Fire extinguisher question.

[Barrowboy]

Originally Posted by Ovey

Cheers guys. Having been in the Royal Navy for 22 years I know all about fires at sea, so can see both sides of your arguments. I've had ships that never suffer a fire, and ships that have two or three in a week for various reasons! I guess it's the luck of the draw, but I'd rather have an extinguisher that I don't need than not have one that I do.

I will be getting an extinguisher (or two x 1kg), but I wasn't sure which type/where best to mount for a RIB. I'm quite well versed in giving the occasional WD40 squirt to anything metallic!

Those plastic ones seem a reasonable alternative to the metal ones though.

As an RN guy you'll be familiar with the SR5.4 and the position of the extinguisher pocket which, as far as I'm concerned, is ideally located.

I recently re-furbed mine and can tell you that the cost of the new pocket to house the 1Kg powder extinguisher (metal canister) on the back of the rear seat (very quickly accessed in an emergency) was approximately three times the price of the extinguisher...

Or, to put it another way, the extinguisher cost just a tad more than two packs of Marlboro so in the great scheme of things, I'm happy to renew it each season, if required.

Of course, as a smoker, I appreciate the reassurance of having it readily available between my position at the helm and the tanks...

[Ovey]

Haha, fair one!

I don't have a seat like that, but I'm sure I could come up with something to suit.

[CJL]

Originally Posted by Barrowboy

Of course, as a smoker, I appreciate the reassurance of having it readily available between my position at the helm and the tanks...

Attachment 96594

LIKE!

[m chappelow]

Just as a matter of interest wonder how many fires theres actually been on outboard powered ribs or sibs in use on the water & whats the biggest cause ,
Electrical,
Fuel,
Flares / pyrotecnics
Carelessness Smoking

Not including onshore storage , vandalism .

[Poly]

Originally Posted by willk

fitting it to be back of a pod seat is a good spot.

There would be some sense to that. It would be easily accessible, and highly visible so everyone knows where it is in a rush. More to the point gradual corrosion will be more noticeable, out of sight out of mind. Mine is at the bottom of a (damp) locker and probably not in great shape... ...I really must give it a check.

There are downsides in it being a bit more exposed, and more nick-able from storage.

I've used a 2kg extinguisher on a fuel fire (not on a boat) - if there is a fire that big I don't want to be on a RIB with it.

[willk]

This worked for me:

[Trimix]

Ive been giving extinguishers a thought.

I was going to get one plumbed in, automatic detection. Going into the console where the electrical connections are and the fuel filler pipes, as I figured that would be a good place for a fire to start.

But after a bit of research and chat at the boat show the suppliers said they are set off by heat, so an electrical fire would have to take hold before it goes off. Being right next to the fuel fillers I reckon the whole thing will go up before it goes off, or before I notice.

I also considered the gas version so it didnt make a mess of the electrics. But the supplier said if he was on a RIB that caught fire he would just jump off !

So I went for a small 2kg hand held and plan to mount it low down on the outside of the main console. Easy access, removable when stowing the boat.

I also figured if it catches fire Im going to jump off rather than try to put out the flames.

[Boatnomad]

Originally Posted by Ovey

Those plastic ones seem a reasonable alternative to the metal ones though.

Definitely interesting for any boat

[Trimix]

Brilliant

Actually, shouldnt there be one of those Muster signs as well ?

[Poly]

Originally Posted by Trimix

But after a bit of research and chat at the boat show the suppliers said they are set off by heat, so an electrical fire would have to take hold before it goes off. Being right next to the fuel fillers I reckon the whole thing will go up before it goes off, or before I notice.

were you looking at the versions with a trace of tubing to get into hard to reach areas?

I also considered the gas version so it didnt make a mess of the electrics. But the supplier said if he was on a RIB that caught fire he would just jump off !

did he understand the size (and value) of your rib... it would be a shame to jump overboard and sacrifice a rib for a bit of overheated wiring!

