TheSamba.com :: View topic

Tue Feb 16, 2010 5:40 pm

So I was looking at a couple fire/fuel line/fire extinguisher threads and it got me to thinking... I never saw anything mentioned about fire extinguisher maintainance.

You need to periodically shake the extinguishers, especially the powder type. Over time, the powder will compact in the bottom of the extinguisher and if you go to use it, you will get little more than a "pfft" as it clogs. You should be able to hear and feel the powder slide around in the extinguisher as you tip it back and forth. The motion/bouncing/etc of driving makes this problem worse.

I learned this as a school bus driver. They asked us to shake them every once in awhile to keep the powder in suspension. We were told if you couldn't hear/feel it move around, to tap on the bottom of the extinguisher with a rubber mallet or shake them vigerously until it is broken up again.

Just thought I'd throw it out there.

Tue Feb 16, 2010 5:54 pm

Quote: You need to periodically shake the extinguishers, especially the powder type. Over time, the powder will compact in the bottom of the extinguisher and if you go to use it, you will get little more than a "pfft" as it clogs. You should be able to hear and feel the powder slide around in the extinguisher as you tip it back and forth. The motion/bouncing/etc of driving makes this problem worse.
Hummm.....
I've been in the maintenance related field for 30 years. That's a new one on me. I would think that keeping them charged was all it was about. :-k

Tue Feb 16, 2010 5:58 pm

TexasAirCooler wrote:
Hummm.....
I've been in the maintenance related field for 30 years. That's a new one on me. I would think that keeping them charged was all it was about. :-k

The presentation to us school bus drivers was done by a long-time firefigher. He specifically stated that it wasn't enough for us to verify the charge pressure was ok by the gauge (a check required by the pre-trip process), but that we needed to also to the periodic check that the powder hasn't compacted. If the powder is compacted, the pressure will release quickly but no powder.

This may not be an issue in an indoor, wall-moutned fire extinguisher, as there wouldn't be the vibrations and shaking associated with riding around in a vehicle.

Tue Feb 16, 2010 6:00 pm

makes sense to me

Tue Feb 16, 2010 6:15 pm

I have actually heard that before.

Tue Feb 16, 2010 6:19 pm

Well it looks like I need to give my beast a shake!

Tue Feb 16, 2010 6:22 pm

calebmelvin wrote: I need to give my beast a shake!

do what you gotta do, but that sort of thing should be private, no!? :lol:

Tue Feb 16, 2010 6:33 pm

rustbus wrote: calebmelvin wrote: I need to give my beast a shake!

do what you gotta do, but that sort of thing should be private, no!? :lol:

You should see it, it's huge!

The extinguisher I mean...

Tue Feb 16, 2010 6:34 pm

uumm THAT'S WHAT SHE SAID........

ok with that lame joke i'm heading home for the day lol

Tue Feb 16, 2010 7:12 pm

and some dry chemical extinguishers are unusable if they have been triggered
if you press the trigger to see if they work they will never work again even if full
rechargeable are reuseable and the best value

but anything is better than nothing

Aloha
tp

Tue Feb 16, 2010 7:20 pm

I'll have to get with our school bus fleet maintenance supervisor next time I see him, I might get to get one up on him. :P

Tue Feb 16, 2010 7:22 pm

The pro that services and inspects the extinguishers here always gives them a good upside down shake, checks the nozzle for evidence of discharge, bugs/blockages and weighs them along with reading the gauge for pressure. The full weight is always somwhere on the label.

Tue Feb 16, 2010 7:29 pm

Get a Halotron I... problem solved.

Tue Feb 16, 2010 7:29 pm

checks the nozzles for evidence of discharge
because some if triggered ...
Aloha
tp

Tue Feb 16, 2010 7:43 pm

Quote: So I was looking at a couple fire/fuel line/fire extinguisher threads and it got me to thinking... I never saw anything mentioned about fire extinguisher maintainance.

There are many considerations. They include
Pressure within range
Compacting of powder
Bottles with plastic pickup inside falls apart due to plastic disentegrating from powder
Hydro date stamp on tank

Your best bet is to buy new ever few years or take to professional shop to have serviced. I can tell you from first hand experience when they took mine apart and I watched that you can have pressure and looseness but if the parts inside have fallen off in pieces it won't work as intended. Most cities have fire bottle service companies. They will tag it and put a good until date on it. Some will even give you a choice of powders. Many cheaper fire bottles are not worth recharging. Never pull a powder one just to see if it works. The powder will mess up the seals and it will leak thereafter unless it is serviced.

If you want to practice putting a fire out, use an old spent bottle and do the whole thing - pull the pin, run and practice your sweeps. I watched a $$$$$ Porsche 917 burn in turn 6 at the old Riverside CA Raceway because someone practiced without pulling the pin and he and his fellow safety drivers couldn't figure why three bottles all failed - they thought the bottles on the trucks were accidently loaded as spent. Everyone was yelling "Pull the pin" but the cars going by were too loud for them to hear. Several of us had to jump the rail when the flags finally came out to pull the pin but by then the flames had done too much damage to salvage the car. So practice with an old bottle and pull the pin. How you practice you WILL DO under stress REGARDLESS of what you think you will do.

Tue Feb 16, 2010 8:06 pm

SGKent wrote: How you practice you WILL DO under stress REGARDLESS of what you think you will do.

How true. Stress totally puts you on autopilot!

Tue Feb 16, 2010 8:20 pm

stress reverts me back to basics and training
autopilot is for those who cannot handle the situation

I just hit a flock of birds and lost all engine power
I'll glide into the river and evacuate the survivors (!00%)

Aloha
tp

Tue Feb 16, 2010 8:39 pm

I would also like to note that you should be wary of cheap extinguishers.
My Wal-Mart extinguisher failed 25 miles out of town during snowfall in National Forest. Fortunately it didn't catch fire. Terrible smoke came from where the engine and tranny met. All we could do was shovel snow...

Not a time for a fire extinguisher to fail!

Tue Feb 16, 2010 8:47 pm

This is not something you should cheap out on.... and you don't have to spend a fortune.

I paid about $100 for a Halotron I in a steel can with a aluminum nozzle, its USCG, DOT, EPA and FAA approved.

Is you're vehicle worth $100?

BTW... ever see the aftermath of using a dry chemical extinguisher?

Tue Feb 16, 2010 8:50 pm

Glenn wrote: This is not something you should cheap out on.... and you don't have to spend a fortune.

I paid about $100 for a Halotron I in a steel can with a aluminum nozzle, its USCG, DOT, EPA and FAA approved.

Is you're vehicle worth $100?

BTW... ever see the aftermath of using a dry chemical extinguisher?

Where did you get it? Is Halotron the name of the manufacturer or the chemical inside? I guess it isn't messy like I've heard of the dry chemical?