Kidde Fire Extinguishers with Plastic Nozzle and Fire Threats

[footrope]

North West lightning is just not up to snuff. You have to head south and east to get the real good stuff. Lightening protection is a whole new subject. Nothing seems to truly work except maybe to snuggle up next to another boat with a much higher mast except that a hit on the neighbor can still fry all your electronics.

I agree our thunderstorms are not as vigorous as other climates. However, I no longer think height has so much to do with attracting lightning as the stick's location relative to the storm cell. Not even 300 feet away from my lucky friend there was a 70 foot sailboat with two 30+ sail boats rafted to it. I was slightly closer than that with a 28 foot sailboat.

 

[u079721]

Well I checked the Kidde website, and of the four Kidde extinguishers I have on hand, three of them were subject to the recall and will be replaced. Boy is that expense going to add up fast.

One of the cooler things I got to do working at a chemical company was undergo pretty impressive fire training each year. Lots of rubbish, chemical, and even metal fires were lit out in an empty lot, and we all got to try the various extinguishers in action to put out the fires. I think it was something like PASS, for Pull (out the pin), Aim, Squeeze, and Sweep. Many people would aim at the flames, not at the base of the fire where the fuel was. You also had to hold it longer than you might expect to keep it from flaring back up. Our fire department (at Dow Chemical) refilled the extinguishers themselves as I recall, otherwise such training would get to be pretty expensive. Still, if no one has ever tried using an extinguisher, I would sure recommend trying it in your back yard some day before you need to use one in anger.

 

[Emerald]

Well I checked the Kidde website, and of the four Kidde extinguishers I have on hand, three of them were subject to the recall and will be replaced. Boy is that expense going to add up fast.

One of the cooler things I got to do working at a chemical company was undergo pretty impressive fire training each year. Lots of rubbish, chemical, and even metal fires were lit out in an empty lot, and we all got to try the various extinguishers in action to put out the fires. I think it was something like PASS, for Pull (out the pin), Aim, Squeeze, and Sweep. Many people would aim at the flames, not at the base of the fire where the fuel was. You also had to hold it longer than you might expect to keep it from flaring back up. Our fire department (at Dow Chemical) refilled the extinguishers themselves as I recall, otherwise such training would get to be pretty expensive. Still, if no one has ever tried using an extinguisher, I would sure recommend trying it in your back yard some day before you need to use one in anger.

You make me think of something that I don't think people realize if they have never used an extinguisher. Don't stop until it's empty! I've had the misfortune of some engine fires over the years (automobile, not boat). I've had the good fortune of always having an extinguisher at hand and putting the fires out quickly and not sustaining any damage. I learned that there is no second shot! At some point, I found myself feeling pretty sure the fire was out. Without really thinking about it, I stopped discharging the extinguisher to see if it was really out - think peering around the engine compartments, and then on trying to resume operation, there was either no discharge or an ineffective spurt, even though they had been discharging with force when I stopped. I feel I must add that the reason for this good fortune is tied to having fire extinguishers all over the place. You just can't have too many. And yes, sometimes things just do catch on fire. :0

 

[u079721]

Since we're talking fires, here is my story of a stupid (non-boat-related) fire that has caused me to be super careful around flammable solvents for the last 40 years.

I was in graduate school, working in my lab one afternoon. The synthesis I was following called for using a bunsen burner to "flame dry" my glassware to remove any water that could react with my reagents. The next thing to be added to the flask was sodium metal, which was then to be rinsed with pentane to remove the oil in which it was stored. For those who never took organic chemistry, pentane is a solvent just one carbon heavier than butane, super flammable, with a boiling point just above room temperature, and flash point well below freezing. I had a half-full gallon of pentane staged on the bench top ready to use, with the bunsen burner going, when I reached for something and somehow stupidly knocked the pentane jug to the floor at my feet. The result was spectacular. The pentane found the flame, ignited, and flames shot up my lab coat, igniting the coat and my beard. I was fortunately able to rip the lab coat off before my clothes caught fire, snuff out the beard fire, and then use three CO2 fire extinguishers to douse the flames (those CO2 extinguishers do NOT last that long). In the aftermath I was more embarrassed by my stupidity than hurt, as I only had mild second degree burns on both hands. In fact, I was back at the lab that evening cleaning up the mess I had made.

