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Fire Extinguisher Maintenance

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Fire Extinguisher Maintenance — what is it?

This article is about some of the more common types of fire extinguisher maintenance that exist. Before we begin, lets discuss the different types of fire extinguishers.

Types of Fire Extinguishers:

There are a few primary types of extinguishers that most people encounter on a regular basis. Each one has its own purpose and attacks a fire from a unique perspective. The most common fire extinguisher is called an “ABC” “Dry-Chemical” fire extinguisher. These fire extinguishers primarily use a chemical called monoammonium phosphate to extinguisher a fire. Monoammonium phosphate works by interrupting the chain reaction inside of the fire. It also stops it from continuing in both Class A Fires (Wood, Paper, Pulp Fires), and Class B Fires(Flammable Liquid Fires). This chemical is a dry chemical, and it does not contain water or any other conductive properties. For this reason, it is rated for use on Class C fires (Live Electrical Fires). Since this chemical effectively extinguishes Class A, B, and C fires — it is given the name ABC.

More Types of Extinguishers:

Another common fire extinguisher is a Class K, Wet Chemical extinguisher. This extinguisher is exclusively used in kitchens where grease fires are a potential hazard. If you have even been inside of a commercial kitchen, you may have noticed a stainless steel fire extinguisher. The chemical inside of a class K extinguisher works by a process known as saponification. Saponification is where the chemical reacts with the fats in the grease to create a layer over top of the grease. This layer is a lot like soap. The layer effectively cuts off the oxygen in the environment from the fuel (grease). Because the fuel cannot obtain any oxygen to burn, it extinguishes the fire.

The Fire Trinity

Now that we have discussed some of the more common fire extinguisher types, lets touch briefly on the fire trinity. The fire trinity is like a triangle with three sides; take away one of the sides, and you no longer have a trinity. The three sides of the trinity are as follows: 1) Having the correct size, type, and quantity, 2) Knowing how to use them, 3) Having them properly maintained.

As you can see, maintenance is a key aspect to the trinity of safety.

Now, when it comes to ABC type extinguishers, there are a few different parts to the fire extinguishers (shell, gauge, spring(s), o-rings, siphon tube, etc..). These parts do not last forever, just like a vehicle wont last forever without some sort of maintenance. Likewise the chemical inside of these fire extinguishers tends to compact and potentially turn solid over time. For this reason, Florida fire code required that every 6 years, ABC fire extinguishers are subjected to an internal maintenance process. This maintenance involves completely disassembling the fire extinguishers, replacing and damaged or worn out parts, inspecting the chemical for defects and replacing if needed, re-lubricating the parts, filling up with fresh nitrogen, and testing for leaks.

Performing this maintenance process is not only require by state fire code, but it is a very effective way to ensure your fire extinguishers are ready to be used at any point when you may need them.

Much like ABC dry chemical extinguishers, wet chemical extinguishers must also be maintained in accordance with NFPA10 and the manufacturers specifications. Because K Class wet chemical extinguishers are stainless steel, the requirement for this type of fire extinguisher is slightly different. One difference is that the maintenance process happens every 5 years (opposed to 6 years for ABC), and another difference is that the fire extinguisher must be hydrostatically tested as well.

We hope you learned a little bit about fire extinguisher maintenance! Have a blessed day.[/vc_column_text][/vc_column][/vc_row]