Fire extinguisher recall

[Swerd]

Today I read about the Consumer Product Safety Commission's recall of nearly 40 million fire extinguishers for safety reasons .

The CPSC claims extinguishers made by Kidde with plastic handles and push button -- or pindicators -- can clog, resulting in a failure to discharge. Nozzles can also pop off with enough force to be a dangerous projectile.​

I own two small (3 lb.) dry powder type fire extinguishers, and I went to look at them right away. I keep one in the basement (made by Kidde) and the other in the kitchen (made by Fire Control). Both have plastic handles and nozzles but no push buttons. Both are old; the Kidde extinguisher was made in 1998, and the Fire Control one is at least 25-30 years old. Their pressure gauges indicate they still hold enough pressure to work. Now I wonder about the aged plastic nozzles of both.

I realize these were inexpensive and I'll soon replace both with extinguishers with metal handles and nozzles. I'll be looking into getting a free replacement for the Kidde extinguisher, but I don't yet know any details about the recall.

A simple question: How do I dispose of an old dry powder fire extinguisher?

 

[shadyJ]

A simple question: How do I dispose of an old dry powder fire extinguisher?

Throw it in a fire and see what happens.

 

[Swerd]

So far, I found these links:

https://inmarmarketaction.com/kidde/Kidde284US/
This link provides a way to register with Kidde for a replacement.

https://s3.amazonaws.com/inmar-adx-files/N130284/US_Plastic+Handle+Product+ID+Guide.pdf
This link shows examples of fire extinguishers, how to find the model and serial numbers, and a list of recalled model numbers. The extinguisher I have, model FA110G, looks like the small one on the left in this link.

 

[Swerd]

Throw it in a fire and see what happens.

OK, these are cheap disposable fire extinguishers, but that was still a dumb answer .

Once I get replacements, I do intend to have some fun. I'll pull the pin and let 'em rip. (Always wear safety goggles.)

Years ago, when I was in the Navy, we were always having fire drills in the work space. Usually they were at 0-dark-hundred during a long mid-watch. Everything was highly classified – TOP SECRET – and the base firefighting team was not cleared to enter. Seriously! So we had to be ready for a fire. I had a 50 lb. CO2 bottle that was mine to lug around to where ever the fire was. I never did get to pull the pin and let it rip. But it probably would have been serious trouble if there had been a real fire.

 

[Irvrobinson]

Years ago, when I was in the Navy, we were always having fire drills in the work space. Usually they were at 0-dark-hundred during a long mid-watch. Everything was highly classified – TOP SECRET – and the base firefighting team was not cleared to enter. Seriously! So we had to be ready for a fire. I had a 50 lb. CO2 bottle that was mine to lug around to where ever the fire was. I never did get to pull the pin and let it rip. But it probably would have been serious trouble if there had been a real fire.

This is why I stopped reading fiction. Rational minds just can't make this stuff up, and be as interesting as reality.

 

[Alex2507]

Once I get replacements, I do intend to have some fun. I'll pull the pin and let 'em rip.

It's not much fun having to clean that up. You can't really unleash those on nature either.

 

[Swerd]

It's not much fun having to clean that up. You can't really unleash those on nature either.

Sounds like you have experience with this. What was it?

ABC Dry Chemical fire extinguishers – It doesn't say anything about cleanup after use. Both components are highly soluble in water:

Monoammonium phosphate – up to 40.4 g dissolves in 100 mL.

Ammonium sulfate 74.4 g dissolves in 100 mL at room temperature, slightly less at cold temperatures.

Neither component is toxic.

 

[Alex2507]

Sounds like you have experience with this. What was it?

ABC Dry Chemical fire extinguishers – It doesn't say anything about cleanup after use. Both components are highly soluble in water:

Monoammonium phosphate – up to 40.4 g dissolves in 100 mL.

Ammonium sulfate 74.4 g dissolves in 100 mL at room temperature, slightly less at cold temperatures.

Neither component is toxic.

A shop rag combusted when it got used as an ashtray. It was rushed toward a revolving door where it got slammed into the door and kind of fell apart in different direction resulting in little pieces of lit rag all over but mostly in the door itself. I let loose with one of those things and let the cleaning staff deal with the mess but it's like yellow flower or was it white? It was everywhere. It would have been better to stamp out the lit rags and then just sweep up the ashes but as it was, I ended up writing an incident report and making it somebody else's problem.

It might not be toxic but it is unsightly covering your yard and the wind might carry that powdery mesh onto nearby vehicles. I can't think of a situation where I want to let another fire extinguisher loose.

 

[Swerd]

A shop rag combusted when it got used as an ashtray. It was rushed toward a revolving door where it got slammed into the door and kind of fell apart in different direction resulting in little pieces of lit rag all over but mostly in the door itself. I let loose with one of those things and let the cleaning staff deal with the mess but it's like yellow flower or was it white? It was everywhere. It would have been better to stamp out the lit rags and then just sweep up the ashes but as it was, I ended up writing an incident report and making it somebody else's problem.

