Fire Extinguisher...get one!

See my link above your post. It's about the smallest extinguisher I could find. It's also USA made.

 

The 10 is a lot and I thought about what size to get for some time before I purchased the first alert, I wanted a re-chargable and one big enough to knock down a fairly good sized fire or knock it down long enough to pull someone to safety if need be. If the 10 can't do that, it's way too big of a fire to tango with in the first place. I also purchased the 10 for the possibility of being somewhere where additional help is way too far away. I have two additional mounts that I ordered for 5's which will be mounted one more in the bed and one more behind the driver's seat. I also ordered a "Fire Extinguisher Inside" sticker to put on the back shell window. The 10 is secured with a nut that is welded into a spark plug socket with a bolt welded on top that turns it into a giant wing nut. i can crank it down securely but still get it of in about 3-4 seconds. It sounds like overkill until you run into a situation where you would be glad you had them. I drive A LOT of miles and see all kinds of crazy stuff.

 

OP-thought you might want to see this:
http://www.ems1.com/fire-ems/articl...escue-woman-disabled-sister-from-burning-car/

 

With an '06 AC you've got the bench style jump seats. If you keep them in the flipped forward position, you've got a nice size space between the seat legs and the back of your driver seat on the floor. I've got a 10A 40BC behind mine, fits great, and enough leg room for average size guy.
FYI: Fire extinguishers can be bought pretty cheap at Costco.

 

Okay, you all have a good start and I'm glad people like you are on the road. However, there is more to fire safety than just carrying some extinguishers around. First, I'll address the "interior suppression systems". CO2 works by displacing oxygen. Halon works by displacing oxygen. As someone else said, chemical extinguishers such as PKP are highly toxic. You DO NOT want free release of these agents inside your vehicle while you are in it. This will only lead to further problems with escape and possibly death from asphyxiation. Next, extinguishers in the cab. They MUST be attached by a bracket with lock pin or other device. When your truck rolls over, that is a pressurized grenade, ready to explode and send itself into your head, missile style, not to mention shrapnel. Finally, the emergency hammers. Get one on each side of your vehicle, permanently mounted to the side carpet near the dash. You must not depend on someone else finding you and extracting you from an accident; these hammers are not perfect, but they will cut your seat belt, and they should be able to break some glass.

Not trying to step on anyone's toes, but after being in the military for over a decade, I've seen it all, and too many well intentioned people end up hurting themselves and others because they don't have the proper equipment or don't know the best way to store and use it.

Just remember, in an accident, the number one priority is getting the human life out safely. The car can burn, and stay in the trees, and stay upside down, and so on. The earlier comment about using a high lift for extraction was a good one; use what you have and keep your wits, because for every person who is calm, there are five who are panicking and will provide little help.

 

Reading the thread, I couldnt believe this hadn't been mentioned.

I keep one mounted in my centerconsole. It can cut the seat belt and break the window. To make it even more useful, mine reads tire pressure and is an LED flash light.

It is a great thing to have. I am thinking about mounting a fire extinguisher in the bed of the truck now.

 

A couple of questions for anyone who may know. I have an older fire extinguisher that has been on my boat, I have no reason to believe anything is wrong with it other than the label is faded from the sun. However I did get a new one just because I wanted to and I do grill on my boat. Again I have no reason to believe anything is wrong with it and I don't want to just trash it, so here are my questions.

1. I sort of answered this is my own response of it being stored on my boat, but I noticed some of you have yours stored outside, do you have to worry about weathering at all and it going bad because of the elements?

2. This plays off the first question, of the elements that they hold up to, is the Texas heat too much for it to be stored outside?

3. ...and this goes with ?2, would it be okay to store in my tool box in the bed in the Texas heat? Essentially putting it in an oven during the dead of summer.

I know it is a "fire" extinguisher so it is probably pretty tolerant to heat, however they are probably not meant to be thrown into a fire (which I know is much hotter than my tool box). I don't want to come out one day and find my tools, straps, and everything else covered in foam.

Thanks for the help.

 

Approved extinguishers are very robust and will unlikely "explode". They contain fire retardant chemicals that are potentially poisonous and occasionally leak. Therefore, you should store it properly. Standing upright in in an approved, enclosed housing/container, out of direct sunlight/heat are ideal. They should also be inspected routinely by approved extinguisher servicing companies. They usually charge like $10 per extinguisher and the process takes less than 5 mins. Most of them will come to your door and do it.

