Types of Fire

As you already know from our previous blogs, we are building a series of blogs to help you understand that complex-looking Fire preventions systems are not that complex. In this video, we will try to understand Fire itself like Fire Triangle, Stages of Fire & Types of Fire.

Fire Triangle

Most of the people who are into the Fire Safety space are well aware of Fire Triangle. A Fire triangle is composed of three components that are essential for a Fire to start & sustain. Those components are Fuel, Heat & Oxygen. 

Fuel is the component that will be consumed for the Fire to sustain. Without the fuel to burn, the Fire can’t sustain itself.

Heat is required to generate the Fire. When the temperature reaches the level of the burning point of the fuel is when the Fire catches.

Oxygen is required for the Fire to sustain since oxygen works as the oxidizing agent to the Fire.

Without anyone of these components, the Fire would cease to exist. 

How to extinguish a Fire?

Like we learned earlier if any one component of the Fire Triangle is removed, then the Fire can be extinguished. 

The process of removing the heat from the equation is called cooling.

The procedure of removing oxygen from the surrounding area of the Fire is known as Blanketing.

And finally, the process of removing the fuel itself from burning is called starving.

We will see examples of each of these when we learn about Fire Extinguishers.

Types of Fire

Fires are divided into different types based on the type of fuel that’s burned to keep the Fire alive & they are A, B, C, D & K Class Fires.

A – Class

In an A-class Fire, the material burning is Ordinary Combustible material like wood, paper, trash, or plastics.

B – Class

Under B-Class Fires, we have the Fire that consumes Flammable Liquids & Gases to burn. Examples of Flammable Liquids are Gasoline, Petroleum Oil & Paint. Propane, Butane & other gases are examples of Flammable Gases.

C – Class

Any Fire caused by electrical equipment like Motors or Transformers or short-circuits is classified under Class C.

D – Class

Metals (yes, metals) that are combustible like Potassium, Sodium, or Magnesium are classified under class D. 

K – Class

When the cause of the Fire is kitchen oils, then that Fire is classified as K. Kitchen oils like trans-fat or cooking oils.

Stages of Fire

Once all the three components of the Fire Triangle are aligned to form the Fire, it develops through various stages. According to NFPA, Fire can be classified into four stages:

1. Incipient
2. Growth
3. Fully Developed
4. Decay

The Incipient stage is also known as the ignition stage, which is the starting stage of the Fire. The stage is just after the Fire triangle is complete.

During the Growth stage, the Fire starts expanding quickly, devouring whatever fuel is available. 

The fully developed stage is when the Fire reaches its saturation point meaning, it has already consumed all the available fuel or oxygen to burn.

In the decay stage, the Fire will start to decay due to a lack of fuel or oxygen. 

Forcing a Fire into its decay stage is called the Fire Extinguishing process.

So this is it for this blog, we have new blogs with new learning material coming up every week, make sure you stay updated on Fire Safety Systems.