Fire Extinguisher question/opinion

[awelker]

I getting ready to order fire extinguishers for my lakester and wanted an opinion on the actuation.  I will be using 2 8.4lb bottles, one for driver compartment and one for engine.

My question is what do other do for actuating one pull cable (with the first bottle actuating the second) vs. two separate cables.  My car is a belly tank with engine behind the driver so there will be no visual of what is happening with the engine.

My thoughts were to have one pull to keep the controls simpler.

Thoughts & opinions are appreciated.

Andy

[Stainless1]

Put a control on each bottle, push or pull will depend on your location and ease of activation.  Pulls are less likely to have an accidental activation than a push.... don't ask how I know...

[Dr Goggles]

First of all I'm not an expert on fire suppression systems nor have I had to fire one in anger.

Our car is a mid engined tank , with an enclosed canopy. We carry a maximum of 2 gallons of fuel which is in the tail.

My thought is that as AFFF is not a "fire retardant" rather than acting by encapsulating the fuel and taking heat out of the flame that you are best keeping the drivers system separate so you can release it if you are threatened by fire directly rather than it going off with the engine bay and being spent already at the moment you're trying to protect your eye lashes, we figured it was better to be able to wait

One thing we have thought about a lot is the content of the system and where it is aimed. In a very confined space ( our cab) we didn't want anything other than a water base, nor anything toxic.

Then again, I could be wrong........

[Glen]

Make sure you have some type of drain holes in the belly pan as when you decel all of the fluids run forward and it don't take much to get through a small path of any kind to seep under a fire wall. Yoe can never have to much protection.

[jww36]

I'm in the process of building a gas roadster with a class record of 229 MPH. I thought alot about what I wanted for fire suppression, and for what it is worth, decided on a 10 lb. Firefox Industries water based foam for the engine bay, and a 10 lb. Firebottle Dupont FE 36 system for cockpit. With the fuel tank, hot headers, etc. forward of firewall, I felt the foam system would would work best to not only suppress flames, but also prevent re-ignition of fuel or oil on headers by cooling them during discharge of the bottle. The foam is obvious messy and some say corrosive, but an engine bay can be cleaned relatively easy. The cockpit is another matter, and that's why I went with Halon type around driver.
One thing is certain. With an engine fire at Bonneville, you are going to be on your own for at least a minute or two.

[Dr Goggles]

A driver in a sedan at Lake Gairdner didn't fare too well when the Halon went off inside the vehicle, that was one of our considerations when we decided on water based non-toxic, less of a problem in a roadster.

[awelker]

I was planning to use coldfire for both driver and engine.

[DallasV]

My question is what do other do for actuating one pull cable (with the first bottle actuating the second) vs. two separate cables.  My car is a belly tank with engine behind the driver so there will be no visual of what is happening with the engine.

My thoughts were to have one pull to keep the controls simpler.

Thoughts & opinions are appreciated.

Andy

I think you're original question was 1 or 2 cables to activate 2 bottles. I like a seperate mechanism for each bottle just for the fact that if it is accidentaly deployed it is a lot easier and cheaper to try and find 1 bottle to replace while on the salt than 2.

[Anvil*]

I'd vote for keeping them separate.

If possible I'd want them also easy to get to for a first responder or add an additional actuator specifically for them. Basically if I was knocked out, vehicle not on it's wheels, and it's burning, I'd what power shutoff and built in extinguisher very available.

[doug odom]

Be sure you get aluminum bottles and not steel bottles. Water based products are causing problems with steel bottles.

[Ron Gibson]

Dr Googles had the same trouble with his aluminum bottles. Check his build diary.  FWIW, I would try to find stainless steel if you don't want to empty them every year. Rather be safe than sorry.

Ron

[Dr Goggles]

Be sure you get aluminum bottles and not steel bottles. Water based products are causing problems with steel bottles.

Al ain't immune either...Aluminium remains impervious to most things because it has a layer of aluminium oxide that is only soluble in alkalis....like AFFF.

We have decided it is safer and cheaper to empty the bottles after each meet( or in your case season) and rinse and dry the bottles and keep the solution in a plastic container to be re-used when you have them re-checked and re-gassed next time.

It was after emptying them that we found the solution had coagulated( Cold Fire)leaving lumps and blocking the dip tubes as well. If I had stainless cylinders I'd be giving them a shake at regular intervals in the off season to ensure that the solution remains dissolved, but ultimately from what I've seen I'd be happy with the Aluminium ones but I wouldn't keep them full all year.

[Joe Timney]

FIREFOX has the solution ...a omnidirectional discharge bladder for the foam and nitrogen outside to pressure it. You get 100% extinguishing agent to the fire, not a diluted mixture of agent and nitrogen. The system functions from any angle or orientation to provide failsafe agent discharge regardless of the vehicle's orientation.

I have sold and used other manufacturers systems over the years but FIREFOX has built a better mousetrap...I trust me life with them, this is the only system I sell now.

Been burned, trying not to do that again,
joe

[saltfever]

Put a control on each bottle, push or pull will depend on your location and ease of activation.  Pulls are less likely to have an accidental activation than a push.... don't ask how I know...

What ever you do make sure all activating levers go in the same direction. Fuel shut-off, parachute, fire, etc. You can get confused if some are push and another is pull. Side note: The human response to pushing is faster than pulling. Sorry . . .forgot the source some 30 yrs ago.

[Dr Goggles]

FIREFOX has the solution ...a omnidirectional discharge bladder for the foam and nitrogen outside to pressure it. You get 100% extinguishing agent to the fire, not a diluted mixture of agent and nitrogen.

That's a great idea....it also isolates the solution from the cylinder and means you COULDrecharge them with a greasegun or similar high psi pump without the need for recharging the N. Neat. Let alone the fact that they will work in any orientation.