It might not be toxic but it is unsightly covering your yard and the wind might carry that powdery mesh onto nearby vehicles. I can't think of a situation where I want to let another fire extinguisher loose.

Look who's being the responsible adult here . You're probably right about it being a mess to clean up. Duly noted. Thanks.

The extinguisher has to be discharged somehow before it can be trashed. Maybe I can put it inside a big trash bag and then let it loose. CO2 bottles are more fun and there is nothing to clean up.

I wonder how Kidde will pay for all the replacements for all those recalled fire extinguishers. If 38-39 million extinguishers are involved, at maybe $44 each, half that for wholesale, call it $10 each at the manufacturing level. That's $390 million . I'm glad that's not my problem. I can see pissed off shareholders blindfolding the CEO on the loading dock at sunrise. They'll select 21 employees (who are about to be laid off) to 'hose him down' with 21 recalled dry powder extinguishers.

 

[Swerd]

This morning I found a box with my new Kidde fire extinguisher outside my door. I had registered at Kidde's web page, early in November, when they announced the recall, and they sent it in response. It took 2 months – not bad .

They sent a new extinguisher, 2.5 lb size (same as I had), and has a metal (aluminum or steel) nozzle & handle instead of the plastic of the old extinguisher. Unlike the old one, it's rechargeable. It's the Pro 110 model, and sells on Amazon for $47. I'm not sure what I paid for the old plastic nozzle non-rechargeable extinguisher, as a guess, $20-25. So the new replacement is better than the old one .

Now for the best part. Kidde also sent a FedEx shipping label to return the old extinguisher using the same packing boxes. They even included clearly worded and easy to follow instructions about packing it for shipping and what info to tell FedEx. I appreciated that .

So Kidde has earned some praise. I also want to buy a new extinguisher to keep in another part of my house. There are other good brands of fire extinguisher (such as Amerex), but because of their very good response on this recall, I'll have to consider Kidde.

 

[Swerd]

I'm still geeking out over fire extinguishers. Here's some useful info I learned about them.

Recycling old disposable dry powder fire extinguishers:

Where I live, the county Recycling & Transfer Station accepts charged cylinder-type fire extinguishers from residents at the Household Hazardous Waste drop-off at no charge. Household dry powder type fire extinguishers no greater than 18 inches long can also be discharged and be thrown out as standard trash as follows:

1. Place the extinguisher in two heavy duty plastic trash bags.
   
2. Outdoors, lay the bag with the extinguisher flat on level ground.
   
3. Fold the tops of the bags closed and step on the fold with one foot.
   
4. With a free hand, find the extinguisher's release lever from outside the bags. Gently squeeze and slowly release its contents.
5. Knot or tie the bags closed and place them into regular household trash.

I did that this morning with the very old extinguisher I've had since 1979 or 1980. Just in case, I wore safety glasses. The trash bags held all the powder without bursting. For what it's worth, that nearly 40-year-old extinguisher with the cheap plastic trigger valve worked as intended.

There are 3 different types of dry powder fire extinguishers for home use. None of them are toxic although they can irritate eyes or skin. All three are pressurized with nitrogen gas.

ABC – a specially fluidized and siliconized mono ammonium phosphate (NH4H2PO4) dry powder. It melts at about 350-400°F and forms a cake that coats surfaces. The cake smothers class A (paper, wood, plastic, etc.) and B (flammable liquids) fires. It also smothers Class C (electrical) fires and does not conduct electricity back to the operator. Because it melts into a cake, it can make clean up after a fire difficult. This is the most common type of dry powder fire extinguisher for home use.

Regular BC – contains a siliconized sodium bicarbonate (NaHCO3, baking soda) based dry chemical with additives to make it free flowing and non-caking. Provides Class B & C protection with lower purchase and recharging costs. This chemical smothers fires in flammable liquids and pressurized gases and does not conduct electricity back to the operator. In homes, it's useful in the kitchen or garage.

Purple K – contains specially fluidized and siliconized potassium bicarbonate (KHCO3) dry chemical which is particularly effective on Class B flammable liquids and pressurized gases. It contains a purple dye to distinguish it from sodium bicarbonate. It also is electrically non-conductive. Purple K has been the choice of oil, gas, chemical and utilities industries as the preferred fire-fighting agent. In homes, it's useful in the kitchen or garage.

I got all this info from http://amerex-fire.com/products/?category=hand-portable-extinguishers

 

[GO-NAD!]

I guess it's too late now, but I would have suggested getting any neighbourhood kids together and showing them how to use it properly...and, unlike Alex, do it outside.

 

[Swerd]

I guess it's too late now, but I would have suggested getting any neighbourhood kids together and showing them how to use it properly...and, unlike Alex, do it outside.

The kids in my neighborhood would rather set fires and squirt fire extinguishers at each other.

 

[GO-NAD!]

The kids in my neighborhood would rather set fires and squirt fire extinguishers at each other.

Um, OK.