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Fire Extinguishers

6K views 17 replies 15 participants last post by  zray 
#1 ·
So as my build gets closer to street able, I'm thinking of a vehicle mounted fire extinguisher. Vehicle specific ones are expensive compared to their house style counterparts, but why? Would a standard extinguisher have problems riding around in a car if it has the same ability classification and is mounted correctly?
 
#2 ·
Nah it's just that they're generally larger and uglier. They do a b c just the same
 
#18 ·
Having used one of those on a very minor Weber carb fire, I can say NEVER AGAIN.. Yes the fire goes out, but the residue is terrible. It's caustic, and it doesn't like to come off no matter how many times you wash it. There are numerous small crevices that the residue gets into, and it will never leave until you get an ice pick or wire brush into it and scrub it away. Most of those tiny places the residue like to end up are next to impossible to get it to clean them out throughly.

My fire was so brief, that I could've restarted the car and driven it immediately if I'd used a CO2 or Halatron extinguisher. But the dry chemical residue made a mess of everything, so a clean up and carb rebuild was needed first.

+1 on Halotron. I have a small one in each car, and a large one in my garage. H3R brand makes some nice ones. I have also noticed that they tend to stay charged longer than the dry chemical ones.
I am very happy with mine and hope I never need it. I bought a clean agent extinguisher because I have seen first hand what a normal one can do to a car. In my opinion this is a silly place to try and save money.
........"n
Exactly !

Another option is the bigger CO2 variety. No residue, and cheaper than the Halatron type. But they are larger, so it's a trade off, do you have the room for one of them, VS. the expense of the Halatron.

One other point, whatever type of extinguisher you get, get 3 of them. 2 in the car and at least one more in the garage. There's nothing worse than a fire that's still burning after your 1st fire extinguisher hits empty.

I've put out a few shop (gasoline) fires over the years, and not once was the fire O-U-T with the first extinguisher. You have to have 1 or 2 back ups.


Z
 
#5 ·
Nope, no reason not to carry a standard one in your car, it's just harder to find the portable sizes.

The expensive ones that you are seeing are likely the Halotron extinguishers, which are also ABC but don't leave a terrible mess to clean up like standard extinguishers do. I have one because I figured if I have to deal with a fire in the first place, I don't also want to have to deal with that white powder covering absolutely everything in addition to that in the aftermath!
 
#8 ·
i have the regular torpedo one from Lowes. does ABC. I bungie cord it in the trunk.

i left her in there all winter and forgot about it by mistake. in the spring i thought ida found it blown up. but it held up to -5
 
#9 ·
No to mention the yellow powder looking chemical from standard ABC fire extinguishers is very corrosive, so its important to also inspect your fire extinguisher's. Take it out of wherever you have it mounted and look at it, invert it and look to see its not rusted, busted, leaking and verify your still in the green and check to see if the pin and seal are there. I have seen so many folks use a tie wrap in place of the seal. You also wanna buy another one or have them inspected professionally every 5 years and hydrostatically tested and rebuilt every 12. years. Fire Extinguishers are great to have, but better when they work. Any questions or for some seals, you can always stop by your local Fire Department.






Rick
Retired Firefighter
 
#10 ·
I wrote this piece a couple of years ago but still very relevant. I have the HalGuard product in every vehicle I own. I would never use a dry-chem setup in any car. The corrosive nature will ruin paint, wiring, etc.

There are plenty of brackets out there for every generation of Mustang too. Secure it, and have it at arm's reach. Mounting it in the trunk is not a good idea (my opinion), as it is too far away. Also be sure to have a decent size so you don't run out of product and still have a fire.

How To: Fire Protection For Your Mustang - Mustang Monthly Magazine

HTH!
Mark
 
#13 ·
hey Mark--that was a great article and I remember reading it a few years ago in MM! Thanks for writing it. It really started me thinking about putting an extinguisher in my car.

If anyone is looking for additional mounting bracket options, my local Mustang shop showed me this thing from Drake:
Scott Drake Store - Fire Extinguisher Mount

This is pretty small and can mount just about anywhere.

-Sam
 
#11 · (Edited)
hey mark, thanks for the article. i always enjoy reading your tech info.
will def be mounting mine inside the car and will now use the Halotron one
 
#16 ·
I carry dry type extinguishers. They work and are a lot cheaper. This is important as my experience is I'm about ten times more likely to be using my personal extinguisher on somebody else's fire. I don't care much about residue, like I'm not going to wash it?
I'll lock mine in the trunk. My thinking being that if you don't have time to get one out of the trunk what you really need to be doing is running. Sure, having one close to hand is a lot better but NOT if isn't properly secured. Picture a meth-crazed psycho attacking you with your fire extinguisher. That's kind what will happen if it's loose in the cabin and you have an accident involving a rollover. Often the key to getting a fire out is often to catch it ASAP, so there's a bit of a trade off. You can't really put out an engine fire with a handheld extinguisher unless you can get the hood open. So some tricky hood lock like the "cabinet lock" could cost you a car. Again a trade off. Underhood security versus the odd chance you might have an engine fire to fight.
I don't know how many vehicle fires I've put out. A few stand out.
A motorcycle tank with a loose cap, fire engulfed the tank. Smothered it out with jean jacket. Still don't quite believe that worked. But it was almost an instant move.
Carburetor on a Chevy caught fire while we were sitting on the hood. Destroyed the air cleaner and dumped the beer cooler , beer and all, all over. After drying out a bit, it happily cranked back up and took us home.
An Opel I was test driving (yes, an Opel) leaked fuel on the exhaust manifold and was blazing pretty good after dying in the street. A house was nearby that had a garden hose. I grabbed it and it just barely reached. A bystander told me repeatedly that I wasn't going to put out a gasoline fire with water. I suggested perhaps he would prefer to smother it out by lying down across the engine and put it out with water anyway. Swapped a couple of hoses and it (surprisingly) drove back.
Carry an extinguisher of some kind. Because when you (or somebody else) really need one it's any port in a storm and standing there helplessly watching a car burn totally sucks. Because I've been there too.
 
#17 · (Edited)
Nice article. Thanks. I also recall reading that.

Keep in mind that if you do any drag racing or other racing, you really should get an approved (such as NHRA) mounting bracket (standard flip open ones not allowed) so it does not come loose until you want it too. In an accident the flip open ones can open and then you have that canister bouncing around. I know our local track checks.

here is what I have in my 70
 
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