It would be difficult for a body shop or mechanical shop to survive long without readily accessible firefighting equipment. But when a blaze breaks out, just any old fire extinguisher won’t do. Fires that erupt in auto repair facilities are most often solvent-based fires which extinguish best with dry chemical.
Types of fires and most effective fire extinguishers
Class A fires are the burning of ordinary combustibles such as trash, paper, wood, cloth and plastics. Class A fires can be fought with water or foam extinguishers.
Class B fires are usually flammable liquid fires. Examples of fires in this category include blazes resulting from gasolines, oils, paints and thinners. Class B fires can also be fueled by flammable gases such as butane and propane. While water based fire extinguishers should never be used on Class B fires since the water could spread the burning liquids, foam fire extinguishers can be used effectively as can carbon dioxide, dry chemical, and halogenated or clean agent extinguishers.
Class C fires are, for the most part, electrical fires associated with overheated motors, transformers and appliances. Class C fires, upon disruption of power, become fires of another type. But, as long as the burning unit is connected to a power supply a water-based fire extinguisher should never be used due to the risk of shock the firefighter might suffer from electrical currents being carried by water. Additionally, foam fire extinguishers should never be used. Carbon dioxide, dry chemical, and clean agent fire extinguishers using halon and newer environmentally-friendly halocarbons are the best bet for extinguishing Class C fires.
Class D fires result when combustible metals ignite. Body shops and mechanical shops welding or grinding on aluminum panels or magnesium brackets might be susceptible to these types of fires, though they are rare. Dry powder fire extinguishers, similar to dry chemical extinguishers work best on Class D fires, even though they are futile in fighting fires of other types.
Class K fires can usually be characterized as kitchen fires or cooking fires. Class K fires result from the burning of cooking oils and greases as well as animal and vegetable fats. Wet chemical extinguishers work best on Class K fires because the agent dispersed in wet chemical firefighting produces an invisible barrier between the oxygen and fuel elements making it difficult for a fire to reignite after having been suffocated.
It is recommended that auto mechanics and service personnel become familiar with various fire extinguishers and their locations around the shop. Further , it is wise for technicians to become familiar with the information located on the inspection tag and see to it that fire extinguishers are maintenanced according to local, state and national codes.
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