Does a fire extinguisher have water?

Answer 1

There are different types of extinguisher materials for different types of fire - some fires can be fought with water, but for other fires the use of water would actually make the fire worse (for example, a fire in pan of oil attacked with water will flash boil the water and blow burning oil all over; Attacking an electrical fire with a stream of water will lead to electricity being transmitted along the stream and electrocuting the firefighter. As a result, the contents of any given extinguisher will depend on the sort of fire that would reasonably be expected in the area where it is kept.

Fires can be classed as follows:

Class A:

SOLIDS such as wood, paper, cloth, plastic etc

Class B:

FLAMMABLE LIQUIDS such as paraffin, petrol, oil etc

Class C:

FLAMMABLE GASES such as propane, butane, methane etc

Class D:

METAL FIRES (aluminium, magnesium, titanium etc.)

Class E:

Fires involving ELECTRICAL EQUIPMENT

(In the USA, these are Class C fires)

Class F:

Cooking OIL & FAT etc

(In the USA, these are Class K fires)

To fight these fires, there are specific extinguishers for each class:

Water Fire Extinguishers:

The cheapest and commonest fire extinguishers. Used for Class A fires. Should not be used with Class B, E and F fires.

Foam Fire Extinguishers:

More expensive than water, but more versatile. Used for Classes A & B fires, but not for Class E, but are safer than water if inadvertently sprayed onto live electrical apparatus.

Dry Powder Fire Extinguishers:

Can be used on classes A, B & C fires. Optimum extinguisher for fires involving running liquid (Class B). Special powders are available for class D (metal) fires.

CO2 Fire Extinguishers:

Carbon Dioxide is ideal for Class E fires, and will also extinguish class B fires but disperses quickly and this can allow the fire to re-ignite.

There are also specialist extinguishers for use with Class F and Class D fires.

Answer 2

no, a orange/brown smoky chemical comes out of it.