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Displaced Texan

PSA: don’t be stupid and catch your house on fire.

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9 hours ago, Lambo2936 said:

I wonder if theyd replace units that no longer show as full, even though they haven't been discharged. I have a few that are probably 4 or 5 years old now and for some reason just lost their charge.

I would think so, they had valve issues too on the recalled units. Just check the serial numbers on their site. One of mine that was recalled was dated back from the late 90's. it was an old one I had in the back corner of the garage, and they replaced it with a new one.

1 hour ago, 10X said:

After you have bought new ones, find a safe place to build fires outdoors and have everyone in your household practice putting them out with the old ones. 

That is an excellent suggestion. I actually did that with my two boys, so they could experience what it's like to put out a fire. I had a couple of older extinguishers, so they received an education.

You definitely don't want your first experience using an extinguisher to be a real fire in your house.

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13 hours ago, Displaced Texan said:

The only sirens I heard were from Somerdale FD, who (I believe)showed up before Stratford. I wasn’t paying attention to which FD showed up first, but I remember a white fire truck arriving first. Stratford has red trucks. 

Stratford PD showed up within 4-5 mins. About what I had expected. 

i dunno what color somerdales trucks are....like you said, i know stratfords are red, as are magnolias. lawnside i know has white trucks, but that'd be a helluva run for them.....had to be somerdale....

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Neighbors just came over to thank me for helping out yesterday, and I had a chance to take a look at the inside of their house. 

Minor smoke damage to the inside wall where the fire started. Window broke due to the heat, and a window curtain caught fire. This could have taken out the entire kitchen had it gone any further.  The FD knocked holes in the sheetrock around the area of the fire. Minor inside overall. I didn’t take pictures, after all, it’s someone else’s house. 

Outside, the electrical box and all wiring to the house needs to be replaced. Wood, siding, insulation, the window, and the eaves. One thing I did not notice yesterday was the gas meter is 2’ from the fire. I know the lines and meters are rated to withstand fire to a point, but had it gone on any longer, it very well could  have been a BAD situation. 

The owner told me one of her friends was in a back bedroom ajecent to the fire watching TV. She had NO clue the house was on fire. Not until I started yelling for them to get out. 

These girls were lucky. 

They had zero fire extinguishers in the house. The girls are now headed to Lowe’s to buy 4 or 5. I will install them when they get back. 

@1LtCAP, I was told the white truck was Somerdale, and they were first on the scene, Stratford arrived about a minute later. 

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2 hours ago, Displaced Texan said:

 

@1LtCAP, I was told the white truck was Somerdale, and they were first on the scene, Stratford arrived about a minute later. 

Sounds like Somerdale’s trucks aren’t ripe yet. They should leave them out in the sun.  Real fire trucks are red. 

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10 minutes ago, voyager9 said:

Sounds like Somerdale’s trucks aren’t ripe yet. They should leave them out in the sun.  Real fire trucks are red. 

It was a smaller truck. Maybe it was not quite mature yet. :D

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I was mistaken, "only" 3 affected.  But the replacements are ordered.

 

Thanks again everyone for the reminders about everything.  If you don't have a plan for an emergency, make sure to start formulating one.

 

 

6 minutes ago, beachwhistle said:

While we're on the subject what do you do with old fire extinguishers?

I can't throw them in the garbage as there's still pressure in them.

 

As for disposing of them, I don't know, but my guesses would be county hazmat dump, a local fire supplies store, or calling your fire department's non-emergency number or the number on the fire extinguisher itself for their input.

Or build a safe fire to practice with...

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4 minutes ago, beachwhistle said:

While we're on the subject what do you do with old fire extinguishers?

I can't throw them in the garbage as there's still pressure in them.

 

Look a few posts further up in this thread for a suggestion. 

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4 minutes ago, Malice4you said:

I was mistaken, "only" 3 affected.  But the replacements are ordered.

 

Thanks again everyone for the reminders about everything.  If you don't have a plan for an emergency, make sure to start formulating one.

 

 

As for disposing of them, I don't know, but my guesses would be county hazmat dump, a local fire supplies store, or calling your fire department's non-emergency number or the number on the fire extinguisher itself for their input.

Or build a safe fire to practice with...

Yep, train with them. Someone earlier said ‘the time you NEED an extinguisher should not be the first time you have ever used one’...or something like that. 

Lot of truth there. 

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So funny story. I had a small ABC in the back of my truck.  I had the dogs back there while driving down Rt70.  They must have stepped on it in such a way that wooooooooosh, the entire cab filled with Powder.  I managed to stay on the road but I’m sure I looked like the Cheech and Chong mobile when I rolled the windows down.   Needless to say myself and the dogs were fire retardant for a few weeks after that. 

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I have had dry chem extinguishers go off in the trunk of my squad car twice in my career. Scary at first, then embarrassing as I trailed a yellow tinted cloud across town.....

(Both times the cheap mounting brackets we used to use gave way and let the extinguisher roll around loose in the trunk)

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Thanks for posting this and the Kidde recall links. I just checked the ones I have and none are on the list thankfully. For some reason I thought the Kidde recall was on other products and not the extinguishers. I never checked them until now, so glad this thread came up!

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Bringing this important topic back up, because we are all forgetful beings...

I got my 3 replacement extinguishers today. Only thing I dislike is their letter says I can't bring the returns to a hub which would be easier and more convenient for me, I work 2 miles from one and wouldn't have to wait around for a pickup.

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3 hours ago, Malice4you said:

Bringing this important topic back up, because we are all forgetful beings...

I got my 3 replacement extinguishers today. Only thing I dislike is their letter says I can't bring the returns to a hub which would be easier and more convenient for me, I work 2 miles from one and wouldn't have to wait around for a pickup.

I was told at FedEx/Kinkos I had to take it to the hub. Only a few miles from me so it wasn’t a huge deal. They took it at the hub with no issues. 

 

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5 hours ago, Malice4you said:

Only thing I dislike is their letter says I can't bring the returns to a hub which would be easier and more convenient for me,

They gave me call tags, I called UPS or Fedex (don't remember which one) to get a pickup, and put them on my front porch. They came and picked them up. I didn't have to bring them anywhere.

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