All of which helps explain why to this day I will ALWAYS look around for pilot lights before opening up any can of naptha or acetone.

 

[Tom Metzger]

A J-40 in my marina spring 2016. Fortunately, there were people on the dock at the time so there was only minor damage to one other boat. 99% sure that the shore power cord wasn't properly connected. The boat had just been launched.

 

[Navman]

Threat of fire. I think as has already been stated, the electrical system is the most obvious, AC & DC. We have all seen what may be considered "suspect" wiring. The use of wire nuts and electrical tape by P.O's or even the factory. The wiring harness using the trailer type connector issue has already been described in depth here as well as on Mainsail"s web page. The shore power plug I would think is the origin of the majority of fires. Do yourselves a favor and read Mainsail's testing results of shore power plugs and check out the photos in his "Hall of Fail". Pretty sobering. I will be getting a "Smart Plug" cord and receptacle this coming season as a result. I will order it from Mainsail to support his ongoing boat product testing. Vessels with gas engines obviously have a greater fire hazard than most if protocol is not followed for venting the engine space. Once saw a guy at a dock on the C&D canal put 80 gallons of gas into a 50 gallon tank while he was having a beer at the bar. Shut down of all the docks was immediate until all contaminants were contained by the local fire company. In talking to one of the firefighters, he said it is not as uncommon an occurrence as one might think. This dock and restaurant had an outside bar with people smoking adding a new threat to the spillage issue. All can be considered lucky that day. Propane has already been mentioned but how about cooking? My head liner above the range is deformed/ dimpled from high heat. We cook frequently aboard and have never had heat at the ceiling level high enough to be concerned about so I can only imagine that it must have been a 'flare up" which caused the heat damage. Cooking oils and grease (bacon) could easily spill by accident and start a fire. Electric heaters in the cooler months also are common contributors to fire. Some people leave a shop light on in the engine compartment to "help" the engine stay warm in climates where a full winterization is typically not necessary. I don't get it, but they do. This is also another frequent cause of fire and is forbidden in most marina's. Then there is lightening. Not much anyone can do there. I once saw a boat which suffered a strike and it looked to be in pretty good shape except for some melted wiring. One of the responder's said The strike hit the mast. the fire extinguisher was mounted to the mast and exploded/ discharged send the powder throughout the salon negating the possibility for fire.
In summary, remember the Boy Scout motto "Be Prepared".

 

[Pat O'Connell]

Kidde Fire Extinguishers

Hi Respected Sailors
The Kidde Company must be a class act :<)))) We just received a box from Kidde with a metal headed fire extinguisher in it and requesting that we return the plastic headed extinguisher that we have to them. Kidde supplied the packing and has arranged to pay FedEx for the freight bill(s). I bet we get another extinguisher in consideration for the other extinguisher that we advised them we had. Thats only been a couple of weeks since we reported to Kidde that we had two plastic headed extinguishers. No.... I don't work for or invest in Kidde (that I know of.) Just nice to see companies try to do the right thing.
Best Regards Pat 1981 E28+ Universal 5411

 

[p.gazibara]

Lucky for us, we have too...

Turns out, they only ship to the US. Sounds like Cinderella will be hoping we aren't one of the statistics. until we can get to a place where we can find them again.

 

[Kenneth K]

Thanks for posting this. Both the extinguishers I bought last year are being recalled. I wouldn't have known if I hadn't learned it here.

 

[Pat O'Connell]

Kidde Extinguishers

Hi Ken
You are not the only one :<{))). I was hesitant to start the thread. Glad I did. I was at the town dump today and noticed 30 or 40 Extinguishers (many of them looked from a distance like Kidde with the plastic head.) They were all lined up in a area where you have to pay to dump material off (propane tanks.)
Seemed sort of strange? Maybe the dump is recycling them? Maybe they were used in town properties???? This recall must be huge but important.
Best Regards Pat 1981 E28+ Universal 5411

 

[Christian Williams]

Thanks for this alert.

Applied for two new ones on the boat and one for the house.

 

[saltandthesea]

SmartPlug for AC

Sorry to sidetrack the thread, but since Christian points out that AC is the biggest fire danger, I should mention that I recently installed a SmartPlug http://smartplug.com/marine/ , replacing a very questionable and beatup Marinco chord/outlet.

