What have you done to your 200 Series this week? (7 Viewers)

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200 Custodian said:
In the daily-driver world, people don't often get trapped in burning cars. The fire extinguisher above is great for a small electrical fire if caught quickly enough. The problem with small units like that is capacity and discharge time.



You only have a few seconds of use. After that, you have to go to Plan B, whatever that may be. Plans A and B for me are to let the vehicle burn to the ground and have the insurer buy me a new one.
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Disagree that it's not effective. I've literally put out three separate car fires with extinguishers smaller than this. Not kidding... Not exaggerating.

None of them were my own vehicle, but I can assure you from personal experience that if you can get to the base, they work EXTEMELY well and extremely quickly.

I've had a very weird tendency to be first on the scene in many many instances. So many that my family thinks I'm some sort of phantom... :) I've used four different extinguishers. One of the car fires, I actually put out with a VERY tiny unit.
 
That's unfortunate, and no doubt a traumatic event you'll relive for the remainder of your life. I don't envy you.

That said, those small extinguishers don't last long enough to do much. I have much more experience in the race car world than I do in the off-road world, and that's where one will find the only truly effective fire suppression for automotive applications. Multi-nozzle onboard systems with large-capacity extinguishers are commonplace, and the best means of putting out a fire. I've seen many a car burning to the ground with a driver standing next to it holding an empty bottle in disbelief. They have their place, but they're ineffective by and large.
 
200 Custodian said:
With all due respect, we'll have to agree to disagree.
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Well hey. I assume you think I'm making it up then...which doesn't feel like "all due respect." But whatever...because I've successfully doused 3 out of 4 car fires. These fires were EARLY--as in...just started. So they were still small. Hitting it ealy is the key. I agree that you won't stop an engulfed car. But you can stop fires early VERY effectively. One was too involved and we just got away and watched it burn. But if your car catches fire...perhaps a Good Samaritan with a small, inadequate extinguisher will save you.

Added note: Perhaps it was assumed I referred to 3 raging infernos? Not at all. They were still small when doused...and I can assure you, extinguishers did the job easily. Extinguishers aren't for fighting massive blazes, but for stopping them before they become massive they can do wonders.
 
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I don't doubt that you've put out some fires with small extinguishers. I've never seen it happen personally, but that doesn't mean it hasn't happened. I've had cars equipped with little extinguishers prior to my purchase of them, and would never think to use it.

Again, if my vehicle is on fire, I'm happy to walk away and let it burn. That's what insurance is for.
 
200 Custodian said:
I don't doubt that you've put out some fires with small extinguishers. I've never seen it happen personally, but that doesn't mean it hasn't happened. I've had cars equipped with little extinguishers prior to my purchase of them, and would never think to use it.

Again, if my vehicle is on fire, I'm happy to walk away and let it burn. That's what insurance is for.
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Here's the deal. Most car fires start out SMALL. If you are ready to respond immediately (as in...you have an extinguisher that can deal with fuel, oil, plastics, etc., and choose to act), you will often succeed in stopping it with even a 1 or 2 second burst if simply aimed at the source. It's NOT hard at all at that point. In fact, not a SINGLE time did I actually EMPTY an extinguisher. A well-aimed burst is extremely effective, if done early.

Where extinguishers fail is with fires left to burn by guys who would rather watch it fully engulf before doing anything.

It seems to me that your argument is based on the assumption that I'm like you...and prefer to withdraw and watch. If you want a fire extinguisher to be effective, you need to be prepared to ACT immediately. So...I guess for you...a fire extinguisher is, indeed, a bad idea.

Here's the one that got away:
99603-0.png


In this case, I had seen an RV pulling a Jeep that was on fire as he drove down the opposite side of the freeway. It looked like maybe a brake fire had started or something. I turned around, and by the time I caught up to him he had pulled over... Unfortunately, we couldn't get to the source, and ended up helping him unhitch the truck from his RV, or the entire RV would have gone up with it. It was small still...but because we couldn't get to the source, it was no use.
 
