Ultimate Vehicle Fire Extinguisher

[theksmith]

Interesting topic.

I have always wanted to be prepared in case I came across the need for an extinguisher. But with the extreme heat here in AZ I have been timid about leaving one in my truck thru summer. Whats the consensus on leaving an extinguisher in a truck in AZ type heat? (115+ out side will make it 120+ in a car.)

i've wondered if it's safe too - but couldn't find any info on it, so i just put mine in. so far, the halon ones haven't exploded in my black grand cherokee in the phoenix heat after several years now.

 

[KaiserM715]

I have a 2.5lb Amerex Halotron (one of the new Halon replacements).
http://www.abcfire.com/catalog.asp?prodid=609097&showprevnext=1
Looks like it is very similar to the HalGuard. I really wanted to avoid dry chemical for a couple of reasons. After a while (esp in vehicle use) the powder gets compacted and the extinguisher stops working. Also, the dry chemical will eat anything under the hood (esp wiring and electronics), adding to the cost of a fire.

I have also heard good things about the Cold Fire extinguishers mentioned above. I will also second getting the biggest one that will fit (a smaller one that you will always take with you is better than the bigger one you leave at home).

 

[Rocket Ship]

having been involved in a couple car fire incidents, I will say that those extinguishers are far too small. They are better than nothing, but the smaller ones in my rig are basically for putting out people, or killing the fire down for a bit so someone can get out.

For the rally events we carry 20lb (whatever the new Halon equivalent is) extinguishers. the rest of the time I have 2 of these: http://www.lowes.com/ProductDisplay...gId=10051&cmRelshp=req&rel=nofollow&cId=PDIO1

I have used one on an oil fire with success, but it would have benefited from the hose if it were so equipped.

I have also used a 20lber on a burning rally car. Just a standard dry chemical one, with a hose. Took about half the bottle to put it out, and that was a small fire, caught early. The hose was invaluable to enable me to spray up into the engine bay from underneath.

The little 2 and 5 lb bottles are just enough to buy you some time to get out of a vehicle which has just caught fire.

 

[Pedro]

I have also used a 20lber on a burning rally car. Just a standard dry chemical one, with a hose. Took about half the bottle to put it out, and that was a small fire, caught early. The hose was invaluable to enable me to spray up into the engine bay from underneath.

The little 2 and 5 lb bottles are just enough to buy you some time to get out of a vehicle which has just caught fire.

Exactly. There was a spectator car that caught fire a few years ago (being stupid). There was no way we were getting that put out. once the fire dept got there it even took them 15min or so to get it knocked down.

 

[Frankspinz]

I finaly got around to buying a small extinguisher 2lbs 5BC. Anything bigger would take up too much space (and might end up being left at home) ... If I have to use it, I'm hoping I won't be the only one around with an extinguisher. It's also helpful to keep in mind other fire extiguishing options. Shoveling soil or sand to smother the flames and so on ...

 

[Rocket Ship]

I finaly got around to buying a small extinguisher 2lbs 5BC. Anything bigger would take up too much space (and might end up being left at home) ... If I have to use it, I'm hoping I won't be the only one around with an extinguisher. It's also helpful to keep in mind other fire extiguishing options. Shoveling soil or sand to smother the flames and so on ...

Shovelling something onto a fire would mean you have access to the top of the fire. Given the fact that most fires occur either under the hood, or under the dash, that plan doesn't work out too well. Lifting the hood is the last thing you want to do, especially if you're not wearing fireproof gear. That's why you need a big bottle, with enough juice to attack the fire from underneath, spraying blindly.

During the event that I was involved, the rally crew had already used the small bottle they had inside the car to little effect by the time I returned from my truck with the big bottle. I don't know what type it was. I asked the owner/driver if he wanted me to use the dry chemical on his car, and he didn't hesitate. By that point it had just started spreading from a simple small oil leak and other things were starting to burn. I gave it a small burst until it was out, but it flared up again, so I hit it again.

I've seen rally crews use 3 of the small bottles just trying to put out a brake fire. One of the worst things you can do is waste your extinguisher by not completely putting out the fire in one shot. In the brake fire case, 1 bottle was not enough, they had to wait for another rally car to arrive and get theres. That wasn't enough, so they had to wait for a 3rd.

Looking at the race car world, regulations for circuit cars is a 5BC rated extinguisher in the cockpit. Presumably this is only intended to aid in exiting a burning car, and/or slowing it down until professional fire crews arrive. Rally cars are required to have a 10BC inside the car, and rally service crews are required 40BC.

If one considers what we do and how it compares to rally, ie: remoteness, it's easy to see that it's wise to pack the biggest bottle you can.

Another thing to keep in mind, one of the complaints about the pure gaseous type extinguishers, is that they don't work in engine bays very well as the gas is not retained in any way. It just falls out the bottom of the engine bay, so it has no staying power. They can work, but you need a BIG bottle. And CO2 coming out of the bottle is cold enough that it can crack the engine block.