 

You are correct on the halon based quote. As a Corpsman I have actually witnessed the death of a sailor on ship who wasn't accounted for having a rebreather during a halon exercise. In open air environments halon is pefrectly fine to use but is quickly displaced by the air around it. Thus why halon works so well in closed spaces. My opinion is don't even waste your time with it.

A couple of options for rescue tools:

ResQMe

Resqme Pack of 2, The Original Emergency Keychain Car Escape Tool, 2-in-1 Seatbelt Cutter and Window Breaker, Made in USA, Yellow

http://www.amazon.com/ResQMe-Escape-Tool-Made-Yellow/dp/B000IDUW5C/ref=pd_bxgy_auto_img_y

Seatbelt cutter/hammer http://www.amazon.com/Seatbelt-Cutter-Breaker-Escape-Tool/dp/B004TRKBOK/ref=pd_bxgy_auto_img_y

 

You two seem very knowledgeable in extinguishers, any advice for below VVVVVV

 

Originally Posted by jjew18
A couple of questions for anyone who may know. I have an older fire extinguisher that has been on my boat, I have no reason to believe anything is wrong with it other than the label is faded from the sun. However I did get a new one just because I wanted to and I do grill on my boat. Again I have no reason to believe anything is wrong with it and I don't want to just trash it, so here are my questions.

1. I sort of answered this is my own response of it being stored on my boat, but I noticed some of you have yours stored outside, do you have to worry about weathering at all and it going bad because of the elements?
weather does play into the storing of the tank externally if the major components of it are made of plastic or rubber. Temp flux would cause expand/contract of the plastic and elements would cause rubber to crack over time.
2. This plays off the first question, of the elements that they hold up to, is the Texas heat too much for it to be stored outside?
I would say yes on the heat, but more to a person grabbing a hot bottle and burning their hands to use it.
3. ...and this goes with ?2, would it be okay to store in my tool box in the bed in the Texas heat? Essentially putting it in an oven during the dead of summer.
Personally I would not do that. I would ask the extinguisher guy "precoma" about that.
I know it is a "fire" extinguisher so it is probably pretty tolerant to heat, however they are probably not meant to be thrown into a fire (which I know is much hotter than my tool box). I don't want to come out one day and find my tools, straps, and everything else covered in foam.
Goes along with the answer to your first questions. The quality of the tank and materials it is made out of.
Thanks for the help.

 

Thank you sir! I may take it to one of the inspectors and see what they say (I didn't know there was such a thing).

 

Check with your local fire department. They should have a fire marshal or someone that can go over all of this with you also!

 

Just got 4 Cold Fire sprays for my kitchen, truck, car, and girl friend's truck. It fits nicely in the drivers side door storage compartment:

 

I mounted a smallish one in my 06 AC. Might not help if shit gets crazy but it is a hell of a lot better than nothing. It's an ABC type to handle wood, liquid, and electrical fires. I wanted it easy to access and easy for people other than me to find if needed while out of the elements.



Actually had to use it the other week. Was driving down the road and saw a car that had been hit facing the wrong way. Took a good look and was all holy shit there are flames under that thing!

I like to roll prepared... recovery gear, pretty extensive first aid kit, CPR mask, various tools, spare serp belt/other various parts, and of course the fire extinguisher. People seem to think I am a good person to road trip with

 

This thread has inspired me to eventually pick up a fire extinguisher for my truck. Any precautions to take when storing one in the cold? It's gotten to -40(f) already here this winter, wouldn't want anything to blow up in my truck.

 

Mine has been down to about -20F and no problems. There should be a safe storage temp printed on the extinguisher somewhere. It is usually a pretty big extreme range.

 

All fire extinguishers have to go thru extreme testing to get a UL approval to be sold in the states. One of the tests is the fire extinguisher being put into a freezer for 6 months at -30 degrees and also in a over at 130 degrees for 6 months and after the 6 months the extinguisher is removed from the freezer/oven and has to be able to fire off 95% of the powder in the unit.

 

Halon isn't very human friendly in an enclosed place!!!