NLXTACY said:
Watching a woman die, trapped in her burning car after an accident, is why I started Wits' End and why the fire extinguisher mount was the first thing I made. Everyone was in a mad rush to get the fire out because it was obvious we couldn't get her out. But second after second and then minute after minute, the fire would grow exponentially. I never ever want to see that in my life again. Ever.
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I went to your site, but couldn't find a fire extinguisher mount for the LC200 - can you post a link?

TIA
 
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NLXTACY said:
Not for the 200...yet. But it may be in the works ;)
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@NLXTACY keep us updated, the 200 section is exploding recently with new members.

On another note, I was a crew member on Air Force transports back in the day. Our pre-departure briefing included who would go back to a crashed/burning airplane to rescue crewmembers who may not have made it out. My check-airman for my initial qual. was a Vietnam vet, he told me all of that was BS, the main reason was that the fire doesn't have to touch you to cause injury/death. The extreme heat from the post crash fire will cause all sorts of issues, @SQRRRL may elaborate on that.

@Markuson I'm with you in that something is better than nothing, even if it gives you precious seconds.
 
Yossarian said:
@NLXTACY keep us updated, the 200 section is exploding recently with new members.

On another note, I was a crew member on Air Force transports back in the day. Our pre-departure briefing included who would go back to a crashed/burning airplane to rescue crewmembers who may not have made it out. My check-airman for my initial qual. was a Vietnam vet, he told me all of that was BS, the main reason was that the fire doesn't have to touch you to cause injury/death. The extreme heat from the post crash fire will cause all sorts of issues, @SQRRRL may elaborate on that.

@Markuson I'm with you in that something is better than nothing, even if it gives you precious seconds.
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Personally, I think every car should have a fire extinguisher in it.

My crazy life has proven over and over that the difference between life and death is often separated by only a few seconds...or even less. The thought of using it myself inside the car was an afterthought... I mainly wanted access in case I couldn't get into the rear drawers where I have another. The later thought of my own use if stuck did make me choose one with a bendable hose.

I've lived through several other crazy fires. When I was a kid, I watched my house burn down in South America.
Here's my house:
Fire House01.jpg


Here's me the next morning...

Fire Mark w Tonka B&W.jpg


In 2003, I was the last one out of a fire that nearly killed my uncle and me in the huge California fires that year. If I told how we put out his house that had started to catch fire inside a wall...you might not believe me... -Without water pressure or anything else, we squirted two gallons of milk up into th broken wall and about a half case of gatorade bottles. Sometimes all fire needs is to be discovered early, and if you're lucky, it might not need much besides presence of mind.

Going in to my uncle's that night...
93202811.hZb1UOSr.IMG_2434_resize.JPG


The moment I knew it was time to go...

93202338.wK6faLjG.IMG_2413_resize.JPG


Tired, and ash-covered the next morning...

IMG_2632bCrop_resize.jpg


So ya... I'm a fire extinguisher fan...
 
I'm a huge fan of fire extinguishers as well, and I've always tried to carry one in my vehicle. I had the unfortunate need to use one when I ended up being the first person on scene to a guy trapped in his Jeep totally engulfed in flames. Kind of a longish story (here: Fire extinguishers - Expedition Portal), but I witnessed the poor guy die in a fire a few feet in front of my face because the flames had grown far too large to put out with anything less than a fire truck. In this scenario, the outcome was likely inevitable due to the type of accident that occurred, but it was a grave reminder to never be without a fire extinguisher that's accessible from the driver's seat.
 
Weathertech cargo mat arrived. Not bad but could have been better. I ordered a third row mat and the holes for third row seats are blanked. Looks like I have to cut them myself... :/

Weathertech.jpg
 
asmo666 said:
Weathertech cargo mat arrived. Not bad but could have been better. I ordered a third row mat and the holes for third row seats are blanked. Looks like I have to cut them myself... :/

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I think Weathertech leaves those blanks because many of us remove our third row seats and don't want big holes there.
 
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Markuson said:
I think Weathertech leaves those blanks because many of us remove our third row seats and don't want big holes there.
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You`re probably right. But on their site there`s also an option for two rows.
Guess there`s no difference between those mats... :)
 
Added rear hatch exit switch and handle (more details here), next up lights in the hatch.

IMG_1628.JPG


Also swapped out the glovebox door

20170127_192634.jpg
 
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