Something else to be cognizant of is the mounting of the bottle.

http://www.casc.on.ca/uploadedFiles/Fire_Extinguisher_Explosion110203213435.pdf

 

[01tundra]

I'm running a 2.5 lb. Halon (H3r MaxOut) mounted on my cage inside with a Poly Performance quick release mount and a 5 lb. ABC mounted on my cage inside (both within arms reach from either front seat occupant), and a 2.5 lb. ABC mounted with quick fist clamps out in the bed -


http://www.polyperformance.com/shop/H3R-MaxOut-Fire-Extinguisher-p-484.html


http://www.polyperformance.com/shop...-Release-Fire-Extinguisher-Mount-p-20655.html


http://www.sierraexpeditions.com/index.php?l=product_detail&p=387

 

[Rocket Ship]

The problem with Halguard, is that it is both prohibitively expensive, and not very efficient in terms of size and weight for a given level of protection.

Sure, you can get a little 1 or 2ABC bottle for about $100, but those will not be enough to do the job unless the fire is very small. Really, they're more like bling for your truck.

If you really want to pack enough product to put out a serious fire, the costs are huge. The Halguard HG1550 costs $650, weighs 27lbs, and only has a 2A-10BC rating. If you want to get to 40BC, you're going to need 4 of those at $2600lbs, and weighs over 100lbs. The monster Halguard HG6500 wheeled cart costs $4000, and weighs 285lbs, and only has 10A-60BC protection.

You can buy a 5A-40BC bottle of the cheap stuff for about $100, and weighs about 20lbs.

 

[craig333]

13A 144B http://cgi.ebay.com/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&item=290348911648&ssPageName=STRK:MEWAX:IT

 

[Fish]

Let's see, isn't 6 liters around a gallon and a half?

I bought a 2.5 gallon pressurized water extinguisher on eBay years ago for around $75 new. Here's a used one for $40. http://cgi.ebay.com/Fire-Extinguish..._Security_Fire_Protection&hash=item20bb71fd6b

Add a capful or so of AFFF or Class A foam and there ya go. Same thing. That's a pretty old trick in the fire service. Of course, you need access to the additive. And it's not so good on electronics, but pretty hard to beat for fuel fires.

 

[craig333]

Lets see, your 40k rig is going up in smoke. I think I'd sacrifice the electronics. Another consideration is yourself. You're trapped, you want someone spraying you with halon? Dry chem? Or a water based agent that cools and is breathable.

 

[scottishpinz]

For an under dash electrical fire a gas type 'Halon' replacement fire extinguisher would probably do and has the advantage of not damaging the vehicle much.

The only thing to knock down a fuel fire fast is Dry Powder extinguisher, the disadvantage is it can re-ignite which is where foam is great, but it is much slower to smother the fire.

I learnt this as a Track & Fire Marshal for the Scottish Motor Marshals Club.

I carry two 2kg Dry Powder extinguishers mounted behind the passenger in the cab, one either side of the divider from the rear camper but both can be accessed from the driver / passenger seat or from inside the camper in the back.

 

[adventureduo]

After talking to a fire fighter friend of mine and seeing a friends Jeep go up in flames...I yanked my little Autozone/Pepboys fire extinguishers a while back and replaced them with the large 5lbs commercial extinguishers. The part store extinguishers won't really cut it if you have a serious fire.

There's one of these on both sides of the truck with immediate access.

 

[TreeTopFlyer]

A buddy that lives down the street from me has a fire extinguisher business. He services and sell them. It's fun, I come over with a 12pk of beer, check out what he has laying around and walk away with about 20-30lbs of suppression. First he hooked me up with a nice little 3lb CO2, a water extinguisher and a 2.5 dry chem. Last week I picked up a 5lb CO2, 2L Foam, and 4 2.5lb dry chems. He has 3 really nice FE-13's that I am gonna try and work on next time, might take a case to pry those away. He doesn't service that type of agent yet so they are of little use. For now I am carrying a few dry chems and a foam. When I go camping or something I will take my water FE. Comes in handy at the beach for cleaning off feet. :ylsmoke:

As to the heat in the car. A dry chem is low pressure compared to CO2. Dry chem can take the heat all day long. CO2 runs at 1800psi and the popoff valve is I heard around 2250. My buddy said he had one go off in the back of his wife's car. Just released the air pressure but still was loud as hell. I don't know about foam, but I am guessing it's pretty low pressure as well.

There is a pretty good discussion how much to carry here http://www.race-dezert.com/forum/sh...!!-are-you-ready-for-the-truth?highlight=FIRE

 

[trae]

What would you guys recommend for a non-racer? All I do is camping and occasional 4 wheeling trip. A 20lb monster seems like an overkill..