Spec me a car fire extinguisher

Greebo

Greebo

Greebo

Caporegime
Joined
20 Jan 2005
Posts
45,776
Location
Co Durham
After a small incident on the A689 on Saturday when I suddenly lost all power in my midget at 70mph and some "fluid" started spraying up all over the bonnet and windscreen, I pulled over and discovered my main fuel pipe had become disconnected from the carbs and was just pumping petrol all over the engine.


No idea how it managed to not catch fire, especially on the hot exhaust lcb. Last time I checked temps on that it was several hundred degrees celsius.

But made me realise what a lucky escape I had as I dont carry a fire extinguisher.

So what kind do i want? I would imagine the main types of fire I am likely to encounter are either petrol or electrical.

Links gratefully received.

Thanks
 
One of the firesticks like these: https://firesafetystick.com/

More expensive but they last forever and you never need to get them checked and re-pressurised. They are also way smaller, lighter and don't leave a mess.

Powder makes a big mess, if you have to spray it in the engine bay it might stop the fire but you'll have to clean it all up before you can use the car again.
 
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Firesticks.

Powder makes a god awful mess, washed a car at night of a friends who was put out with it. By the morning, turns out we didn't get much off and it was a nightmare to get off, guess it etched in a bit. And it blew all in the air ducts.....
 
Nasher said:
One of the firesticks like these: https://firesafetystick.com/

More expensive but they last forever and you never need to get them checked and re-pressurised. They are also way smaller, lighter and don't leave a mess.

Powder makes a big mess, if you have to spray it in the engine bay it might stop the fire but you'll have to clean it all up before you can use the car again.
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Thanks. good point about the powder mess! Although that would still be better than having no car!
 
Nasher said:
One of the firesticks like these: https://firesafetystick.com/

More expensive but they last forever and you never need to get them checked and re-pressurised. They are also way smaller, lighter and don't leave a mess.

Powder makes a big mess, if you have to spray it in the engine bay it might stop the fire but you'll have to clean it all up before you can use the car again.
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Interesting looking for something myself actuallY! Cheers
 
LeMson said:
Had no idea about these fire sticks, they seem best, but expensive
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I have 2 in the lambo.

They are effective if you can get at the fire early and get it cool enough to not re-ignite. But once a certain level of heat/damage is caused they wont help as they dont have the coverage needed.
 
I think that is true of all handheld extinguishers. They are for small fires, or escaping/helping someone else escape a fire more than actual fire fighting. Once it goes up properly you won't stop it with anything smaller than a fire engine.

Get out and try to stop the fire, but if it's not out within like 20 seconds just run.
 
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Nasher said:
I think that is true of all handheld extinguishers. They are for small fires, or escaping/helping someone else escape a fire more than actual fire fighting. Once it goes up properly you won't stop it with anything smaller than a fire engine.

Get out and try to stop the fire, but if it's not out within a few seconds just run.
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True, but these sticks also trade coverage for convenience even more than a handheld co2 or powder. On the flipside they work for longer so on something the right size they give a decent opportunity for it to cool down enough.

I think in the OP's situation if the fumes had ignited he wouldnt of stood a chance with anything.
 
Greebo said:
After a small incident on the A689 on Saturday when I suddenly lost all power in my midget at 70mph and some "fluid" started spraying up all over the bonnet and windscreen, I pulled over and discovered my main fuel pipe had become disconnected from the carbs and was just pumping petrol all over the engine.
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Flaming heck!

Those fire sticks do look good but I would carry a traditional extinguisher as well. As large an extinguisher as you are comfortable carrying. It’s important that you decide what you want the extinguisher to do. Do you want it to be able to put out a big fire or a little one? Or do you want it to just give you enough time to rescue someone? Or what? For example, if you have a banger you’re probably less bothered about saving the car than if you have a Lamborghini.

Having a second extinguisher also allows you to put out someone else’s car fire while retaining an extinguisher for yourself.
 
Thanks for all the replies. Covered bases and got a 2kg powder one and a firestick.

Firestick i can use its its a small electrical fire, the powder one I think i would have used on Saturday, or tried to use, as not sure even a 2kg one would have put out a petrol fire with a couple of gallons of petrol sloshing around.

If its not out by then, its never going to be!
 
I have something like this plumbed in to my Caterham in case of something like you mentioned - pull the cable and the entire extinguisher empties in to the engine bay and across the fuel tank in one go (there's a clip so that once its started, the handle stays engaged. You don't need to keep pulling the cable). FIA approved (important as I use my car in sprints and hillclimbs as well as on the road) and should sort most of the fire issues you find, but you do have to keep the cylinder maintained (yearly testing etc), and set up at the beginning can be a pain depending on the car.

https://www.demon-tweeks.com/lifeli...-bottle-fire-extinguisher-kit-lif106-001-001/

Also plan on fitting a fire stick to put in the cockpit for smaller issues or sorting another car. Yet to buy it though
 
Just make sure you secure the traditional types properly otherwise they can become lethal in a crash. Just bolting them to some trim isn't enough, it also needs to be in reach from the drivers seat :P
 
Nasher said:
Just make sure you secure the traditional types properly otherwise they can become lethal in a crash. Just bolting them to some trim isn't enough, it also needs to be in reach from the drivers seat :p
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Good tip, thanks!!!!! Im going to fix it behind the passenger seat on the small shelf bit. Should be really easy to grab in an emergency.
 
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