Fire Extinguishers
Fire Extinguishers – Types and Uses
Goals: This safety session should teach employees to:
Know how to select the right fire extinguisher for a fire.
Know how and when to use a fire extinguisher.
Applicable Regulations: 29 CFR 1910.157
- OSHA Requires Most Employers to Have and Maintain Fire Extinguishers
- Approved, fully charged, operable extinguishers must be placed and identified, so employees can reach them easily.
- Extinguishers must be visually inspected monthly and tested at least yearly to be sure they're working properly.
- Our fire extinguishers are located... [List locations].
- Use Fire Extinguishers Only on Small, Contained Fires
- If in doubt, sound alarm, evacuate properly, and let trained firefighters handle it.
- If in doubt, sound alarm, evacuate properly, and let trained firefighters handle it.
- Use Class A Extinguishers on Fires of Ordinary Combustibles
They wet down and cool fires involving paper, cloth, trash, wood, etc.- Class A extinguisher numbers (1-A, 2-A, etc.) indicate the size fire each can handle.
- The higher the number, the larger the fire area it can handle.
· OSHA requires Class A's to be no more than 75 feet from the area of likely use.
4. Use Class B Extinguishers on Fires Involving Gases or Flammable Liquids
They cut off oxygen to, or reduce flame in, fires involving combustibles such as grease, oil, paint, solvents.
· Class B extinguisher numbers (5-B,10-B) tell how many square feet each can handle.
· OSHA requires Class B's to be no more than 50 feet from the area of likely use.
5. Use Class C Extinguishers on Fires on or Near Electrical Equipment
They use carbon dioxide or a dry chemical to put out these fires.
· Never use water on an electrical fire. Water conducts electricity and could cause a dangerous shock to the person holding the extinguisher.
· Class C's don't have numbers
6. Use ABC or BC Extinguishers on Combination Fires
The letters identify the type of fire they can handle.
- Class A extinguisher numbers (1-A, 2-A, etc.) indicate the size fire each can handle.
7. Use Class D Extinguishers on Combustible Metal Fires
They're used on sodium, magnesium, zinc, potassium, powdered aluminum, titanium, and other combustible metal fires.
· They must be within 75 feet of operations that generate combustible metal powders, flakes, or shavings.
· Class D's are considered "special hazard" protection and have no numbers.
8. Use Extinguishers Properly
If you feel a fire is small enough to handle with an extinguisher:
· Pull the pin.
· Stand about 8 feet from the fire.
· Aim carefully at the base of the fire; you probably won't have a second chance.
- Be especially careful not to spread combustible fires (e.g., by blowing burning papers out of a wastebasket).
· Squeeze the trigger.
Discussion Points:
- Explain locations and types of fire extinguishers in your work area.
- Ask for volunteers to demonstrate and describe how to use a fire extinguisher.
Conclusion: Know How to Choose and When to Use a Fire Extinguisher
The right extinguisher, properly used, can handle small fires. In all other cases, turn in an alarm and leave the job to trained firefighters.