Fire extinguishers are everywhere but do you know what parts it has and how they function if not let us see now. Here are different parts of fire extinguishers and their uses and roles.
Knowing different parts of fire extinguisher and how they work will help you out in the easy operation of it.
Different fire extinguisher parts:
First of all, before knowing parts, one should know that there are different types of fire extinguishers such as dry chemical, water, foam, clean agent and so on. However, for the majority, all will have the same parts for operation.
In general, irrespective of the type of extinguisher and the kind of extinguishing agent they could have the below:
Cylindrical Tank
Carry Handle
Operating Lever
Valve
Pull Pin
Pressure Gauge
Tamper Seal
Discharge Hose
Discharge Nozzle
Monthly Inspection Tag
Instruction Label
Annual inspection Tag
Extinguishing Agent and Propellant
All these components have a key role and also a few of them work in combination for the functioning of the fire extinguisher.
Now let us see the roles of each part and how they take part in the 3 main roles of the extinguisher: storing, ejecting or informing.
Cylindrical tank: tanks store the extinguishing agents and the propellant under the appropriate quantity of pressure. They are usually manufactured using steel and are heavy generally.
The components that are accountable for the action of ejecting the extinguishing agent are called the Valve Assembly and include the below:
Valve: it controls the agent’s flow. The valve connects the operating lever and the carry handle and looks after their function.
Carry Handle: it simply allows easy lifting, grasping, and carrying of the fire extinguisher.
Operating lever: it is a metal item used to squeeze and press the extinguisher. But it alone cannot do these functions and needs removing of pull pin primarily.
Pull pin: it is even known as the locking pin and is incorporated into the valve part to stop the unintended discharge.
Tamper seal: it is a plastic material and is put to obstruct accidental falling of the pull pin.
Pressure gauge: it is a tiny round gauge connected to the exterior of the valve assembly to indicate whether the fire extinguisher has the correct pressure to oust the agent in the case of a fire accident or not. If the gauge’s arrow is on the green it is charged adequately and in case if it is to the left of the green, it is not charged adequately and will not have sufficient pressure to operate properly. If the gauge’s arrow is to the green’s right side it means it is overcharged and there are risks of explosion, so, be careful.
Discharge hose: it is the one that lets the extinguishing agent pass from the tank to the centre of the fire and allows the operator to target the agent’s flow.
Discharge nozzle: it is the conical end of the hose through which the agent is dispersed.
Apart from the above functioning parts, there are even the informative parts which include the instruction label, monthly inspection tag and the annual inspection tag. These help in the proper usage of the extinguisher. Always read carefully these tags before you begin using the fire extinguisher.
Now you know different elements of the fire extinguisher and hope you can now safely use it.
