Cool Fire Extinguisher for the Grill or Your House

jfm0830 · January 24

For my Cedar Planked Pork Loin cook that I posted here on the weekend, I wanted to have both a squirt bottle and fire extinguisher handy. My old fire extinguisher was beyond it's expiration date, so I picked up a cool new Fire Extinguisher that is small, easy to use and inexpensive. I wrote a blog about it yesterday and I figured it might be of interest to some of the folks around here-for your home, your grill or both. It is essentially a fire extinguisher in an aerosol can. Here is the link to the blog entry:

First Alert Tundra

For the suspicious, I have no relationship to First Alert.

Jim

SmokinDAWG82 · January 24

I picked up a couple of these at Home Depot to keep around. Great idea for the average home owner. I think I'll sacrifice one to see how they work.

jfm0830 · January 24

SmokinDAWG82 said:

I picked up a couple of these at Home Depot to keep around. Great idea for the average home owner. I think I'll sacrifice one to see how they work.

Pretty damn good from the looks of it. There were some videos on YouTube where Fire Departments or TV stations tested these out. As long as you stood the proper 3-4' away and sprayed the base of the fire, it really did a quick job of killing the flames.

Eggcelsior · January 24

SmokinDAWG82 said:
I picked up a couple of these at Home Depot to keep around. Great idea for the average home owner. I think I'll sacrifice one to see how they work.

If you sacrifice one, make it a prank. Learning can be fun!

caliking · January 24

I bought some of those a couple if years ago , then subsequently read poor reviews in Cooks Illustrated or Consumer Reports can't remember which. However, any extinguisher is better than no extinguisher in an emergency. Thanks for reminding us all about being safe when we cook.

jfm0830 · January 24

caliking said:

I bought some of those a couple if years ago , then subsequently read poor reviews in Cooks Illustrated or Consumer Reports can't remember which. However, any extinguisher is better than no extinguisher in an emergency. Thanks for reminding us all about being safe when we cook.

If it was a poor review, I'd guess Consumer Reports. They lost any credibility with me over 20 years ago. They are the keystone cops IMHO and they seem to just pull stuff out of their a$$es. They have been particularly bad these last few years.

I saw a bunch of videos with real world Fire Departments testing and liking this product. So it would surprise me somewhat if Cook's illustrated didn't like this product. The ATK people do seem to have their act together. If they didn't like it, I would give that credibility.

Well put about the any extinguisher...

Eggcelsior · January 24

Cooks Illustrated gave them a "Recommended with Reservations" stating that "contents mostly went where directed" and "one of the units clogged and stopped working". Otherwise, it was "as easy to use as a can of Reddi-whip".

nolaegghead · January 24

Consumer reports: "We tested two aerosol fire sprays, the First Alert Tundra and the Shield Fire Protection Kitchen Guard, and have judged each as Don't Buy: Performance Problem. Unlike the extinguishers we tested, neither has a pressure indicator that shows whether the unit is ready for use. And the sprays are not intended to replace a standard extinguisher (NFPA 10 compliant) where required, as the makers say on the labels. The sprays sometimes made the grease fire in our tests flare up before they put it out. That could cause the fire to spread or prompt the user to stop the spray. We found that two of the 10 Tundra samples didn't properly discharge."

Yeah, we subscribe to consumer reports, and yeah, I think a lot of their recommendations are filled with BS. However, it is a source of information that should be combined with all other sources and reviews to best evaluate products. For many things, like tools, I don't even bother looking at CR.

Chubbs · January 24

nolaegghead said:

Consumer reports: "We tested two aerosol fire sprays, the First Alert Tundra and the Shield Fire Protection Kitchen Guard, and have judged each as Don't Buy: Performance Problem. Unlike the extinguishers we tested, neither has a pressure indicator that shows whether the unit is ready for use. And the sprays are not intended to replace a standard extinguisher (NFPA 10 compliant) where required, as the makers say on the labels. The sprays sometimes made the grease fire in our tests flare up before they put it out. That could cause the fire to spread or prompt the user to stop the spray. We found that two of the 10 Tundra samples didn't properly discharge."

Yeah, we subscribe to consumer reports, and yeah, I think a lot of their recommendations are filled with BS. However, it is a source of information that should be combined with all other sources and reviews to best evaluate products. For many things, like tools, I don't even bother looking at CR.

