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Best Uses of Wet Chemical Fire Extinguishers

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Role of Fire Extinguishers

The hazards of fires breaking out accidentally anywhere, anytime is part of living especially in a society which has depended so much on natural and artificial energies for their general energy requirement. Most of these fires happen in the homes, offices, factories, stores, vehicles or in just about any other place which has a high fire potential.

When these fires break out, the first remedial measure to be taken is to use the fire extinguisher. And, truly so, the fire extinguisher has served its purpose which is for fire suppression. But not all fire extinguishers have the same fire suppression qualities. They vary mainly in their kind of contents (agents), because not all combustible materials when it burns, can be suppressed by just one kind of agent. One of the most difficult materials to suppress when it burns is cooking grease and oil; it cannot be suppressed by any ordinary fire extinguisher agent. That is why they developed the wet chemical fire extinguishers for this purpose.

The Components

The wet chemical fire extinguisher has for it agent the combined element and minerals of potassium, acetate, carbonate and citrate. This is aptly suitable to suppress cooking grease and oil fires. It can also suppress class A fires e.g. wood and paper or any organic solids. The action of the wet chemical fire extinguisher when used for fire suppression is that it encases the flame and suppresses the oxygen from a kindling fire to stop it from becoming a conflagration. It has the ability to lower the temperature of a burning cooking grease or fat oil.

Fire Extinguisher Training

Fire Supression

The fire suppression qualities of a fire extinguisher agent are extremely important because it can mean prevention or disaster. Some agents can only worsen a kindling fire and spread the combustion in an uncontrollable level until it becomes a blazing inferno, e.g. burning cooking grease or fat oil, especially in deep fryers, when suppressed with dry chemical agent or water can only make the fire grow worse, splatter and dash to the surrounding area filled with cooking grease or fat oil.

The Application

The wet chemical fire extinguisher is also effective on live electrical equipment up to a certain voltage, more or less up to 1000 volts; higher voltages electrical fires such as ovens and microwaves, mixers and grinders, can use the CO2 types of extinguishers. As said earlier the wet chemical fire extinguisher can also be effective against Class A fires i.e. wood, paper, textiles, some plastics and rubbers. Cooking grease and fat oil fires are classified as Class F fires.

Fire Supression

A Must for Kitchens

Since wet chemical fire extinguishers are cooking grease and fat oil effective, they should be a prominent item in kitchens especially in restaurants, hotel kitchens, hospital kitchens and other food cooking establishments. You can identify a wet chemical fire extinguisher by its color and label. The cylinder is colored solid red with a yellow label.

Insurance companies now require that all cooking establishments must secure their kitchens with this type of fire suppression equipment before these establishments can avail of insurance coverage.