Fire Extinguisher

[Bartman1959]

What fire extinguishers is everyone carrying in their planes?

[efwd]

After whoever it was showed us his burning Kitfox on the flightline I will be buying the expensive one. I like the small Halon ones, Chrome would be cool but I think just a red one will do.

[aviator79]

I have this one (https://www.amazon.com/H3R-Performance-HG100R-Fire-Extinguisher/dp/B006D8OEN2/ref=mp_s_a_1_7?ie=UTF8&qid=1548502624&sr=8-7&pi=AC_SX236_SY340_QL65&keywords=h3r+extinguisher&dpPl=1&dpID=41enOJiusBL&ref=plSrch).

In the cockpit, Halon or equivalent clean agent is preferable. The one above is halotron, an 'environmentally acceptable replacement" for Halon.

[DesertFox4]

Brian, I don’t see a photo of your extinguisher.
I purchased the halon for in the cockpit also.

[aviator79]

It's an Amazon link. A little cheaper than the "aviation" one.

[bbs428]

Thanks for bringing this issue up.

I never thought about having a fire extinguisher but it makes good sense
to have one available vs not having one. Halotron is new to me.

Now where in the cabin to mount it?

[jiott]

I keep my small Halon extinguisher in the baggage pocket right behind the passengers head for quick easy access by the pilot.

[bbs428]

Great spot. Accessible but out of the way and no mounting bracket to fuss with.

[Dave S]

Just out of curiosity, Does anyone know how often a fire extinguisher is needed or used in the cabin? Statistics?

Any experiences with anyone having to discharge a FE in the cabin?

How serious a risk is a cabin fire?

Let's say, compared to an engine compartment fire, or, anything else?

Any lithium battery or panel experiences aloft?

I do know of folks who got the crap scared out of them with a capacitor popping, but that did not result in a fire, only some fouled clothing. :rolleyes:

[Esser]

I have a small halon one mounted on right in front of the passenger stick on the sloped floorboard where it meets the flat board. Easy to get at and not in the way at all.

[jrevens]

I keep my small Halon extinguisher in the baggage pocket right behind the passengers head for quick easy access by the pilot.

That's a place I hadn't thought of, Jim... however - I've gotten into unexpected turbulence a few times over the years where anything not tied down could've become dangerous to my health. Something as heavy as the small Halon extinguishers could potentially be lethal, or at the least cause some pretty bad damage in the cockpit. Just something to consider.

[bbs428]

Good point John.

Maybe some well placed hook and loop fasteners would keep the fire
extinguisher from becoming a missile hazard ?

[jrevens]

Just out of curiosity, Does anyone know how often a fire extinguisher is needed or used in the cabin? Statistics?...

I'm sure it's pretty rare, Dave. However, if you need it, and you have to dig for it, it might be too late. I have a friend who suffered a stuck, dragging brake (somehow ignored or unnoticed) that caused a fire which traveled up the brake line and into the engine compartment. This all happened during his taxi from hanger to the run-up area. When he saw the smoke he grabbed the extinguisher and jumped out to attack the fire. There was serious damage to the airplane, but he told me that if it had taken him only a few more seconds the airplane would've been a complete loss. Though rare, cockpit fires do occur. I wouldn't want to suffer a fuel leak on a line running through the cockpit, for instance, and not have an extinguisher easily at hand... just in case.

[PapuaPilot]

I have an aviation H3R Halon fire extinguisher. I mounted it at the front right corner of my baggage compartment floor where I can readily reach it.

[efwd]

Hey Steve, with regard to your not seeing Brian's post on the fire extinguisher. I notice that on one computer Brian's post has a blue colored link "this one" on post #3. I came home and got on my computer, read your post about not seeing the fire extinguisher. I went back to post number 3 and on my home computer I cant really make out the blue link. Try going back to post #3 and put your cursor on those words "this one". Bet it works for you then. I am finding that since the upgrade, there are colors that have become a bit difficult to make out. The other one I noticed right away, as others have noted as well, is the little envelope that is blue which indicates a post I have not opened. In the beginning I couldn't notice the slight color difference between posts I had read and the new ones. Somehow it is obvious to me now, I guess I have trained eyes now.

[Danzer1]

Hey Steve, with regard to your not seeing Brian's post on the fire extinguisher. I notice that on one computer Brian's post has a blue colored link "this one" on post #3. I came home and got on my computer, read your post about not seeing the fire extinguisher. I went back to post number 3 and on my home computer I cant really make out the blue link. Try going back to post #3 and put your cursor on those words "this one". Bet it works for you then. I am finding that since the upgrade, there are colors that have become a bit difficult to make out. The other one I noticed right away, as others have noted as well, is the little envelope that is blue which indicates a post I have not opened. In the beginning I couldn't notice the slight color difference between posts I had read and the new ones. Somehow it is obvious to me now, I guess I have trained eyes now.

