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• Fire Extinguisher Safety
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• Home Fire Safety

Fire Extinguisher Safety: Choosing the Right Type of Fire Extinguisher

Not only is it smart to keep fire extinguishers in your home, it’s also the law in most states. It’s important to make sure you have the right types of fire extinguishers on hand to put out common household fires. Read our fire extinguisher safety tips to learn how to stay safe.

Getting started

The first thing to do when choosing a fire extinguisher is to decide which rooms in your house need one. You should keep at least one on each level of your house. Make sure you keep fire extinguishers handy where fires are more likely to start, like in the kitchen, bathroom and garage.

Fire extinguisher classes

There are four classes of fire extinguishers – A, B, C and D – and each class can put out a different type of fire. Make sure you have the right types of extinguishers in each room where fires could start.

• Class A extinguishers will put out fires in ordinary combustibles like wood and paper
  
• Class B extinguishers are for use on flammable liquids like grease, gasoline and oil
  
• Class C extinguishers are suitable for use only on electrically energized fires
  
• Class D extinguishers are designed for use on flammable metals

Multi-purpose extinguishers can be used on different types of fires and will be labeled with more than one class, like A-B, B-C, or A-B-C.

Going to the store

Now that you know how many extinguishers you need and what types to get, you can head to the store. In the store, pick up the different sizes of fire extinguishers and see what you can easily lift. Larger extinguishers may pack more power but it’s also important that you’ll be able to point it quickly and easily.

Learn how to use your fire extinguisher

Once you’ve made your purchases, familiarize yourself with the fire extinguisher directions so you’ll be prepared in cash you need to put out a fire.