Fire Extinguisher Sales

Buying a portable fire extinguisher for your Maryland, Virginia or Washington, DC home or office is an important step toward protecting yourself from fire. At Guardian Fire Protection Services, we want to provide you with the most effective fire extinguishers available. Before you buy a fire extinguisher, it is important that you do your research so you can determine the best type of extinguisher for your building.

Fire Extinguisher Classes

Before you buy a fire extinguisher, make sure you know which types of fire it is designed for. It is important to first recognize the four classes of fire:

Class A – ordinary combustibles (wood, cloth, paper, plastic, etc)
Class B – flammable liquids (oil, gasoline, etc)
Class C – electrical fires
Class D – flammable metals (sodium, titanium, magnesium, etc)

Fire extinguishers usually have big letters on the side that indicate the class of fire they are designed for. It is imperative that you choose the right type of extinguisher – for instance, you would never want to use a class A-only fire extinguisher (usually filled with water) on a class C electrical fire. In general, most business owners throughout Maryland, Virginia and Washington, DC choose ABC fire extinguishers, which are suited to put out every fire that normally occurs in a building.

Fire Extinguisher Sizing

When you buy a fire extinguisher, the most important thing to consider is the size rating, as this will tell you how large of a fire the extinguisher is designed to put out. Most fire extinguishers have size ratings that look like this:

2A-10BC

This size is standard for most homes and small buildings. If you need something bigger, just go up! Fire extinguishers can go all the way to 20A-120BC, so any size of fire extinguisher can be purchased. In general, try to buy a fire extinguisher that is a couple sizes up from the minimum you need. Just remember: the larger the fire extinguisher, the heavier it will be – be sure to take into consideration whether or not you will be able to lift and operate your fire extinguisher before you buy one!

Purchasing a Fire Extinguisher

ABC Fire Extinguishers - ABC dry chemical fire extinguishers, also called multi-purpose fire extinguishers, use a specially fluidized dry chemical. Commonly purchased in office buildings, they are appropriate for most normal types of fire, including wood, paper and plastic fires, as well as flammable liquid and electrical fires. ABC fire extinguishers work by either melting on and smothering Class A fires or absorbing heat and breaking the chain reaction of Class B and C fires.
Purple K Fire Extinguishers - Often purchased for use by oil, gas, chemical and utility companies, Purple K dry chemical fire extinguishers use a purple-colored dry chemical that is electrically nonconductive and is extremely effective against Class B flammable liquid fires and Class C electrical fires.
CO2 Fire Extinguishers - Using a cloud of white carbon dioxide “snow”, CO2 fire extinguishers remove heat and quickly smother Class B and C fires without any messy residue. CO2 fire extinguishers quickly cool down flames and can reach and exterminate even hidden flames. CO2 fire extinguishers can be used safely on all electrical and electronic equipment with no risk of electric shock to the extinguisher operator or damage to devices. CO2 fire extinguishers are not recommended for use against Class A fires, as the speed of the discharge is likely to cause flaming materials to blow away, potentially spreading the flames.
K-Guard Kitchen Class Fire Extinguishers - Designed to supplement a kitchen fire suppression system, K-Guard kitchen-class fire extinguishers contain the unique Ansulex liquid fire suppressant and are designed to knock down flames, cool down grease and form a vapor securing blanket to prevent further fire outbreaks. K-Guard kitchen-class fire extinguishers are usually purchased for food-service establishments such as restaurants, convenience stores, food courts and cafeterias.
Cleanguard Clean Agent Fire Extinguishers - Cleanguard fire extinguishers contain DuPont FE-36, a chemical that is clean, electrically nonconductive, environmentally friendly, low in toxicity and highly effective against Class A, B and C fires. Non-magnetic Cleanguard fire extinguisher models designed for MRI rooms and operating rooms are available. Cleanguard fire extinguishers are often purchased to protect computer and data storage centers, control rooms, laboratories and hospitals.

If you want to buy a new fire extinguisher for your Maryland, Virginia or Washington, DC business, call Guardian today. We can help you choose the fire extinguisher that's right for you so you can make sure your building and equipment are fully protected.