I also figured if it catches fire Im going to jump off rather than try to put out the flames.

It was pointed out on my PB2 course that there is a giant extinguisher all round us and a jumper dunked in the sea and wrung out will smother a lot of small boat fires if you cut off the source (fuel supply / battery shut down).

[Pikey Dave]

Originally Posted by Trimix

Ive been giving extinguishers a thought.

I was going to get one plumbed in, automatic detection. Going into the console where the electrical connections are and the fuel filler pipes, as I figured that would be a good place for a fire to start.

But after a bit of research and chat at the boat show the suppliers said they are set off by heat, so an electrical fire would have to take hold before it goes off. Being right next to the fuel fillers I reckon the whole thing will go up before it goes off, or before I notice.

I also considered the gas version so it didnt make a mess of the electrics. But the supplier said if he was on a RIB that caught fire he would just jump off !

So I went for a small 2kg hand held and plan to mount it low down on the outside of the main console. Easy access, removable when stowing the boat.

I also figured if it catches fire Im going to jump off rather than try to put out the flames.

But by the time you've noticed the fire & use your manual ext. It has to have taken hold any way, which could be a lot later than an automatic one would have picked up on an overheating cable. If the fire is in the console, you have to open the hatch to tackle it with your manual ext. Which a; allows oxygen into an otherwise sealed (ish) compartment & b; puts you close to the fire.
Chances are, an automatic extinguisher would have put out the fire before you even knew about it.

[Chris]

Got one of these on the....

Aerosol | NRG MARINE | Sonihull | Ultrasonic Antifouling

Very compact and easy to use. Fitted on all new Ospreys now.

[Peter_C]

Originally Posted by Chris

Got one of these on the....

Aerosol | NRG MARINE | Sonihull | Ultrasonic Antifouling

Very compact and easy to use. Fitted on all new Ospreys now.

Same one SPR is now offering. Also fitted on all new BMW's in Italy FWIW

Originally Posted by SPR

yes - plastic very light - very impressed 5 year life ! has metal safety pin to pull - then press button.

Loads of videos on YouTube

S.


RYA First Aid - Scotland
Home - RYA Training Courses - Laser Flares

That would be a 5 year warranty and unlimited shelf life. No recharge needed and it is a one time use device.

Thanks for the info on them. I couldn't find anything that would handle the marine environment on my little SIB that was small enough. The Quick Draw extinguisher fits the bill and was very reasonably priced here in the USA. Although I do not have to carry a fire extinguisher by law, I will start carrying the Quick Draw fire extinguisher now. Just gotta find a place towards the bow away from my fuel tank and motor to store it. Might attach it to the anchor crate. There is not a lot of safe storage on a boat that gets filled with scuba tanks.

[Trimix]

Poly / Pikey Dave - all valid points, which Im still considering and mulling over. (Ive got the 2kg hand held one as a stop gap)

The salesman at the London boat show basically told me the automatic versions would require a lot of heat and flames to go off. So I figured by that time the proximity of the fuel fillers leading to the tanks would likely mean its pretty much time to get off the boat. He seemed pretty open and honest about it and did himself out of a sale, so I didnt doubt what he said.

A smoldering wire would also go un-noticed by me as its inside my console until its too late.

Ideally Im after a gas extinguisher thats automatic and sensitive so it will stop the smoldering wire setting the whole lot off. Not an automatic one that needs naked flames before it goes off.

Has anyone got experience of how sensitive the automatic ones are ?

[A1an]

[Trimix]

Excellent - or perhaps I could fit a big plug. When it starts to go up in flames I could just pull the plug and let the sea put it out.

[PeterM]

Where was your fire at lym that day earlier this year?. ;-)

[Trimix]

Yup, it will never catch fire with this much water in it:

[Searider]

Originally Posted by Trimix

Has anyone got experience of how sensitive the automatic ones are ?

I think that an auto needs to get up to about 70C before it goes off.

Maybe a smoke detector in the console would be a good idea?