I too get CR and I agree with Nola 100%. Guess I could have hit "Agree"

Eggcelsior · January 24

I get CR online and I agree with you both. I also hit agree. They provide one source of info. A smart consumer uses multiple sources of information to make a smart decision. I greatly appreciated there testing of car seats while shopping for one for my daughter. Sometimes the Amazon reviews of: "The color wasn't the same as online" don't cut it when trying to determine what is safest for your newborn child.

Fred19Flintstone · January 24

All I know is might come in handy around Halloween time. You know, for when a flaming bag of dog crap gets out of hand or if your whole city goes up in flames like mine every year. Just spray it.

jfm0830 · January 24

Ah yes, Devils Night. I went to college in Detroit and lived north of Detroit for five years after school was over and I never did understand Devils night. It seem like an excuse to try and burn the city down. We don't have anything like that around these parts.

Fred19Flintstone · January 25

jfm0830 said:

Ah yes, Devils Night. I went to college in Detroit and lived north of Detroit for five years after school was over and I never did understand Devils night. It seem like an excuse to try and burn the city down. We don't have anything like that around these parts.

I was born & reared in metro Detroit and I have never understood it. The same stupidity occurs here in Flint where I live now. A number of years ago, I was putting my garbage to the curb on Devil's Night. Some yahoo in a beat up pick-up drives down the street running over everyone's garbage making the whole neighborhood look like a landfill. I hate Devil's Night.

nolaegghead · January 25

I've always been a prankster, trying to one-up my buddies on creativity, execution and shock value, but there's a big ole visible line between vandalism and pranks. Vandalism is not tolerated at my house, and we have taken measures to catch any miscreants stupid enough to eff with our property. Living in a very old New Orleans neighborhood, most crime is crime of opportunity. If you're with the program, it's not that hard to prevent. Prevent opportunity. We have cameras and digital locks on the back of the house and the manbearcave. There's no shame in being cautious.

caliking · January 25

Fred19Flintstone said:

jfm0830 said:

Ah yes, Devils Night. I went to college in Detroit and lived north of Detroit for five years after school was over and I never did understand Devils night. It seem like an excuse to try and burn the city down. We don't have anything like that around these parts.

I was born & reared in metro Detroit and I have never understood it. The same stupidity occurs here in Flint where I live now. A number of years ago, I was putting my garbage to the curb on Devil's Night. Some yahoo in a beat up pick-up drives down the street running over everyone's garbage making the whole neighborhood look like a landfill. I hate Devil's Night.

If that sort of thing occurs routinely, maybe one or more of the garbage cans should be filled with cinderblocks or poured concrete.

Buckeye_Barbecuer · January 25

A few months ago I was doing a couple rotisserie chickens on the gasser since the egg was occupied. Somehow the grease drippings caught the chickens completely on fire. Flames were shooting out the back to the point the stainless steel lid was bowing because of the heat. I happened to remember seeing a can of that stuff in the cupboard so I ran and got it. It was a year expired but worked like a charm - shot a good distance in a nice stream.

Skiddymarker · January 25

I've seen these extinguishers, but given the size and amount of retardant, thought they were overpriced. I just wait for sales on the 2 pound or 4 pound dry chemical units. They are often on for 50% off, so well under $20.

Is there some really good advantage to the Tundra?

Tjcoley · January 25

I keep a fire extinguisher handy at all times.

jfm0830 · January 25

Skiddymarker said:

I've seen these extinguishers, but given the size and amount of retardant, thought they were overpriced. I just wait for sales on the 2 pound or 4 pound dry chemical units. They are often on for 50% off, so well under $20.

Is there some really good advantage to the Tundra?

I described them in the blog:

1) Ease of use. Everyone knows how to use a spray can, few people know how to use a fire extinguisher. In a fire situation every second counts.

2) Believe it or not it has a longer discharge time: 32 seconds vs 8 for other extinguishers.

3) The fire suppressant compound is contained in a bag inside the can. The propellant surrounds the bag and squeezes the bag to discharge the fire suppressant. So unlike a normal fire extinguisher you're not getting a discharge of fire suppressant and propellant. You're just getting the suppressant on the fire.

4) With a conventional fire extinguisher you're getting a discharge of propellant and fire suppressant. It is a powdery mix that gets everywhere and is corrosive. Cleanup is a bear. The fire suppressant fluid discharged from the Tundra is said to be biodegradable and cleans up with water and a cloth. I like this particularly in the kitchen or grille where you're serving food.

5) Longer shelf life and other types of fire extinguishers.

6) Small size

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