I didn't catch that "this one" was a link either - thought he forgot to put it in. Maybe the color could be changed to something more distinct?

Greg

[jrthomas]

So educate me. I see Bass Pro Shops has boat type fire extinguishers from $29.99 to $39.99. All engine equipped boats are required to have one. They're supposedly good for fuel and electrical fires. Spruce cabin type extinguishers start at $161.99 up to $1029.00. Considering everything aviation related is priced "skyward", are these expensive extinguishers superior to the boat type?

[Esser]

They won’t corrode your plane when the media settles everywhere

[Dave S]

Esser's comment on corrosion and fire extinguishers is to be taken seriously.

The ingredient in "dry chemical" fire extinguishers (which I believe is what is used in boat FEs) is Ammonium phosphate (monoammonium phosphate or diammonium phosphate but often a combination of both)

Ammonium phosphate is a primary ingredient in agricultural fertilizers which supplies nitrogen and phosphorous.

Bottom line is it is a salt which, with a little atmospheric moisture, makes a really, really good corrosive electrolyte.

Think of discharging a dry chem FE inside an airplane as backing up a fertilizer spreader to your panel/cockpit and letting 'er rip.

[Bartman1959]

I'm pretty sure most dry chemical fire extinguishers warn against using in confined spaces.

[HighWing]

Just out of curiosity, Does anyone know how often a fire extinguisher is needed or used in the cabin? Statistics?


I think about this question a lot. When my wife and I went down in my emergency landing - crash. We were sitting in the cockpit on the ground both dampened with fuel. My wife says her hair was smelling of fuel until it was washed in the hospital so not sure if we would have survived with or without an extinguisher. To the question - in the years since about 1995 when the early Kitfox email forums began I have no recollection of any reported inflight fire. A friend had a fire in his engine compartment while preheating one winter, but am unsure whether he used a cabin or hangar mounted fire extinguisher. I have experienced the stuck brake, but only melted the brake line - no fire.

[Speedster 7]

In my 36 years Flying for the airlines, I can say that I never on any flight had to discharge a fire extinguisher, either in the cockpit cabin or in the engine compartments... we did all that in the simulators. However, we had one halon 1301 extinguisher in the cockpit and 2 to 3 in the cabin. Back in the mid-80s the environmental protection agency decided that Halen was depleting the ozone layer so they begin looking for an alternative to Halon 1301. the airlines however were grandfathered in and still use them. We also carried a pressurized water extinguisher for class a fires.
If you want a good fire extinguisher for a class B & C fire, I would recommend the Co2 extinguisher, they are electrically non-conductive. carbon dioxide is a clean non-contaminating orderless gas which is very easy to clean up after a discharge. I wouldn’t be to concerned with the class A fire because those are just combustible material that can easily be extinguished with a can of water, can of soda or a cup of coffee etc...

If you’re worried about fuel lines running under your seat and leaking, then I think You may want to invest in a parachute. When you do your preflight just make sure you check for leaks. I hope to have my S7 Speedster flying in the fall of this year. Haven’t been able to work on it lately because I’ve been depleting my wood supply which is the only way I can heat my shop. Larry Spear...retired

[Shadowrider]

Ah! Nothing better than sitting by the wood stove, knapping on a Sunday afternoon!

[tracstarr]

Has anyone used these? Or have one? https://elementfire.com/

[PapuaPilot]

That looks like a possibility, but it's not Halon. I like that it is very compact and light weight. The price is also good compared to an aircraft Halon unit.

The downside seems to be that it actually works like a flare and has a fire burning for about a minute. Could it restart a fire? If you hold it wrong you may get burnt and drop it. You definitely will need to ventilate your cockpit immediately (open the doors).

They could be a great thing to have at your hangar.

Here is a good article about fire extinguishers for aircraft:
https://www.aircraftspruce.com/catalog/pdf/extingarticle.pdf

[tracstarr]

Thanks! Good read.

The one I mention above does seem nice. I like the compactness and you can also get a rollbar mount. It's not officially approved in North America by the UL agency, so if you require "approved" extinguishers it doesn't look like this will work.

I decided to buy a few regardless. I've been meaning to replace existing ones in the house and work shop. I like that they don't expire. Most of the time I don't think about checking the ones around the house (and thus why i need to replace them anyway).