End of Year Fire Extinguisher How To Refresher

This post is going to assume that you have a proper fire extinguisher in your home and that you also have it properly maintained, meaning inspected and refilled if previously used. Following is the PASS guideline for putting out a fire.

There are 4-steps to remember when it comes time to use your fire extinguisher. They are easy to remember if you just remember PASS.

P – PASS

The first step is the easy one, but also the step that can cost you valuable time. It is “pull” the safety pin out. Read your manual and identify the pin so you do not waste any time at this critical step.

A – PASS

Step two is also a critical one and is the “aim” step. You should aim the extinguisher nozzle, or hose, as the base of the fire. The common mistake here is aiming it at the flames instead of the base. The base is the root of the fire, which is what we are looking to extinguish.

S – PASS

Step three is the “squeezing” of the handle. With your adrenal pumping, and panic setting in, the tendency is to rapidly squeeze the discharge agent and quickly put out the fire. However, the real goal here is to slowly discharge the agent, giving it time to smother the fire.

S – PASS

The final step is another “S” and is to “sweep” from side to side. You will want to be about six inches away from the fire (or a safe distance) and sweep side to side. Avoid just blasting one spot of the fire.

If you have any suspicions that your fire extinguisher isn’t up to par, please get it inspected or refilled by Service Fire Equipment. We handle all of your fire protection needs.