What Are We Covering?
Understanding and Identifying Types of Fires may seem simple enough but, without prior knowledge or research, you might think to yourself that all fires are the same. However, this is not the case. Fires come in many different types which need to be dealt with in different ways.
This article has been created to help you understand and identify all the types of fires you may or may not come up against in your life and business. This article will cover is explaining the different types of fires, how they may start and what they look like.
Disclaimer!
Never tackle a fire if it's beyond your skills, your life is more precious than anything you may be protecting. If the fire is spreading beyond the spot where it started. If you can't fight the fire with your back to an escape exit. If the fire can block your only escape. If you don't have adequate fire-fighting equipment. Do not fight the fire.
This article goes hand-in-hand with our article about different types of fire extinguishers which we are currently working on.
This article has been created to help you understand and identify all the types of fires you may or may not come up against in your life and business. This article will cover is explaining the different types of fires, how they may start and what they look like.
Disclaimer!
Never tackle a fire if it's beyond your skills, your life is more precious than anything you may be protecting. If the fire is spreading beyond the spot where it started. If you can't fight the fire with your back to an escape exit. If the fire can block your only escape. If you don't have adequate fire-fighting equipment. Do not fight the fire.
This article goes hand-in-hand with our article about different types of fire extinguishers which we are currently working on.
Contents.
01
Brief List of Fires
And explaining how fires work and why there are differet types.
02
Class A Fires
Explaining what a class A fire is and how to identify one.
03
Class B Fires
Explaining what a class B fire is and how to identify one.
04
Class C Fires
Explaining what a class C fire is and how to identify one.
05
Class D Fires
Explaining what a class D fire is and how to identify one.
06
Electrical (Class E) Fires
Explaining what a class E fire is and how to identify one.
07
Class F Fires
Explaining what a class D fire is and how to identify one.
08
Got More Questions?
Explaining what a class F fire is and how to identify one.
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Brief List Of The Types Of Fires.
Altogether there are 6 different types of fire that someone may come across in their life. The difference between them is the fuel that the fire uses.
As you may know, to start a fire you need 3 main things, oxygen, heat and fuel. You can see that more clearly in this diagram.
As you may know, to start a fire you need 3 main things, oxygen, heat and fuel. You can see that more clearly in this diagram.
Type | Description |
|---|---|
Class A | Fires involving organic solids like paper and wood. |
Class B | Fires involving flammable liquids. |
Class C | Fires involving flammable gases. |
Class D | Fires involving burning metals (e.g. aluminium swarf) |
Electrical | Fires caused by electrical equipment. |
Class F | Fires involving fats such as those used in deep-fat fryers. |
Fire Class Symbols.
Class A.
Class A fires are caused by flammable solids, including textiles, furniture, wood, paper, straw, coal, and plastics. The majority of these materials are organic, also referred to as "carbonaceous materials."
Carbonaceous materials in simpler terms refer to items which consist of, contain or yield carbon. Because of this, they produce soot which is an easy way for you to identify if something is carbonaceous.
Class A fires are probably the most widespread kind of fire, and if there are enough combustibles, oxygen and heat to support the fire, they can spread quickly.
A sizable number of common combustibles are likely to be present in most commercial and industrial buildings, so preventing Class A fires is common throughout most businesses.
Carbonaceous materials in simpler terms refer to items which consist of, contain or yield carbon. Because of this, they produce soot which is an easy way for you to identify if something is carbonaceous.
Class A fires are probably the most widespread kind of fire, and if there are enough combustibles, oxygen and heat to support the fire, they can spread quickly.
A sizable number of common combustibles are likely to be present in most commercial and industrial buildings, so preventing Class A fires is common throughout most businesses.
Class B.
Class B fires are fires involving flammable liquids such as gasoline, acetone, toluene, diethyl ether, and alcohol.
Class B fires are extremely dangerous and can happen in any location that stores or uses flammable liquids.
The reason they are so dangerous is that flammable liquids rapidly catch fire when an open flame or other ignition source is added because they have a low flash point. (Materials with low flash points are more hazardous than materials with high flash points).
The vapours of a flammable liquid can be ignited by a match, lighter, or spark, hence appropriate storage is necessary to reduce the possibility of a Class B fire happening.
This is the reason why people can't smoke at petrol stations for example as that can trigger the flammable liquids that are present.
If your business has to have flammable liquids around, it's important that you keep the presence of flammable liquids to a minimum and keep them far away from any source of the fire.
Class B fires are extremely dangerous and can happen in any location that stores or uses flammable liquids.
The reason they are so dangerous is that flammable liquids rapidly catch fire when an open flame or other ignition source is added because they have a low flash point. (Materials with low flash points are more hazardous than materials with high flash points).
The vapours of a flammable liquid can be ignited by a match, lighter, or spark, hence appropriate storage is necessary to reduce the possibility of a Class B fire happening.
This is the reason why people can't smoke at petrol stations for example as that can trigger the flammable liquids that are present.
If your business has to have flammable liquids around, it's important that you keep the presence of flammable liquids to a minimum and keep them far away from any source of the fire.
Class C.
Class C refers to flammable gases such as butane, methane, propane, natural gas, hydrogen and more.
Similarly to flammable liquids, flammable gases are highly volatile and not only pose a fire risk but an explosion risk too.
