Dry Chemical Fire Extinguishers

[fried1765]

Hopefully every OTT member has a dry chemical fire extinguisher aboard each tractor.

Ideally, that extinguisher should be a 5lb. model (if readily stowable), and should have a metal valve head, and trigger handle.
Cheap, big box store, plastic valve heads/handles may break when you really need them!

Each year, wherever you have mounted dry chemical extinguishers, you should invert them and tap them firmly a few times (I use an 18" hunk of 2x4 on edge) to break up the powder that has settled over time. Then hang them up properly, and hope that you never need them.
It is a very good idea to do this twice each year,....... if you can remember.

 

[hagrid]

I dont even wear a haymet when I ride my scooters and you want to mount a fire extinguisher on my toy tractor?

I suppose you want me to actually attach my trailer safety chains to my truck while I'm at it?

 

[Lil Foot]

And buy ABC rated, otherwise the one fire you have will be the one your extinguisher isn't rated for.
Murphy's Law.

 

[Lil Foot]

Another technique I have used on a VW engine fire:
Came across a bug just starting to burn, and the owner was struggling with his extinguisher, which would not work. It had gone flat, no pressure.
I told him to hold the body, I grabbed the head, and unscrewed it.
Then I poured/sprinkled the powder on the fire, putting it out.
Sometimes you have to improvise.

 

[fried1765]

Another technique I have used on a VW engine fire:
Came across a bug just starting to burn, and the owner was struggling with his extinguisher, which would not work. It had gone flat, no pressure.
I told him to hold the body, I grabbed the head, and unscrewed it.
Then I poured/sprinkled the powder on the fire, putting it out.
Sometimes you have to improvise.

If the owner had been paying attention to the condition of the extinguisher he likely would have seen the pressure gauge at zero.
Does he also never check the oil level in his car?

 

[mcfarmall]

If you got good insurance, no need for a fire extinguisher.

 

[Dieseldonato]

Fire extinguisher has save my butt more then once. Twice on the old gehl skid steer(same machine both times) and once when the boss caught the
New Holland skid steer on fire while Bush hogging with it. (It didn't make it but it gave him time to get out unharmed) and with this reminder I'll have to come up with a spot to put one on the B. Thanks for the reminder.

 

[fried1765]

If you got good insurance, no need for a fire extinguisher.

I wholeheartedly disagree!
The only way tp know if you have "good insurance" or not, is after you have a claim!

 

[notaz3]

I use Element E50 fire extinguishers, no need to worry about powder caking up.

Element | E50

Our most popular model. Offering 50 seconds of fire fighting protection, E50 is recommended for professional use (automotive, power sports, garage, marine, etc). E50's extremely small and lightweight construction allow for storage almost anywhere. Internationally tested and certified. FEATURES...

elementfire.com

 

[D2Cat]

I thought if one wore a face mask a fire extinguisher wasn't needed!

 

[DustyRusty]

I use Element E50 fire extinguishers, no need to worry about powder caking up.

Element | E50

Our most popular model. Offering 50 seconds of fire fighting protection, E50 is recommended for professional use (automotive, power sports, garage, marine, etc). E50's extremely small and lightweight construction allow for storage almost anywhere. Internationally tested and certified. FEATURES...

elementfire.com

This has been discussed at some car show meetings, and unless something has changed, it isn't UL approve. Personally, I prefer a Halon fire extinguisher. I cut off the oxygen to the fire and will smother it.

 

[mcfarmall]

I wholeheartedly disagree!
The only way tp know if you have "good insurance" or not, is after you have a claim!

KTAC is pretty good insurance from the testimonials that I have read on this and other forums. If they cover operator stupidity then surely they will cover loss from a fire.

 

[fried1765]

KTAC is pretty good insurance from the testimonials that I have read on this and other forums. If they cover operator stupidity then surely they will cover loss from a fire.

Not everyone here on OTT has a new Kubota tractor, or only a Kubota tractor, thus many are not elligible for KTAC

 

[fried1765]

This has been discussed at some car show meetings, and unless something has changed, it isn't UL approve. Personally, I prefer a Halon fire extinguisher. I cut off the oxygen to the fire and will smother it.

Halon is excellent.......and VERY expensive compared to dry chemical.
Not many folks will pay the price for halon!

 

[ctfjr]

This has been discussed at some car show meetings, and unless something has changed, it isn't UL approve. Personally, I prefer a Halon fire extinguisher. I cut off the oxygen to the fire and will smother it.

