Why is CO2 the best fire extinguisher?

Answer 1

Co2 (Carbon Dioxide) is NOT suitible for fire extenguishers. Co2 is a colorless, odorless, and deadly gas. There are alarms made for this. The most common contents of a fire extenguisher are foam and H2O (Water).

Answer 2

The CO2 extinguisher is good for some types of fire and completely prohibited for use on other types. For example, it is illegal to have a CO2 anywhere near a deep fat fryer in a commercial kitchen. They do not work well on Class A fires (ordinary combustibles) because the CO2 may dissipate and allow the fire to rekindle or it may not be concentrated enough to smother all of the fuel.

CO2 extinguishers are useful in electrical fires because they use a compressed gas unlike a liquid-type extinguisher. Liquids and electricity do not mix well.

CO2 extinguishers are useful in flammable liquid fires (e.g., gasoline) because they displace the oxygen available at the surface of the burning liquid and smother the fire, while also cooling it. CO2 gas can be expelled at over 200 degrees below zero.