Because of this if you own a business which handles flammable gases they should be kept in a secure location and stored in the appropriate containers. They should also be constantly monitored and kept away from flames.
Depending on the concentration of the flammable gases in the air, the potential fire hazard will differ. However, even the smallest amount of flammable gas in the air could be enough to start a fire.
Similarly to flammable liquids, flammable gases are highly volatile and not only pose a fire risk but an explosion risk too.
Because of this if you own a business which handles flammable gases they should be kept in a secure location and stored in the appropriate containers. They should also be constantly monitored and kept away from flames.
Depending on the concentration of the flammable gases in the air, the potential fire hazard will differ. However, even the smallest amount of flammable gas in the air could be enough to start a fire.
Class D.
Class D are fires caused by combustible metals. Some of these metals include aluminium, magnesium, lithium and potassium.
The good news about Class D fires is that they don't happen very often due to the high temperatures required to ignite combustible metals.
The bad news is that when Class D fires do start, they are quite severe because of the high temperatures that are required. However, these fires are only present in industrial businesses which deal with metalwork most often.
Industrial settings where metalwork, most notably the cutting of metal, is at greater risk of Class D fires. This is due to the smaller metal deposits, including shavings or powders, which pose the greatest danger for Class D fires. Sheet metal and thick, solid metals are less of a fire hazard in comparison.
Sparks or open flames should also be kept clear of these areas. Regular cleaning should be done to reduce the concentration of flammable metals at any given time if metal shavings or smaller deposits of flammable metals are widespread in the workplace.
The good news about Class D fires is that they don't happen very often due to the high temperatures required to ignite combustible metals.
The bad news is that when Class D fires do start, they are quite severe because of the high temperatures that are required. However, these fires are only present in industrial businesses which deal with metalwork most often.
Industrial settings where metalwork, most notably the cutting of metal, is at greater risk of Class D fires. This is due to the smaller metal deposits, including shavings or powders, which pose the greatest danger for Class D fires. Sheet metal and thick, solid metals are less of a fire hazard in comparison.
Sparks or open flames should also be kept clear of these areas. Regular cleaning should be done to reduce the concentration of flammable metals at any given time if metal shavings or smaller deposits of flammable metals are widespread in the workplace.
Electrical (Class E).
Due to how common electrical appliances are within the home and businesses, electrical equipment is one of the most common causes of fires.
Electrical fires, as the name implies, are sparked by electrical devices like TVs and laptops, faulty wiring or frayed cables, damaged electrical appliances, and short circuits.
What's interesting is that after the electrical item is taken out, the fire changes class.
Electrical fires don't exactly belong to their own full class because they might be included under any of the other categories as it's not the electricity burning, it's the nearby material that has been ignited by the electric current.
Even though they aren’t theoretically a class of fire, there are still extinguishers which need to be used to fight these fires.
Electrical fires can occur often, and there are potential hazards in almost every commercial or industrial workplace. Overloading multi-adaptor plug outlets, which many homes and companies can be guilty of, is one typical cause.
However, when an electrical device or item begins to malfunction or degrade, the power should be shut off right away, and the device should be kept out of use until it is fixed or discarded.
Electrical fires, as the name implies, are sparked by electrical devices like TVs and laptops, faulty wiring or frayed cables, damaged electrical appliances, and short circuits.
What's interesting is that after the electrical item is taken out, the fire changes class.
Electrical fires don't exactly belong to their own full class because they might be included under any of the other categories as it's not the electricity burning, it's the nearby material that has been ignited by the electric current.
Even though they aren’t theoretically a class of fire, there are still extinguishers which need to be used to fight these fires.
Electrical fires can occur often, and there are potential hazards in almost every commercial or industrial workplace. Overloading multi-adaptor plug outlets, which many homes and companies can be guilty of, is one typical cause.
However, when an electrical device or item begins to malfunction or degrade, the power should be shut off right away, and the device should be kept out of use until it is fixed or discarded.
Class F.
Class F fires consist of fats such as cooking oils, grease, etc, that have been ignited.
It has been given its own fire class due to the high flash point of cooking oils and fats and the extremely high temperatures required to start a fire with these substances.
Deep fat frying has many common ways of igniting, for example, oil that has been heated for an excessive amount of time, is one of the common causes of Class F fires.
Since deep fat frying is the primary contributor to kitchen unintentional fires, extreme caution must be taken at all times.
If you notice or smell smoke, which are symptoms of a potential Class F fire, you should immediately turn the heat off to prevent the oil from heating up to a point where it would ignite.
The best defence against fire is prevention, which is why busy settings like big commercial kitchens should strictly enforce fire safety regulations.
It has been given its own fire class due to the high flash point of cooking oils and fats and the extremely high temperatures required to start a fire with these substances.
Deep fat frying has many common ways of igniting, for example, oil that has been heated for an excessive amount of time, is one of the common causes of Class F fires.
Since deep fat frying is the primary contributor to kitchen unintentional fires, extreme caution must be taken at all times.
If you notice or smell smoke, which are symptoms of a potential Class F fire, you should immediately turn the heat off to prevent the oil from heating up to a point where it would ignite.
The best defence against fire is prevention, which is why busy settings like big commercial kitchens should strictly enforce fire safety regulations.
Have More Questions?
If you live in the South West of England and have concerns about the possible fire hazards at your property get in contact with us. We can help you identify key hazards and help your property be safer. Either call us or fill out our contact form:
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