Fire extinguisher life length?

[Guest Guest]

Does every type of fire extinguisher have a different shelf life? (For example will a water last longer than a powder one)

[Garry Webster]

Most professional extinguishers are designed to last ten years. After 5 years, foam, powder and water extinguishers need to be refilled. CO2 extinguisher only need to be refilled after ten years. And in theory you can indeed refill CO2 extinguishers after ten years, however, BSI requires you to pressure test the cylinder and to re-paint it, so it is usually not worth it, as it is cheaper to buy new.

[Guest EvieHal]

Has anybody experienced what the feedback the insurances give when you introduce the servicing-free Fireworld extinguishers?

i am keen to give this a try but am still a bit worried.

[mobileglass]

Hi

I bought two years ago a number of Safelincs extinguishers with ten year warranty. I just wanted to buy some more but it looks as if you have discontinued some of the units. Do you still offer extinguishers with ten year warranty?

[Safelincs]

Hi Mobi

The Safelincs extinguishers were manufactured in the UK by FPS in Bristol. FPS have now discontinued manufacture in the UK. So we had to identify a premium range of extinguishers and negotiate a ten year warranty. Since we have been supplying Gloria extinguishers for ten years, we have always known their excellent track record. Now we are slowly transferring our premium range to the Gloria extinguishers with ten year warranty. We will not change the branding of the units, as we think that the Gloria brand is one of the most respected in the industry. The 10 year warranty extinguishers are always shown on the right hand side of the extinguisher sections.

Harry

[Guest d..p.thomas@btinternet.com]

Ive replaced our extinguishers ever 5 years, and I now have two foam units removed from service which are well out of date. I decided to dispose of them and so discharged them. One unit was 15 years old. Both units still worked perfectly, what a waste of materials! they could have been left in service.

[Safelincs]

Hi,

I agree with your sentiment. It feels wrong to throw away a product which has obviously been well made and is still in working order. Customers have a choice, though: They can have their extinguishers refilled every five years (even after 15 years), as long as the body is inspected inside and out by a competent person (usually an extinguisher engineer). However, quite often the cost for the refill is more than for a new extinguisher. That is sometimes the reason why extinguishers are replaced every five years rather than being refilled.

When selecting extinguishers keep in mind that water and foam extinguishers are a lot easier to refill than powder and CO2 extinguishers and their refill is therefore cheaper.

Harry

[Guest Jackey Hardeman]

With a hand held fire extinguisher, how long can you fight a fire?

[Safelincs]

Hi Jackey, this depends from both the media use (water, foam, powder; CO2) and the size and make of extinguisher. Length of fire fighting varies greatly. You have to look out for the discharge time in the technical information of extinguisher. Example

[green-foam]

You may also like to see video clips of complete discharge of some portable fire extinguishers, Click here

However, do bear in mind the video's show just the duration of the discharge, when fighting a fire, often it can be extinguished in 10 - 20 seconds of actual discharge. (Most "modern" fire extinguishers have a lever which stops discharge when released.)

[Guest BernardSt]

Please can you advise at what age fire extinguishers become unserviceable.
I have CO2, ABC Dry Powder and Foam
Many thanks

[Shawn Bosworth]

Please can you advise at what age fire extinguishers become unserviceable.

I have CO2, ABC Dry Powder and Foam

Many thanks

There isn't a specific length of time that extinguishers can last, it all comes down to the quality of the extinguishers you have. CO2 extinguisher cylinders must be tested and refurbished after ten years, but water/foam/powder units can (if they pass their extended service every 5 years) last indefinitely. There are cartridge operated extinguishers from Britannia Fire still in service after 20 years. This highlights the false economy of buying 'cheap and cheerful' instead of investing in high quality products.

Hope this helps,

Shawn

[green-foam]

Fire extinguishers should be checked annually. Every 5 years, all but CO2 extinguishers should be discharged tested, checked and refilled, CO2 it is 10 years at which time it should also be stretch tested.

I should also point out that as an extinguisher gets older, it will become more expensive to service and may be un-economical to do so, since a new extinguisher from safelincs CLICK HERE is cheaper.

[Guest Jules]

if the extinguishers are 5yrs old and have been checked annually and are in perfect order do they still need to be refilled even though they are showing 'full'?

 

[Guest guest3]

Yes, as internal maintenance/inspection  needs to be carried out which can only be performed by emptying the extinguisher.

[AnthonyB]

Yes. With stored pressure extinguishers you cannot 100% ensure they will work or are in safe condition just by the annual basic service.

The discharge test, strip down and internal examination is the only way of detecting defects affecting safety or efficacy. Stuck gauges on leaky valves, internal corrosion, detached diptubes, etc.  Also the extinguishing agent deteriorates with age and requires renewal to maintained efficacy.

Before end disposal we often use 5+ year old extinguishers on training courses (where failure to operate is less of an issue and we take more than we need) and it's not as uncommon as you might think where they fail or do not perform as well as designed.

The user servicable P50 range (available from Safelincs) does have the benefit of a 10 year interval between tests and you can do the annual check in house.

[Guest Huzaini]

Hello. Im cadet in korea ship.

I must be learn about fire safety.

I have question. How many years cartridge foam expire?

Thank u for your attention.

[AnthonyB]

Maritime rules probably differ as do different countries standards, however on the mainland UK a cartridge foam extinguisher must have the foam solution and cartridge renewed at 5 years (after testing by discharge). A cartridge's total life is 10 years after which it can no longer be refilled or used in an extinguisher. No upper limit is set for extinguisher life although some recommendations look at a 20 year service life unless physical condition or lack of parts forces an earlier retirement.

[Guest Chrispass@live.co.uk]

How long would a dry powder 9kg last in use

[AnthonyB]

On 1/15/2018 at 18:22, Guest Chrispass@live.co.uk said:

How long would a dry powder 9kg last in use

Discharge? About 15 seconds.

Service life? The minimum service life is 5 years at which point it's cheaper to replace it than continue it's life - most service firms will do this. In reality if Extended Serviced (discharged, stripped down, examined in an out, consumables replaced, parts cleaned, extinguisher refilled) ever 5 years a powder extinguisher can last indefinitely until it physically deteriorates (rust, dents,etc) or the parts required to maintain the extinguisher are no longer produced. Depending on the make of extinguisher this can be anything from 5 years to 25 years 

[green-foam]

If it helps a 6kg lasts around 16 seconds.

 

 

 

[Guest Are thay any good?]

I have two abc chem. 5lbers that are about 20yrs old. The pressure gauges are still in the green. Are they still any good? Thanks

 

[Safelincs]

Hi

if they have not been refilled in that time the short answer is no. 

Harry

[AnthonyB]

It sounds like the poster may be from the US where they still give extinguishers a full service life and overhaul. NFPA rules apply.

If they are over 20 years old they can in theory remain in service as long as they are hydrostatic tested and recharged - but this is subject to the manufacturer still being in business and that they were made after 1984. They should be inspected monthly, serviced annually, recharged 6 yearly and hydro tested 12 yearly.

New equipment prices are such in the US that hydro-testing, refilling, etc is still economically viable unlike in the UK

[Guest SrFireS]

is there standard covering the shelf life of the MONNEX BCE? thanks