Fire Extinguishers

To put out a grease pan fire carefully shake baking soda on it. Not baking powder, baking soda. Bicarbonate of soda, the same stuff used to keep refrigerators smelling fresh.

Another suggestion...

If you have a lid that fits onto the frying pan, or whatever the pot or pan is that contains the grease, place the lid as tightly/closely as possible over the top. A grease fire should be suffocated that way. If you don't have a lid, try using another pan a little larger than the one that's on fire.

Never ever pour water onto a grease fire.

If you can't do any of the above, leave the room immediately, alert any other people in the house and call the fire brigade.

Another answer:

One of the most important pieces of kitchen equipment is a good, thick, pure-cotton, large (around 140cm x 70cm - 55in x 30in) bath towel, kept on a rack in a central area.

In the case of a pan fire, a grill (broiler) fire, or similar emergencies the towel can easily be thrown over the fire source at arms' length. It's highly dangerous to attempt placing a lid over a burning pan or other fire source once flames are beginning to rise; apart from time lost in finding an appropriate lid, even if you do find one the fire can flare up in a micro-second and you won't be able to control it, call emergency, or even warn the household, if you've just had your face and hands severely burned because you're standing over a fiery pan trying to put a lid on it.

Remember, firefighters wear protective gear and observe strict safety rules to prevent this kind of thing happening: emergency service personnel are no good to anybody if they injure themselves in the first moments of response. Amateur firefighters facing a domestic fire need to understand why this is so, and avoid placing themselves in danger.

The versatile thick towel shouldn't ever be used to wipe surfaces or greasy utensils; it should be kept clean.

It might seem to some an extravagance to put a good bath towel in the kitchen. It isn't. Once you've had it there for a week you'll wonder how you ever managed without it. I have two on rails fixed to work areas, near the ovens and sink, and near the fridge and stovetop; one of their great uses is they can be quickly flipped up onto the bench to take hot or wet dishes, or to drain washed fruit and vegetables, glassware, and so on. I clip mine to the rails so they stay in place, but a quick tug releases them. They're great for drying hands after washing up, and always to hand in case of a large water spill; you just throw a towel over the liquid so nobody's going to slip before you can mop it up. And we've all had those kitchen moments when we need to quickly move a pan that's hotter than expected and the oven gloves or trivet aren't immediately to hand: this is where the kitchen towel is a great friend.

Fire needs three things to burn: fuel, oxygen, and heat. Take away one or more of those three things in sufficient quantities, and the fire can no longer burn.

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A dry chemical fire extinguisher sprays a noncombustible, air resistant layer of foam designed to cover the fire's fuel source. When the fuel source (wood, oil, cloth, etc.) is completely and properly smothered, the expelled dry chemical foam isolates the fuel from the surrounding air, and thereby starves the fire of the oxygen it needs to burn.

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.