I'm not sure its a fair comparison but I remember an incident years ago when running autocross with my Saab Sonnet. One guy was running a TVR Vixen when it caught fire on the course. He jumped out and tripped on the ground while an official ran over, opened the hood and dumped dry chemical into the bay, including his dual Webers, for what was just a smoldering wire fire. The owner nearly had a stroke.

Since then I try to stay away from dry chemical extinguishers.

 

[fried1765]

I'm not sure its a fair comparison but I remember an incident years ago when running autocross with my Saab Sonnet. One guy was running a TVR Vixen when it caught fire on the course. He jumped out and tripped on the ground while an official ran over, opened the hood and dumped dry chemical into the bay, including his dual Webers, for what was just a smoldering wire fire. The owner nearly had a stroke.

Since then I try to stay away from dry chemical extinguishers.

Halon was the right extinguisher for that specific fire.
Dry chemical was not!
That said: Dry chemical is the most cost effective fire suppressant,..... except for water.
Water is not effective on fuel fires!

 

[Kurtee]

Extinguishers are always a good plan. Take an old one and practice with it to see how they work. Flammable liquids can be spread with an extinguisher to make the fire larger. Also bear in mind one thing that we talked about on the fire department. Fire departments respond to car fires with muptiple units. WHY? Because people forget to sayk that the car is still in the garage. Tractor could be in the shed or attached garage. Then you test the value of your insurance policies. Have fun with that. Personally I have put out several fires that have lead to real disaster. Such as a loader tractor with bales of straw sitting next to a 500 gallon gas barrel and a 500 gallon diesel barrel which was 2 feet from a 40 x 90 machine shed. Put gas in in the dark and spilled on the hood. Turned the key and an ignition spark ignited the gas. Put the fire out and continued to bed the cattle in the shed. Dad traded that 550 Oliver off with the blackened hood sometime later on a Gehl skid loader.

 

[Freeheeler]

I use Element E50 fire extinguishers, no need to worry about powder caking up.

Element | E50

Our most popular model. Offering 50 seconds of fire fighting protection, E50 is recommended for professional use (automotive, power sports, garage, marine, etc). E50's extremely small and lightweight construction allow for storage almost anywhere. Internationally tested and certified. FEATURES...

elementfire.com

I started a thread asking about the element E50. I bought 2 of them and will end up buying 2 more. I keep one on the boat along side the regular extinguisher that came with it. The powder canister types don't last very long on a boat and become useless quickly. The bouncing around compressed the powder.
I also keep one in the mancave along side 2 of the regular extinguishers. Both are several year old. I'm not going to throw them away, but I don't trust that they'll work very well since several years out of date.
The main reason I like the element is that they never go bad, no expiration date. Some say they aren't as effective, but in a real world situation, one that works will always outperform one that is out of date and doesn't work.
Secondary reasons are that they are very small and have a 50 second action duration while the bottle types only activate for a few seconds.
Insurance is great and all, but I'd rather make a claim on my tractor catching fire and me having put it out vs having to make a claim on the mancave and all it's contents.
Just my 2 cents.

 

[Lil Foot]

If the owner had been paying attention to the condition of the extinguisher he likely would have seen the pressure gauge at zero.
Does he also never check the oil level in his car?

People tend to forget fire extinguishers completely, even when they need them.

I was driving up I-17, climbing out of Black Canyon City, and came across an old hippy type driving an old VW bus. He had just pulled over because smoke was pouring out of the engine bay. He was running around trying to put the fire out by throwing handfuls of dirt on it.
I grabbed my extinguisher and put it out. Turns out it was just a grease/oil/dirty engine fire, and hadn't hurt it at all, in fact it started right up.
He was beside himself with gratitude, as everything he owned was in that bus.
He insisted there must be something he could do to repay me for saving his bus, so I told him "maybe kick in a few bucks so I can get my extinguisher recharged."
He got a funny look on his face and walked away back to his bus.
I figured I offended him somehow, and turned to leave.
He rummaged around in the bus, and returned, giving me a new-in-the-box fire extinguisher that he'd had all along, but he just forgot it in the moment of crisis.
He thanked me again, kissed my wife's hand, and he was off.

 

[Magicman]

Regardless of which type of extinguisher you have, add some electrical tape with a pull tab on the nozzle.

I found my nozzle clogged with a Dirt Dauber nest.