T.R | Title | User | Personal Name | Date | Lines |
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128.28 | Any updates since Dec 1989? | SQGUK::GRUBB | | Tue May 21 1991 18:03 | 6 |
| Due to the apparant increase in the number of car fires
I am looking for a fire extiguisher for my Espace - any
updates on this subject? Last I gleaned from this
note is that 2.5Kg BCF/Halon was the thing to have.
John.
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128.29 | | HUGS::AND_KISSES | I wish I understood... | Tue May 21 1991 18:26 | 13 |
128.30 | sort of... | KURMA::PDUNN | | Tue May 21 1991 19:30 | 9 |
|
>5kg plumbed-in Halon (BCF is a trade name for a type of Halon, I think).
Other way round - BCF stands for Bromo-Chloro-Fluoro (ethane) of which
there are various combinations of B, C and F - collectively Halons.
Peter
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128.31 | Halon it is then... | SQGUK::GRUBB | | Tue May 21 1991 20:22 | 10 |
| Thanks sounds like a plumbed in Halon is the thing.
Thinking about it a bit more.. my priorities are not to save the vehicle
but only to gain enough time to get the kids unstrapped etc in the event of
a fire. I suppose this means that I would need a plumbed in system and a
hand held one handy to cover all eventualities.
I will go shopping to see what there is.
Thanks, John.
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128.32 | Buys you time to get the passengers out | VOGON::MITCHELLE | Beware of the green meanie | Tue May 21 1991 20:40 | 9 |
|
the main thing with the plumbed in is that you can put the plumbing to
the areas where the fire is most likely to start - ie dash board
electrics, and carbs/fuel pump. This means that you pull the release
(which is in easy reach of the driver and passenger) and can then
concentrate on getting passengers out of the car.
This will deal with the most likely sources unless you are (in my opinion)
stupid enough to have a mobile fire hazard (a cigarette) in your car!
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128.33 | | CHEFS::CLEMENTSD | So much to do...so little time | Wed May 22 1991 15:23 | 5 |
| Think carefully about squirting 5Kg of BCF into the inside of a car: by
the time you've got all the kiddie's seat belts undone, they are
probably dead from asphyxiation. Even with a door open, the discharge
rate from a plumbed in system will displace all the air in the
passenger compartment.
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128.35 | | SHIPS::ALFORD_J | an elephant is a mouse with an oper. sys. | Wed May 22 1991 21:56 | 19 |
|
If you don't want to spend a fortune....and plumbed in does cost a fortune...
The AA shops do recommended fire extinguishers, both powder and halon.
The powder is better recommended for general fires, both inside the car and
in the engine.
Powder smothers the fire, whereas Halon works best in a totally enclosed space,
opening the bonnet a bit and blasting in the halon doesn't quite fit the bill,
also you will not be able to use the halon inside the car, for the obvious
reason that you will have suffocated along with the fire.
I have an injected engine car that doesn't seem to have a cut-off for broken
return pipe (the sort World In Action were concerned about) and after a chat
with the extinguisher person in the AA shop, I went for the Powder version.
It is now proudly mounted in my passenger well, all ready to use at the
first hint of flames.....most likely on someone elses car...but then that's
life :-)
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128.36 | | HUGS::AND_KISSES | I wish I understood... | Thu May 23 1991 13:55 | 18 |
128.37 | | NEARLY::GOODENOUGH | | Thu May 23 1991 14:15 | 6 |
| > (Incidentally, this is why DEC don't use powder extinguishers... VAXes
> don't work too well after being covered in the stuff!)
In which case, why are powder extinguishers issued for use at home?
Jeff.
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128.38 | | FORTY2::BETTS | X.500 Development | Thu May 23 1991 14:19 | 18 |
|
I'm perturbed at the assumption that all the people in the
car will be able to get out in the event of a fire (likely
to be caused by an accident). Its useful to have an
extinguisher that you can reach from the drivers seat, in
case you're trapped. (If everybody can get clear of the car,
then your best course of action may be to leave the car
alone and start filling in a claim form!).
An interesting system I've heard of is a small one that works
by having a series of tubes running around the engine lid which
will be ruptured by fire - when a tube ruptures it releases halon
to put the fire out. It requires no manual operation, and the
gas is released locally to the source of the fire - wherever that
may be...
William.
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128.39 | | SHIPS::ALFORD_J | an elephant is a mouse with an oper. sys. | Thu May 23 1991 14:37 | 12 |
|
> An interesting system I've heard of is a small one that works
> by having a series of tubes running around the engine lid which
Yes, that's the "plumbed-in" sort that Mark and Derek are muttering about....
What they haven't said is that the tubes do eventually perish etc...and so
have to be replaced.
My own personal feelings on the matter are, if the car is burning I want to
get out and leave it to it... if I can't get out...I want to have an
extinguisher I can reach...
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128.40 | | CRATE::RUTTER | Rut The Nut | Thu May 23 1991 14:37 | 6 |
128.41 | | CRATE::RUTTER | Rut The Nut | Thu May 23 1991 14:39 | 13 |
128.42 | | SHIPS::ALFORD_J | an elephant is a mouse with an oper. sys. | Thu May 23 1991 14:53 | 16 |
|
> The 'competition' units involve nozzles aimed at 'likely' sources of
> fire. When triggered, the gas is discharged in this direction.
That's not the sort that was shown on Top Gear, that was the tubes looped
around areas of risk, the principle being that the fire burnt through the
tube, thereby releasing the gas towards the fire, no nozzles involved at all.
Unless of course, the sort M & D are muttering about is the "nozzle" type...
> Don't know if this is true, but it corresponds to the need to have
> any extinguisher checked/maintained periodically.
Extinguishers have pressure dials, much easier to examine than yards and
yards of tubing looped all around the vehicle....
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128.43 | | SHIPS::ALFORD_J | an elephant is a mouse with an oper. sys. | Thu May 23 1991 14:54 | 4 |
|
As far as "Powder caking on burnt areas", in a car, these would be the bits
that would have to be replaced anyway on your Fire insurance....
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128.44 | | NEWOA::SAXBY | Proust? Does he note in CARS_UK? | Thu May 23 1991 15:00 | 6 |
|
Derek is definitely talking about the nozzle type. I've seen it! :^)
Mark
PS Derek, were you at Lydden to spectate at the weekend?
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128.45 | Enough said on 'plumbed systems' | CRATE::RUTTER | Rut The Nut | Thu May 23 1991 15:30 | 15
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