In our series called "The Principles of Fire Safety" we covered the types of portable fire extinguisher including;
We have also covered the classification of fires and the performance rating of fire extinguishers.
One question that arises from the public and our customers regularly, is "can I get my fire extinguisher refilled?"
I most circumstances, a portable fire extinguisher can be refilled, but it may not be financially viable to do so.
The following chart shows each of the typical portable fire extingusher types and capacities (volume or weight).
In this chart, all good quality fire extinguisher types can be successfully refilled however if you calculate the labour and warranty costs associated with smaller capacity fire extinguishers it is not viable to refill the fire extinguisgher.
For dry-powder (2.5Kg, 4.5Kg and 9.0Kg) capacities, these fire extinguishers can be swapped over provided the original fire extinguisher is in good condition and free from damage. With these extinguishers, it is viable to swap the extinguisher over with one of the same make, capacity, type and rating.
When we receive a changeover fire extinguisher, undertake the following process;
A portable or wheeled fire extinguisher needs to be refilled when;
There is one other occasion where a portable fire extinguisher needs to be refilled, and that is when the pressure container needs to be hydrostatically pressure tested. A hydrostatic pressure tests should be conduceted every 5-years in accordance with Australian Standard AS 1851:2012.
In an agressive environment a hydrostatically pressure test may be required to be completed more frequently.
A fire extinguisher that is either not financially viable to be refilled or is damaged should be replaced with fire extinguisher that is apprpriate for the fire risk and is of at least the same type and performance rating of the fire extinguisher that is to be replaced.
A portable fire extinguisher comprises a number of valuable components including;
Where a portable fire extinguisher fails any of the maintenance requirements, they are decanted of their agent (water, foam, carbon-dioxide or dry-powder) and the components are seperated for recycling.
Recycling typically of materials includes metals such as aluminium, rolled-steel, brass, nickel and stainless steel.
Each of these metals in a clean form (meaning they do not include mixed contaminants) can be recycled for future use, and is highly sourghtafter by steel merchants.
