Nine year old RV Fire Extinguisher Still Serviceable

[Harvard]

We happened upon a highway scene where a 1/2 ton was disabled because of a front wheel bearing failure. The hydraulic fluid was on fire and the driver was trying to douse the flames with bottles of drinking water.

I offered up our 9 year old RV dry extinguisher and it worked perfectly. It did have a pressure gauge and it was in the green, that was all I knew for sure.

The only other surprise is how little time and content is available. It only lasts for about 10 seconds and there is no second chance.

[bka0721]

The photos did not show my rig. I am a photographer and grabbed these after I pulled the guy out of the truck, as he was still trying to get things out of it, right as some propane tanks started going off. It happened too fast to do anything. The fire started in the engine compartment of his truck and then spread to his 5th Wheel. I sold the photographs to a newspaper syndicate, these are some of them.

If the owner of the rig had Fire Extinguishers available, at the truck, he could have put out the fire before it spread. Ironically he was a retired Fireman from my home state. So it can happen to anyone or some know more than the rest of us.

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[wa8yxm]

I have 4 fire extinguishers in my RV. 2 foam 2 powder one is the little one Damon put in the other is a 25 pounder.

You need to do regular maintenance to insure the powder ones work,, Others have described it but basically you bounce it around to break up the powder a few times every so often, check the pressure gauge and visit the Fire Extinguisher Service Place from time to time.

you got lucky.

[rockhillmanor]

I replaced the toy size fire extinguisher that comes with the RV with 3 adult size house ones. One in the back, and one in the front of the MH and the third one under the sink close to stove.

And any quests Rv'ing with me gets emergency 101. They are showed where the escape window is and where the fire extinguishers are located before we take off.

[bka0721]

This is the reason I always carry extra fire extinguishers and up to date ones. I have come up on too many of these, when people are at risk, not so much their material possessions.

[Canadian_Rainbi]

Check out Mac The Fire Guy. Often found at rallys. We have the Hawk SS400 CAF Foam. If filled with DISTILLED water it can be used on electrical fire. The foam concentrate is non conductive.

[hershey]

The Fire Extinguisher company that did the bi-yearly check of all extinguishers in our plant would take each one and turn it upside down and bang it a few times with a rubber hammer.

[rbturner]

All dry chemical extinguishers should be routinely inverted and tapped on their bottoms until the power inside is heard to break loose and 'whoosh' to the other end. Repeat this process a few times. This is called "fluffing the powder" and is extremely important on units that are subject to vibration.

The other issue is that the 2-1/2 pound, plastic headed piece of junk that is usually provided new should be replaced with at least a 5 pound ABC dry chemical. A 10 pounder is a lot better and you can actually fight some fire with it. As always, if you even use a one second burst from an extinguisher, you should have it serviced ASAP. This service removes powder residue from the valve and its associated galleries ensuring it will continue to hold pressure.

[nevadanick]

1 second per pound is average.

[rockhillmanor]

It's because they settle. You only got about 20 per cent of what was in it. The gauge will still show in the green.

Had the fire department at an RV rally bring that little surprise to our attention. :R

They strongly recommended first that we buy an adult size fire extinguisher to replace the ones that come with our RV's. Or shake the stock ones regularly to keep them from settling and being useless in an emergency.

[Old-Biscuit]

Good thing RVs bounce so much otherwise those dry chemical extinguishers have a tendency to cake up.

Those 2.5# units do not last very long at all.
Glad you were outside when you used it and found out.

They really are for very small, small fires.....better use in an RV is getting OUT and away from RV fire.