Should a fire blanket in your opinion be situated in a kitchen ? the only items in the kitchen is microwave, kettle, toaster, would not a C02 suffice. Hope someone can advise as on a recent FRA the assessor insisted on fire blanket for the kitchen areas.

Many FRA like me love them. So IMO:

1. They only cost about £20-30.
2. A few quid to have them checked annually.
3. They can be used in many situations not just "F" class.

Without actually having visited your place I cannot say yes or no. But. I do think that they are often under-rated.

I agree with John and do not advise fire blankets in 'snack preparation areas' (as opposed to kitchens with cookers, ovens and hobs).

Yes they are cheap, but with no hob or oven, where's the risk? As for clothing fires, come on - when did you hear of someone's clothing catch fire from a microwave or toaster?? The findings of a FRA are intended to control 'significant risks' and a clothing fire in an average snack area is not likely to end in a human fireball, so can hardly be recorded as significant can it?

I agree the cost is minimal, but add on replacements, maintenance and training - it all gets a little costly for an event that's almost certainly not gunna happen.

Anyone can do fire safety & FRAs simply by throwing fire safety equipment and infrastructure (+ cash) at a premises. Sure the art and professional enjoyment is getting the right balance between compliance (ie ensuring the safety of relevant persons), whilst being mindful of the costs v benefits of any control measure

There's also an argument (I am not sure how watertight it is) that having a 'permanently' folded blanket in a food prep area may introduce a contamination risk. Of course, in a proper kitchen the safety consideration outplays the contamination issue. Is that still the case for a snack area? Like I say, I am not sure about this viewpoint as I am not a H&S (or food H&S) professional, but I do know fire blankets do attract dust & are difficult to keep clean

Should a fire blanket in your opinion be situated in a kitchen ? the only items in the kitchen is microwave, kettle, toaster, would not a C02 suffice. Hope someone can advise as on a recent FRA the assessor insisted on fire blanket for the kitchen areas.


My Answer would be yes
in every area we have toasters and microwaves we have a fire blanket
we have 5 major hospitals 4 minor hospitals and 89 other buildings
in the last year fire blankets have stopped fire spread from 2 toaster fires and 5 microwave
one of the microwave incidents the flames were coming out of the microwave 2 feet giving enough time for the brigade to get out and deal with the situation while the staff conducted horizontal evacuation of the sick little children.
My motto in the hospital is no fire blanket, then its no toaster or microwave
others may feel differant but we have learnt from experiance

Fire blankets go back to the days of chip pan fires however there is still a place for them in professional kitchens.

I like CO2 if just because they are fun to discharge at rude half wits; however joking aside they can be dangerous as they can blow burning fat or other materials causing a bigger problem.

It is all in the training but in a hotel kitchen etc both imho are needed.

You shouldnt use a C02 in the kitchen , it is designed to remove oxygen from the air, and in small areas will sit you on your backside.
Stick with a blanket

Raising some interesting opinions!

Chucking my ten pennysworth in...

I'm in favour of both a co2 AND a blanket.
My reasoning?

If the fire is small enough to be managed by the use of a blanket, that is the ideal medium to use.

If it is larger than the blanket, then the co2 is the alternative option.
Depending on your business procedures etc, you may decide that all activations of an alarm must be verified by a marshal/warden in which case they may be able to extinguish the flame with the co2.

Fire Awareness should cover the use of extinguishers subject to the businesses procedures etc i.e. hit the button and get out; hit the button, try to fight the fire if able etc. Regular refresher or toolbox talks reiterating what to do and what to use helps, but back to the initial query...

I think you need to weigh up the pros and cons of having one or the other or both and the implications associated with each option.
That's one of the reaons behind the FRA.

For additonal guidance, download the free guidance from the Local Communities website.

No.

The situation is a micro, toaster and a kettle.
No liquids.
No fats.

Co2 is the most suitable for the particular situation. (or dry powder)

Like others have said a fire blanket is designed and intended for fats and oils and similar liquids.
It is for smothering a fire. Nothing else.

I have seen people injured trying to use blankets where they shouldn't be. So if someone tries to extinguish a fire using the equipment YOU put there , which isn't suitable for the risk....

And in my workplace my instruction is close door, raise alarm, evacuate.
Closed door is going to buy more time than a poorly deployed fire blanket.

A fire blanket for a toaster? .... really???

No it isn't. It's a toaster.

(Try heating up soup in it...or frying an egg?)

It toasts bread products, vertically, in small amounts.

The clue is in the name.

I agree that while Fire Blankets are appropriate for 'industrial kitchens' they are not really suited for this type of risk - which is essentially an electrical risk, and is better covered by a CO2. Personally I wouldn't recommend a Dry Powder.

Essentially this comes down to training - switching off and unplugging is the best way to extinguish this type of fire.

Class F extinguishers are intended for use on fires involving 'deep fat cooking equipment' and can also used on Class A fires - not 'live' electrical equipment.

Might not be, but it's still accurate.

The FRA obviously has NO understanding of the risk, the consequences, the limitations of the equipment, the possible scenario.

Someone INSISTING on unsuitable equipment for a risk that just simply isn't there in the first place , should be held accountable.

By the same thinking of the FRA, let's extrapolate the scenario to the extreme...

Fire blanket in case someone magically catches fire from a toaster..

But not forgetting a Co2 for the electrical fire risk...?

And then a water extinguisher for when the toaster has been unplugged and we are dealing with a carbonaceous solid fire..?

and also a foam extinguisher in case the person who caught fire was heating up soup in the microwave and because they are now rolling around on the floor on fire, the soup has caught light and we need an extinguisher for that..(free flowing burning liquids)?

and dry powder just in case all else fails..?

So like I said... fire blanket is the WRONG equipment.

Lots of posts; my advice is: If you don't agree with the Risk Assessment/Assessor then challenge it/them

simples