Industry News

Replacing Outdated Fire Extinguishers

The 1990s saw many improvements in fire protection. The adoption of UL 300 as a test standard has improved the performance of pre-engineered systems used to protect commercial cooking operations.

Throughout the U S and abroad, fire equipment distributors and manufactures are convincing local authorities and end user customers of the benefits of upgrading to these new systems. The adoption of a new class of fire- Class K- has had similar results and activity in the fire protection community.

The benefits have included better public awareness, better fire protection, decreased loss, and reduced liability.

During this time, another UL standard that was just as effective in improving fire protection as UL 300 was overlooked by much of the fire protection industry: UL 299, 7th edition, published in July1982 and effective on January 27, 1984.

In the late 1970s, UL, NFPA 10 committee, and some fire extinguisher manufacturers conducted a series of live fire tests with novice operators.

These tests concluded that changes in fire extinguisher design were needed in order to better assure proper operation by novice operators.

Testing showed that many novice operators had trouble keeping the extinguisher upright when it did not have a hose and nozzle. Many novice operators grabbed the extinguisher’s bottom and tilted or inverted it, resulting in ineffective discharge.

After this testing, UL 299 was revised to require any extinguisher weighing more than 12lbs (gross weight), having a 2A rating and/or 20B rating or higher to use a hose.

Having a hose on an extinguisher makes it very difficult to hold the extinguisher in any other position than upright, and makes it easy to properly direct the discharge of agent

Before the new standard, 5lb, 6lb, 10lb, and even 20lb capacity extinguishers were being manufactured without a hose assembly, using only a fixed nozzle.

Testing helped to develop new operating instructions that used pictograms, which proved to be more easily understood. Additionally, new codes that showed which extinguisher should be used on a specific type of fire were developed, which eliminated some confusion observed with novice operators.

The new operating instructions and use codes became mandatory with the 1998 edition of UL 299.

With the revised UL 299 in effect, manufacturers were required to produce extinguishers incorporating many improvements designed to help ensure safe and effective use by novice operators.

Thousands of extinguishers manufactured prior to January 27, 1984, are still being used and serviced today.

It is wise to replace these stored-pressure (non-cartridge operated) units with more effective, modern extinguishers, just as it is wise to replace older dry chemical restaurant fire suppression systems with modern UL 300 systems and older 40B:C dry chemical extinguishers used to protect cooking operations with modern and more effective Class K extinguishers.

Chances are, if such extinguishers exist in a facility:

• They are or soon will be over 20 years old with no factory warranty in effect.

• The Manufacturer is no longer in business, placing the sole liability on you and your customer for “fitness of purpose”

• Even if the manufacturer is still making fire extinguishers, the model may have been discontinued.

It is FEMA’a recommendation that any stored pressure (non-cartridge operated) fire extinguisher not conforming to the UL 299 standard, with an effective date of January 27, 1984, be replaced.

To continue to service extinguishers not conforming to this standard serves no purpose except to reduce extinguisher effectiveness and safety in the hands of a novice, when seconds count.