Fire extinguisher hire
Fire extinguisher hire for events
Across your event site fire extinguishers need to be located within fire points. Identifying where these fire points are, should be part of your Fire Risk Assessment and Event Safety Plan. They need to be in locations that are either marshalled or regularly checked, to avoid misuse and tampering.
Within venues extinguishers are positioned on walls or stands, with appropriate signage placed above, to reduce the likelihood of incorrect use. Where you are in an outdoor or temporary environment this can be more challenging.
Rigid plastic fire stands and signs are available for hire, or alternatively you could print of appropriate signage and place that above the fire points on steel shield or hoarding.
It always helps to have a visual dot plan of extinguisher locations for your event. This helps in advance of the event to evaluate your cover of extinguishers and how close people are to them, then on the day for your teams to check they are still there and also as a guide for control should they be directing supporting teams to a situation.
Can fire extinguishers be stored outside?
You need to make sure that your extinguishers are protected from the elements, but this needs to be proportionate.If your event is for a number of weeks or months over the winter and is outdoors, you would be wise to position extinguishers inside cabins and marquees where possible and then provide water proof case protection for those that cannot be located under cover.
For short term events it may be appropriate that they are left outside, as long as you check them and ensure they are protected from vandalism, damage and weather conditions. You need your extinguishers to work when someone goes to use them in an emergency.
Foam and water extinguishers are at risk of freezing or spoiling if the temperature drops below 0⁰C. For safe outdoor storage, these extinguishers should have anti-freeze added to ensure that they are ready for action in an emergency. ABC Powder extinguishers can operate normally to a temperature of -20⁰C.
Types of extinguisher
There are 5 fire extinguisher colours: Red, Cream, Blue, Black and Yellow.
Each colour represents a different type of extinguisher, which has different properties and are to be used on different types of fires.
Since 1997 all extinguishers have a red (or chrome) body with the identifying colour on the wide band at the top of the extinguisher.
As a quick guide the extinguishers are usable as:
Fire extinguisher types and their uses on events
| Type | Used on | Not used on | Event use | Event Considerations |
| Water | Paper and cardboard fabrics and textiles
wood & coal |
Fires involving electrical equipment, kitchen fires, flammable gas, and liquids | Fire Exits
Portaloo Toilet areas Store Areas (containing Class A materials) Campsites |
Water conducts electricity so is dangerous to the user if used on electrical fires. Do not use on electrics!
if there is a high risk of accidental use of an extinguisher or where the likelihood of using them and refilling is high e.g. a festival campsite. Where a water fire extinguisher would therefore be preferrable.
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| AFF Foam | Organic materials like: Paper Cardboard Material Wood CoalPlus, Flammable liquids, such as petrol, paint, and turpentine |
Kitchen fires Electrical fires Flammable metal fires |
Fire Exits
Portaloo Toilet areas Store areas Office spaces Bars Catering
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A safer option for use than Water. |
| Dry Powder | Organic materials like: Paper Cardboard Material Wood CoalPlus: – Flammable liquids, like petrol, paint and turps – Flammable gases, like liquid petroleum gas (LPG) and acetylene – Fires involving electrical equipment up to 1000vSpecialist dry powder extinguishers are only used on flammable metals, such as titanium and magnesium. |
Cooking oil /chip-pan fires Fires involving electrical equipment over 1000v or in enclosed spaces, such as offices or domestic dwellings |
The most common use of a dry powder extinguisher is within the generator compound areas or areas where there are fuel storage and LPG stores.
Specific tasks involving hot works or flame cutting during the build would also need this type of extinguisher.
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They shouldn’t be used in enclosed spaces because the powder can be easily inhaled and the residue is very difficult to clean. Standard dry powder extinguishers can be used on some electrical fires, plus specialist dry powder extinguishers are used for fires involving flammable metals and running fuel fires. Caution always needs to be taken when using outside as the powder will be taken by any prevailing wind.
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| CO2 | Flammable liquids, like paint, petrol and turpentine Fires involving electrical equipment |
Kitchen fires or chip-pan fires Organic materials like paper, wood, cardboard or fabric Flammable metals |
We would expect to see 2kg CO2 extinguishers located with AFF Foam extinguishers in general areas of event spaces, such as offices, portacabins etc
CO2 extinguishers are important to be on stage, performance areas, Front of House control desks, side of stages where large distro boxes are located etc.
We would expect to see 5kg CO2 extinguishers located within generator areas.
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| Wet Chemical | Chip-pan and cooking fat fires
Organic materials like:
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Flammable liquid or gas fires Electrical fires Fires involving flammable metals |
Any kitchen or trader area which has fryers and hot oils.
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| Water Mist | Paper and cardboard fabrics and textiles
wood & coal
Plus:
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Cooking oil /chip-pan fires Fires involving electrical equipment over 1000v |
Locations where a dry powder extinguishers would be suitable but where you are in an enclosed space.
Suitable for offices, schools, workshops, churches etc |
The extinguishers are very expensive to buy and replace, so are hired less than conventional extinguishers.
The water droplets created by the extinguishers are so small that electricity cannot travel through them. In addition, the water mist extinguishers contain only de-ionised water which cannot carry electrical current.
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As a rule there should be a fire extinguisher within 25M of any point within the event space, however, this can be more or less depending upon what is located within the event space, what activities are being undertaken, where is the event being held, is it outside in a wide open space or indoors within a historic building.
Fire extinguishers must be serviced annually, and this can be checked on the service label located on the side of the extinguisher and should always have the pin located in the top and a tag holding this in place.
At Number 8 Events we hold a huge stock of fire extinguisher hire for events, which can be foind here https://number8events.com/catalogue/product-category/fire-safety/fire-extinguishers/
and our safety officers can assist with putting together an event fire risk assessment for your event and advise you which extinguishers you need to have on site.
We also provide onsite trained fire officers to events, these staff can assist you with:
- Pre event fire safety compliance checks with traders
- Oversee extinguisher placement
- Proactive peak performance inspections
- Routine checks of escape routes
- Response to an emergency situation.
If you would like some downloadable templates for forms to check onsite for fire safety, the National Fire Chiefs Council have some great templates which can be found here https://www.nationalfirechiefs.org.uk/Event-safety
Please get in touch with one of our team who will be happy to help with any of your requirements.