Fire Extinguishers - when need to replace?

[Gil]

They already do in many cases. The problem is the contents that burn.

Gil

[Ralph Mowery]

That is one thing that puzzles me. The way some of the buildings burn. They seem to be made of concrete and steel. I guess that the inside walls are made of materials that do burn ? It does look like they should be designed so a fire would not spread from one floor or area to another. Living in a small town, I just can not think how it would be to live in some of the buildings that hold almost as many people as a small town would have. Staying in a hotel for a week or so is one thing, but not living there all the time.

[Tekkie®]

Ralph Mowery posted for all of us...

Paint, plastic, carpets, paper all go. Masonry block walls become unstable when exposed to fire and ff's must set up a collapse zone. Wooden trusses at the joint plates fail catastrophically. Sometimes you will see a triangle by the main door with a R or F in it showing trusses.

[Tekkie®]

gregz posted for all of us...

Not now; but why not use it on a grease fire? Did you replace it? It probably adds a D raring to it now.

[Gil]

Yup, that's the sad fact that most people don't realize. Despite building construction standards most materials will deteriorate when exposed to intense heat for a prolonged period of time. Having been a full time firefighter for 28 years (now retired for some years) I'm a strong believer in automatic sprinkler systems in all buildings including single family residences. The NFPA standards are there and have been for years. What needs to be done now is to convince people that it's in their best interest to have sprinklers which would prevent a hell of a lot of residential and other fire related deaths each year.

Gil

[Stormin Mormon]

Do you wish to speak to the "flood the building" and "water damage" myths?

- . Christopher A. Young learn more about Jesus .

. .

[Gil]

Nah! The people who believe in that stuff have seen too many movies and don't understand how sprinklers work.

[Stormin Mormon]

And, they don't listen to real people who really know the facts. What a shame.

- . Christopher A. Young learn more about Jesus .

. .