The smart plug feels super solid. Compass Marine has a detailed writeup http://www.pbase.com/mainecruising/installing_a_smart_plug

 

[Pat O'Connell]

Fire Extinguisher

HI Respected Sailors
That "fire in the lab story" was scary but reminded me of a good safety clinic. Maybe 1975 or so I worked in marketing for a precious metal manufacturer that alloyed and refined. Plenty of opportunity for fires that we never had. Safety committee had a rep in every department that was supposed to lead in any crisis. During one of many fire drills the senior safety person (a genius) started a test fire in the parking lot (fire department on hand.) He designated the mail delivery person, very well fire extinguisher trained, five foot 100 lb young lady to grab a fire extinguisher and put the fire out. Wow... did that empower the other safety committee people to be ready to do the right thing at the right time, if necessary. I think I recall that the powder blast was aimed. low at the base of the fire and the fire extinguisher was fully discharged.
Best Regards Pat 1981 E28+ Universal 5411

 

[Christian Williams]

Department of There Will be a Slight Delay in Fulfilling your Order

Email:

Thank you for participating in Kidde’s fire extinguisher replacement program. Customer safety is our priority and we are pleased by the strong response to our recall announcement. However, due to high demand the most comparable replacement for your unit is backordered.
We regret any inconvenience this has caused and are working diligently to fulfill your order as quickly as possible.
Thank you for your patience.


You can look a gift horse in the mouth, but you can't complain about his breath.

 

[Pat O'Connell]

Kidde Recall

Hi Christian
Thanks. I received replacement for our little extinguisher but I was wondering if Kidde was working on getting our popular standard extinguisher to us. Now I can see they are. BTW friend called them with his request for replacement as he did not have a Serial Number on his extinguishers. If you do not have a SN the customer service people put the unit down as pre 1988 when they did not have SNs. Good remark on the gift horse.
Best Regards
Pat 1981 E28+ Universal 5411

 

[Pat O'Connell]

Kidde Extinguishers

Hi Respected Sailors
Received my second Marine Fire Extinguisher ystdy so Kidde has been good to us.
Visited local hardware store and they had just received about 40 replacements. The marine units have metal heads. The non marine units appeared to have a new plastic head redesign. Pat 1981 E28+ Universal 5411

 

[cruis-n]

Kidde extinguisher replacement sizes

I filled out the appropriate paperwork for the three extinguishers I have (2 small and one medium sized). What I got back were (what I consider) large sized extinguishers. In the photo, the small size is on the left, and the medium size extinguisher is on the right. What I got back is the one shown on the middle. This larger size does not fit the locations where the current extinguishers are mounted on the boat. Has anyone else run into this situation?

They also are asking that I return the old extinguishers. No one else has mentioned that. I wonder if there was a mix-up and they sent the wrong units.

Anyone?

 

[Pat O'Connell]

Kidde Fire Extinguishers

Hi CN
Kidde sent us a small extinguisher like the one on the left and a white extinguisher like your one on the right. They did ask for me to return the extinguishers that they replaced and we did. "I think" (from what I have seen in hardware stores) that the one in the center is more expensive than either of the extinguishers that I received? Don't know what happened in your situation. I sort of like that hose option and wish I had bought it. You can stick that hose into areas of the boat where you can't get the other nozzles (maybe)
Best Regards Pat 1981 Ericson 28+ Universal 5411

 

[u079721]

I can appreciate that this recall is massively expensive and involved, but they screwed up my return too. I am supposed to be getting four, but a month ago only two showed up, and they were smaller than the units they replaced, maybe 8 vs. 10 lb units or so. Which wouldn't bother me since these were for home use, except that they want the old units returned in the boxes in which the new ones arrived, and the larger old ones do not fit. So I called, and they said they would call back, but they never did. I'll let it go another couple of months, and then just see if my county recycling center will accept them. If not, I'll set them off in the woods first and just toss them in the trash.

 

[Christian Williams]

I reported three. They sent me three new extinguishers, and I sent back the old ones. Then they sent me another three new extinguishers.

Sounds like they're overwhelmed. But I do have a lot of fire extinguishers now.

And I wonder what they'll do about the 43.7 percent of people who don't send the old ones back. They still probably work, and repacking and dropping off at a UPS may not be easy for everyone. Lawyer question, I guess. Possible lawyer answer: send a reminder letter full of warnings and if they don't respond, Kidde has saved paying for the return labels.