Fire Extinguishers in Kitchens

[Guzzy1962]

I was advised by a ex-fire brigade officer that Dry powder fire extinguishers are inappropriate for use inside buildings, and should be replaced with water or foam extinguishers. Is this correct?

[The Lawman]

Using a water extinguisher in a kitchen could be a fatal error of judgement!

[Guzzy1962]

Thats what i thought, I was thinking about CO2, due to the number of electrical appliances in a kitchen, that would that make more sense.

[John Webb]

Guzzy,
Dry powder is falling out of favour for use inside buildings since its use (or misuse by vandals) results in massive clear-up costs. The Ecclesiastical Insurance Office has recently asked all its property owners (about 90% of all Church of England churches) to remove DP extinguishers. This follows the malicious discharge of a DP in a church where they are now spending something like £250,000 on cleaning the place up - this includes scaffolding to reach high ledges (because the powder is unkind to stonework) and dismantling the organ to ensure that is free of powder internally.

Other than in the largest kitchens with fixed fryers etc (which are best served by specialised fixed installations) I much prefer having only one or more fire blankets about, perhaps with other extinguishers nearby to back up the fire blanket. CO2 is likely to be discharged too close to burning food - if fat it could blasted by the CO2 into unwanted areas. Cover with a blanket and remove the heat is my first priority - then use an extinguisher if the fire blanket is penetrated, which does not often happen. The newer AFFF spary extinguishers work quite well in these circumstances as their application is relatively gentle.
Hope this makes sense.

[Guzzy1962]

John thanks for that it does make sense, which was in my line of thinking on the matter, there is already a Fire Blanket in place and therefore the CO2 extinguisher as secondary back up. Although I will look at the new AFFF extinguishers.

[AnthonyB]

A lot of areas classified as 'kitchens' often have inappropriate or excessive provision.

Questions to ask -

Are cooking fats/oils used in pans, fryers or similar?

If NO, then a fire blanket is not required

If YES, then a BSEN 1865 Light Duty fire blanket will be required

Where the above was answered 'YES' are any of the appliances over 3 litres fat capacity or over 300mm diameter exposed fat surface?

If NO, then the BSEN 1865 Light Duty fire blanket will be sufficient

If YES, then in addition you will require a Wet Chemical Extinguisher with an F rating appropriate to the fryer capacity (or a Heavy Duty fire blanket, although in practice no one makes or sells these)

That deals with the specific risks in 'proper' kitchens, you then have the more general risks present in both real kitchens & tea rooms, break out areas, etc etc:

Does the area have any special ignition & fire class risks such as equipment electrically powered like microwaves, kettles, etc?

If NO, then the area needs no specific cover and comes under the general A rating of the floor which it is on (floor rating, 30m rule etc)

If YES, and suitable extinguishers are not already adjacent in a general fire point, then an electrically safe extinguisher is required, CO2 being the most appropriate for enclosed electrical appliances and also indoor areas (Powder is also suitable by rating but has disadvantages in not being as able to penetrate the appliance as CO2, also it causes secondary damage and can obscure vision in the area of discharge which could cause panic or difficulty in escape)

Far to many times the extinguisher companies, helped by consultants or H&S advisers that know no better, bung a fire blanket & 2 kilo DP in every area vaguely connected with food & drink despite there being no risk present for the equipment particularly the fire blanket.

Water & AFFF are only suited to general A protection, not kitchen cover, with the typical office or shop these should be supplemented with CO2 for electrical risk areas such as kitchens, distribution cupboards, PC's etc.

Powder is not illegal indoors, the BS only advises (very sensibly) against it's use for escape route cover & in areas where the public or vulnerable groups are present because of the discharge obscuring vision & being smoke like in appearance. Because you can get the same floor area of cover from a 2 kilo DP at around £25-40 as oppose to a 13A water/foam & 2 kilo CO2 at a combined cost of £65-120 there will always be people that opt for the cheaper option - after all why worry about secondary damage etc as 'we'll never have a fire'......

[kurnal]

Anthony - thats a brilliant summary.

I personally rate fire blankets more than you though and recommend them for all sorts of risk- the simplest firefighting equipment to use and one that in so many situations will suppress fire growth and mitigate damage whether a toaster in a kitchen- if the thing malfuntions big time you can get 12-18 inch flames, any overheated pan, microwave, pc monitors, waste paper bins,  and persons whose clothing is on fire- stop, drop and smother.

[Ashley Wood]

I have found that out of 250 sheltered housing schemes that I assessed, 244 had DCP in the kitchen areas. I made recomendations that they should be replaced and my reasons were A) Contamination after discharge, B) brething dificulties in confined spaces for elderly persons. I am amazed at how many places these things have been put in by fire extinguisher contractors. Here is a short list, IT rooms, Offices, Stairways, Public toilet!, OAP Lounge to name but a few.

[AnthonyB]

Cheap & cheerful is one reason, lack of knowledge is another. When inspecting I have laminated cards illustrating various things such as the various different exit fastenings as an easy way to explain things to lay people and include an image of a 2kg DP being discharged - this soon convinces people!

Having said that the limited life maintenance free ABC Powder extinguishers are popular for SME's and small offices who assess the need for PFE, but won't/don't have the space/budget for a water based A rated ext & a CO2. The entry level guide now considers them acceptable and the maths add up - £30 every 5 years against over £100 up front plus £30 a year, with a big sting at the 5 & 10 year intervals.