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Protecting staff and premises from fire incidents in kitchens is a major challenge as the combination
of heat, electrical equipment, gas, hot fats and water routinely found in every kitchen
large or small is a major fire hazard. Kitchen fires are the single most common type
of fire in the home and account for more deaths and injuries than any other cause of fire
including smoking. Until recently the only safe way to extinguish a chip pan fire was
to use a fire blanket but the introduction of the new ABF fire extinguisher has provided
an effective and economical home fire extinguisher to combat fires from overheated cooking oils
and fats. These types of fire are termed Class F hence the F in the ABF acronym.
To complete the acronym the ABF fire extinguisher has the added advantages of being effective
on common Class A fires involving paper, wood and fabrics and on small fires involving Class
B flammable hydrocarbons like petrol, oil and solvents. The ability to counter these
three fire risks which are involved in the great majority of household fires makes the
ABF fire extinguisher a great all-rounder for home use in the kitchen, around the house,
and in your car, boat or caravan. The ABF extinguisher is fine for small kitchen
fires in the home but a more powerful fire protection solution is required for large
commercial kitchens, canteens and retail catering outlets The large quantities of cooking fats
used and the constant use of high power electrical and gas appliances creates a potentially far
greater fire risk. Wet chemical fire extinguishers were developed
specifically to deal with deep fat and cooking oil fires. A new Class F fire classification
was introduced to describe this particular type of fire risk to avoid confusion with
Class B fires involving flammable hydrocarbon liquids like petrol and oil.
Wet chemical extinguishers use a chemical additive that when discharged reacts with
the surface of burning oil to form a thick layer of non-combustible soft soap. The resulting
soap layer seals the oil from the oxygen in the air above, smothering the fire and preventing
re-ignition. An extended lance low pressure discharge nozzle
aids application and prevents splashing and consequent fire spread.
Wet chemical fire extinguishers are the only type of fire extinguisher recommended for
combatting burning cooking oil and animal fat in commercial kitchens and retail food
outlets. Other types of fire extinguisher suppressants are ineffective and may even
splatter the oil around and spread the fire further.
Wet chemical fire extinguishers have a limited effect on Class A fires involving solid combustible
like wood and paper and although safe to use around electrical equipment are not suitable
to combat electrical fires. These limitations mean that operators of commercial
kitchens need to install additional types of fire extinguisher to combat other dangerous
fire risks. In practice this means combining a wet chemical
extinguisher with either a Carbon Dioxide or Dry powder fire extinguisher or both if
necessary. CO2 extinguishers have the advantage of leaving
no harmful or difficult to remove residue so are popular for use on fires involving
electrical equipment. The discharge is extremely cold so avoid handling the nozzle unless it
is insulated to prevent cold skin burns. Dry Powder fire extinguishers are very versatile
and are classified for use on solid combustibles like wood, flammable liquids and fuels and
are the only extinguisher classified for use on flammable gases like butane and propane
often used in mobile catering units. The powder does leave a sticky residue once used so having
a CO2 to hand is an advantage if you want to protect expensive electrical equipment.
When choosing a fire extinguisher always look for the CE and BSEN3 marks as a sign of quality
and choose a type and size appropriate to the fire risk.
One last piece of advice for the safety of your kitchen. As a general rule it is not
a good idea to have a water extinguisher anywhere near a kitchen environment. In a fire situation
the impulse is to grab whatever is at hand and to spray water on blazing oil is a recipe
for disaster. And remember when it comes to your safety
come to www.fireandsafetycentre dot co dot uk.