Question:
In some discussions with a friend of mine the question arose as to which fire extinguisher is best for domestic use. A search of the web yield numerous conflicting opinions so we tried calling a couple of major extinguisher suppliers for their advice. The advice was no more enlightening, so I am turning to this esteemed group for your advice. I spoke to someone at Betta Fire Protection, who are agents for Quell extinguishers. His recommendation was to have an ABE and a fire blanket. This is what I understood from his explanation: * ABE is good because it can handle Class A, B and C fires * The problem with ABE is that it is NOT suitable for cooking oil and fat fires. He said this was because the powder used in ABE extinguishers sinks in oils, and therefore will not provide the air exclusion layer necessary to extinguish the fire and keep it extinguished. * Because the ABE can't be used with fats and oils fires, one needs a fire blanket. He recommended a minimum size of 1.2m x 1.8 m on the basis of this size being suitable for wrapping a person whose clothing was on fire. He felt that a 1kg 1A:20B:E extinguisher was adequate for use in a domestic kitchen. He said that he had such and extinguisher and a 1.2mx1.8m blanket in his own kitchen. My friend spoke to someone at Chubb. Chubb suggested that for the average household extinguisher, a BE is a better choice than an ABE. The reasoning was that although the BE doesn't extinguish paper and wood fires, water does. Water is something that the average household can manage with a tap or hose, but on the other hand, the ABE doesn't extinguish oils and fat fires and would need another form of extinguisher and /or a fire blanket. So, now we have two mainstream extinguisher manufacturers (or at least their agents) giving apparently conflicting advice. To try to resolve this matter I have a few specific questions. If you could give some explanations for your suggestions I would be most grateful. 1. For a domestic kitchen which is the extinguisher of choice - ABE or BE? 2. What size/rating extinguisher would be considered a minimum? 3. What size fire blanket is optimal? 4. For other sites in the house such as the bedroom area and the garage what type, size/rating extinguishers are best? 5. For motor cars, what type, size/rating extinguishers are best? 6. Where is the best place in a sedan car to mount or store the extinguisher (boot, on the floor in front of the passenger seat, etc.)? 7. When they say BE extinguisher can't be used on class-A fires, does this mean that such and extinguisher is less than ideal but will still extinguish the class-A fire, that it will not extinguish a class-A fire, or that is actually dangerous to use it on a class-A fire? 8. What happens if one uses a BE extinguisher on a class-A fire?

Answer: Q: In some discussions with a friend of mine the question arose as to which fire extinguisher is best for domestic use. A search of the web yield numerous conflicting opinions so we tried calling a couple of major extinguisher suppliers for their advice. The advice was no more enlightening, so I am turning to this esteemed group for your advice. I spoke to someone at Betta Fire Protection, who are agents for Quell extinguishers. His recommendation was to have an ABE and a fire blanket. This is what I understood from his explanation: * ABE is good because it can handle Class A, B and C fires

A: A quick explanation of fire classes here: Class A - ordinary combustibles, such as paper, plastics and timber. Class B - flammable liquids, such as oils. Class C - flammable gases, such as LPG or natural gas. IIRC, in the US, Class C fires are equivalent to our Class (E). Class D - flammable metals, such as magnesium or aluminium. Class (E) - fires involving electricity. The definition must have changed, cause when I did the courses, (E) was in brackets, since electricity can't burn, but can certainly be involved in fires. Nowadays the brackets are missing - maybe I've missed something over the last 5 years. Class F - hot fat and oils, such as deep fryers in restaurants. These extinguishers are coloured beige/ivory. The way they work is by producing a film of soap on top of the fryer, reacting with the oil itself, and starving the fire below. Effectively the letters on a fire extinguisher indicate what it can be used on. Q: * The problem with ABE is that it is NOT suitable for cooking oil and fat fires. He said this was because the powder used in ABE extinguishers sinks in oils, and therefore will not provide the air exclusion layer necessary to extinguish the fire and keep it extinguished.

A: Correct. Q: * Because the ABE can't be used with fats and oils fires, one needs a fire blanket. He recommended a minimum size of 1.2m x 1.8 m on the basis of this size being suitable for wrapping a person whose clothing was on fire.

A: Best compromise between size, cost, effectiveness. Much bigger than that would probably get too cumbersome for one person to handle easily (think of tarpaulins). Q: He felt that a 1kg 1A:20B:E extinguisher was adequate for use in a domestic kitchen. He said that he had such and extinguisher and a 1.2mx1.8m blanket in his own kitchen.

A: The numbers in front of the classes indicate the extinguisher's effectiveness, something about how long they'll last, their range, etc. 1A:20B(E) would be a good compromise for a kitchen, and also a car. Q: My friend spoke to someone at Chubb. Chubb suggested that for the average household extinguisher, a BE is a better choice than an ABE. The reasoning was that although the BE doesn't extinguish paper and wood fires, water does. Water is something that the average household can manage with a tap or hose, but on the other hand, the ABE doesn't extinguish oils and fat fires and would need another form of extinguisher and /or a fire blanket.

A: For what it's worth, AB(E) and B(E) are probably both going to be the same type - dry chemical extinguishers. Again, it would depend on cost, but there's probably SFA between them, so I'd go for the one that gives the best overall coverage for the dollars.