Fire Extuingishers Save DSM Lives

[nlzn]

Fuel rail was dripping unknowingly and apparently one of my spark wires arc'd.
Goes to show always having an extinguisher in the car is a good idea.

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[david-b]

I have in my car this one-time use fire extinguisher. Looks like a can of Lysol. Not sure how well they work as I've yet to actually use one. But it's for peace of mind. Keep it under the drivers seat for super easy access. Been meaning to pick up a new one (not the can type but a real one).

My car went up in flames 3 days after buying it. Dumbass before wired the radio directly to the battery and then cut the wires. They shorted, and the wires went up in flames, including some looms inside the dash, the carpet, and then some. Didn't have anything to put it out with at the time.

 

[96eclipzGsT]

Seen on craigslist today

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[RallyEclipse98]

Thanks for the reminder.

 

[9!'clipseDOHC]

Seen on craigslist today

Ouch!

 

[viprez586]

That sucks! It even melted the cheap Ebay strut tower brace! . Wow you really do get what you pay for.

 

[9!'clipseDOHC]

Ok you guys scared me enough that I decided to remount my fire extinguisher. I was looking for a new place away from the front so I wouldn't hear any vibrations from it. I don't like the rear floor just in case someone needs to sit back there. I wasn't a huge fan of the trunk because A. I don't want to interfere with moving the carpet to get the spare out and B. Its not easily accessible in the case of an engine bay fire. This is the place I decided on. It is in the back, without interfering with the spare, so I won't hear any vibrations and it can be accessed from inside the car. I'm very happy with the location. What do you guys think?

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Flip down the back seat and there it is.

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Out of the way so I can still fill up the trunk with groceries and access the spare tire.

 

[Aznspice27]

Clean.... NICE!

i used to have one on the passenger A pillar .... till i hit a crater (nyc pot hole) and it fell onto this girls head i had in the car with me ... i had to laugh...

 

[saturnshadow]

where did you find a black fire extinguisher?

 

[9!'clipseDOHC]

Clean.... NICE!

Thanks!!!

where did you find a black fire extinguisher?

Spray paint. It's an APC fire extinguisher that originally started life polished. It was my buddies and he painted it yellow to match his Lancer. I bought it from him and painted it blue for a while and now it's flat black. Spray paint is wonderful!

 

[jjrock5]

I keep one of these on each of my A-pillars.

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[saturnshadow]

ahh, i was just thinking it might be an issue if you have to have it charged because it was painted.

 

[Achelea]

I've seen built in Fire control systems in aircraft and I am pondering doing that to my own car when I start making serious power. It might be extra weight, but I'd rather have something there to stop the fire than be flailing cause it's burning out of control.

Matter of fact, I know what type of bottle, and system to use. ^_^ Cost more than the car but life is more important to me.

 

[Calan]

i keep one of these on each of my a-pillars.

rofl

 

[kainam00]

safedrives.com has some good ones, with brackets!

Get at least a 10BC, a 5 won't put out any kind of serious fire. They require 10BC's in rally cars, and when there is a fire you usually use up your extinguisher and the extinguishers of the 2-3 cars behind you hehe

Another thing to keep in mind, if you use a dry powder extinguisher, make sure you take it off the bracket and shake it up once in a while. The powder compacts and you're not going to put out much with a "puff" of air

 

[snowborder714]

Get at least a 10BC, a 5 won't put out any kind of serious fire. They require 10BC's in rally cars

To expand on this:

The Underwriters Laboratories rate fire extinguishing capacity in accordance with UL/ANSI 711: Rating and Fire Testing of Fire Extinguishers. The ratings are described using numbers preceding the class letter, such as 1-A:10-B:C. The number preceding the A multiplied by 1.25 gives the equivalent extinguishing capability in gallons of water. The number preceding the B indicates the size of fire in square feet that an ordinary user should be able to extinguish. There is no additional rating for class C, as it only indicates that the extinguishing agent will not conduct electricity, and an extinguisher will never have a rating of just C.

 

[snowborder714]

Get at least a 10BC, a 5 won't put out any kind of serious fire. They require 10BC's in rally cars

How big of a fire extinguisher do rally cars carry if they require a 10-B:C unit? The FE-36 units I see with that rating are 9.5+ lbs., which I can imagine is a very hefty unit.

 

[kainam00]

How big of a fire extinguisher do rally cars carry if they require a 10-B:C unit? The FE-36 units I see with that rating are 9.5+ lbs., which I can imagine is a very hefty unit.

About 2.5lbs of powder and ~5lbs total weight. They are pretty small and fit comfortable in the navigators footrest.

I am seriously considering getting another one for the rally car though, one of these really doesn't seem big enough to do anything for any decent fire.

(Safe Drives - Amerex 2.5 Lb. Dry Chemical Fire Extinguisher with two strap vehicle bracket., Fire Extinguishers -- this is what I have)

 

[snowborder714]

Thanks for the response. That is one I would not purchase just because it's an ABC extinguisher. I want something that will not leave a weird residue if I have to use it, and will be easy to clean up.

I can post up more info on types and whatnot if anyone is interested.

 

[dsmfa9nutter]

Where's a good place to get a decently priced one for automotive?

Kidde brand "Auto/Marine" BC rated extinguisher. Pick your favorite department store, walmart has it for $18.

 

[clean96GST]

Thanks for the response. That is one I would not purchase just because it's an ABC extinguisher. I want something that will not leave a weird residue if I have to use it, and will be easy to clean up.

I can post up more info on types and whatnot if anyone is interested.

I'm definitely interested. I don't know the first thing about fire extinguishers and i'll be buying one for the dsm soon.

 

[1995gsx20g]

Kidde brand "Auto/Marine" BC rated extinguisher. Pick your favorite department store, walmart has it for $18.

i was just gonna post this ^

i was at walmart this past weekend and im pretty sure its the same one and i got it for $13 it was a 2lb bc

Clean96gst- im pretty sure those halon's don't leave any residue and you can actually see threw it. not like a giant powder bomb.

 

[kainam00]

I'm pretty sure (and the data sheets on their site confirm this) the cheap Kiddes aren't halons, but dry chemical. Pretty much every fire extinguisher under $70 is (someone is welcome to correct me with some links if I'm wrong).

Halon is definitely nice, and preffered -- but if you can't afford one, it's better to have a decent size dry chem than nothing.

 

[1995gsx20g]

I'm pretty sure (and the data sheets on their site confirm this) the cheap Kiddes aren't halons, but dry chemical. Pretty much every fire extinguisher under $70 is (someone is welcome to correct me with some links if I'm wrong).

Halon is definitely nice, and preffered -- but if you can't afford one, it's better to have a decent size dry chem than nothing.

yea i didn't mean it like that, i was talking to clean96gst but didn't say i was. i edited it.

 

[dsmfa9nutter]

Real halon extinguishers were outlawed in the 80's. The "halon" out now is a mix of a few things instead of pure halon. You won't find a halon extinguisher for cheap but you will find a dry chemical (usually sodium bicarbonate, aka baking soda) for cheap like the one I mentioned above. DON'T cheap out and buy a tiny one, you will hate yourself when that tank runs empty and there's still flames dancing on your valve cover.

 

[snowborder714]

I'm definitely interested. I don't know the first thing about fire extinguishers and i'll be buying one for the dsm soon.

I created another thread so we don't clutter this one.
http://www.dsmtuners.com/forums/road-course-autocross/365123-fire-extinguisher.html