Do You Know What Fire Extinguisher to Use?

One of the best ways to protect your small business from a fire is by having the proper fire extinguisher on your premise so you can use it to stop a fire from spreading if one does occur. However, choosing the right fire extinguisher for your needs may seem like a daunting task. Below is some information to help you take this important step to safeguard your business and to adhere to the law.

The 2005 Law

The Regulatory Reform Order of 2005 in England and Wales required all businesses to designate a specific person to be responsible for maintaining fire safety on the premises. That specific person was to be an individual with some control over the property, such as the owner or a high level manager.

Furthermore, this person had the responsibility for completing an entire risk assessment of the property and determining what changes needed to be made to improve its fire safety. Additionally, fire escape plans needed to be created for the protection of the individual at the business.

Although the law does not specify that fire extinguishers should be added to the premises, it does specify that any additional steps in order to minimize risk should be taken. This seems to suggest that adding fire extinguishers to your business would be a wise choice.

Making Fire Extinguisher Decisions

Before you begin shopping for a fire extinguisher, you need to have done two things. First, you need to have determined how many need to be purchased. Fire safety experts recommend having at least one extinguisher for every 200 square meters of floor space. Youll need to know the size of your business to determine the number you should purchase.

Second, you need to have completed your fire risk assessment so you can determine which types of fire extinguishers are going to be best in your business or in certain parts of your business. Remember that one fire extinguisher may not meet all of your fire safety needs.

Its also a good idea to familiarize yourself with the six classes of fire extinguishers and fire classes which are recognized in the United Kingdom. Below is a list of the six fire classes for you to review.

Class A Fires involving fire, wood, or similar organic materials
Class B Fires involving flammable liquids
Class C Fires involving flammable gasses
Class D Fires involving metals
Class E Fires involving electrical items
Class F Fires involving cooking oil, fat, and similar materials

Understanding these different fire classes is important because you will need this information to choose the correct fire extinguisher based on the most likely types of fires you could have in your business. For example, if you run a restaurant you would want a wet chemical extinguisher in the kitchen which is designed to deal with Class A and Class F fires. However, you might prefer a dry powder extinguisher for the rest of the restaurant because it can be used for Class A, B, C, and E fires.