Fire Extinguishing Systems
For your safety and the safety of others at the University of Michigan (U-M), it is a good practice to know when to fight a fire, which fire extinguisher to use, and how to put out a fire. The first decision you must make when a fire occurs is to only fight a fire if:
- The fire is small and contained
- You are safe from toxic smoke
- You have a means of escape
If at any time one of these criteria changes, SOUND THE ALARM and evacuate the area immediately.
Standard Operating Procedures, Guidelines, and Manuals
Fire Extinguishers
Using a Fire Extinguisher
Special Hazards Fire Extinguishing Systems
| FIRE EXTINGUISHER RATING | MATERIAL IT WILL EXTINGUISH | NUMERICAL RATING REFERENCE | NOTES |
Class A
|
|
| NA |
Class B
| Flammable liquids, such as:
| The approximate number of square feet of a flammable liquid fire that a non-expert person can expect to extinguish | NA |
Class C
|
| NA | The presence of the letter C indicates that the extinguishing agent is non-conductive |
| Class D | Flammable metals (are often specific for the type of metal in question) | NA | They are not given a multi-purpose rating for use on other types of fires |
| Multi-Class | Many extinguishers available today can be used on different types of fires and will be labeled with more than one designator (A-B, B-C, or A-B | ||
