If a small fire breaks out in your house or office, providing you're not putting yourself in danger, the best thing to do is to quickly put it out. A fire extinguisher or a fire bucket can both be used to extinguish or control small fires.
How do fire extinguishers work?
Fire extinguishers propel an extinguishing agent onto the fire, while a fire bucket smothers the fire with sand, or sometimes water.
Fire extinguishers can have one of a wide range of extinguishing agents, including foam (for general use), carbon dioxide (for electrical fires), water (for Class A fires, caused by paper, wood and fabric) and wet chemicals (for fat fires). They work by propelling the expellant under pressure into the air. Typically the expellant is stored in the same chamber as the agent itself but in industrial facilities, where they receive higher-than-average use, the expellant gas is in a separate cartridge that is punctured, exposing the propellant to the extinguishing agent.
The main advantage of fire buckets is that they are cheap and easy to use. However, a fire bucket on its own will not satisfy strict fire regulations.
Get vendor-neutral advice from the experts
Chris Lewis Fire & Security has a long history of providing a range of fire extinguishers to public sector, home-owners and commercial organisations. Helping you comply with laws on fire risk assessment and reduction, our experienced, award-winning team of engineers will make sure you have exactly the right combination of fire extinguishers and fire buckets for your home or business.