

Wet towels are very good at extinguishing small fires. Actually, the most recent fire I put out was with wet towels, again not my doing but a laser cutting machine was on fire in a garage, I went for the only fire extinguisher to hand which was dry powder but it failed (too old, time expired), initially I held the fire back with some aluminium sheets but finally extinguished it with wet towels, very effective. It was a mercy that the DP extinguisher did not go off as there was a lot of equipment in that garage that would have been destroyed by the powder.

Being depressed by waiting for the fire brigade? well, the biggest fire that I put out would have burnt the factory down if we stood outside and waited for the fire brigade, they took 18 minutes to get to the fire and this was in Horndean, Hampshire which is not a rural location, watching something burn into the ground is very depressing again I have this experience !!

As I said I would far prefer not to have had the pressure and mild dangers of fighting these fires and they have never been my doing, I was just there like you were for the BBQ fire.

18 minutes...well that's all due to re- classing risk areas...I have to admit that I was involved in such activity a few year back.
I knew it to be political and also there as a means of reducing the number of fire stations/personal, but I took my orders from my seniors and they took theirs from the Home Office....as an officer in two large UK cities I would be required to attend most incidents within 3 minutes...and questions would be asked if that time isn't met...now it's different I'm afraid.....
Having workforce fire trained personnel is a must...it's can save lives, property and jobs...going back to the thread, with basic knowledge and quick thinking most detected/ or noticed MH fires can be quickly extinguished....most fires start small and grow quickly...quick intervention as you state is a must....having an extinguisher/blanket whatever type needs to be available and serviced....it's mode of operation is also required..

 

[Mzracer]

18 minutes...well that's all due to re- classing risk areas...I have to admit that I was involved in such activity a few year back.
I knew it to be political and also there as a means of reducing the number of fire stations/personal, but I took my orders from my seniors and they took theirs from the Home Office....as an officer in two large UK cities I would be required to attend most incidents within 3 minutes...and questions would be asked if that time isn't met...now it's different I'm afraid.....
Having workforce fire trained personnel is a must...it's can save lives, property and jobs...going back to the thread, with basic knowledge and quick thinking most detected/ or noticed MH fires can be quickly extinguished....most fires start small and grow quickly...quick intervention as you state is a must....having an extinguisher/blanket whatever type needs to be available and serviced....it's mode of operation is also required..

I agree with everything that you say above.