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Below is a summary of good practice and the key points of the parts of BS 5306 part 8 relating to the supply and distribution of extinguishers. Readers are referred to the British Standard itself for full details and reminded that this is a summary only.

This document is broken down into the following sections:

• Minimum Level of Cover
• Points Applicable in All Cases
• Class A Cover – Carbonaceous Solids - Generally Applicable in All Premises and Occupancies
• Class B Cover – Liquids or Liquefiable Solids
• Class C Cover – Gaseous Hazards
• Class D Cover – Hot Metal Hazards
• Class F Cover – Fats & Cooking Oil Hazards
• Cover for Electrical Hazards

Throughout, references to the pertinent parts of the British Standards and/or other legislation have been included as footnotes.

Minimum Level of Cover

Attention is drawn to the fact that the levels detailed below are the minimum levels specified (and exclude the additional extinguishers required as spares¹). There are many circumstances in which these levels would need to be increased including:

• in areas where the likelihood of fire is above average.
• in areas where the intensity of any fire would particularly intense.

Points Applicable in All Cases

• Normally, extinguishers should be conspicuously sited where persons following an escape route will readily see them². E.g. near to room exits, corridors, stairways, etc. There should be no point in any building that is further away than 30m from an appropriate extinguisher³ and extinguishers provided to deal with a special fire hazard should be sited accessibly near to that hazard⁴.
• Extinguishers need to be appropriately wall-mounted⁵, and, along with other portable fire fighting equipment, identified by signs⁶:
  • Groups of fire equipment should be signed with a “fire point” sign.
  • The units should have an identifying sign that explains their use.
• In any one floor of a building or single occupancy, all extinguishers should be of the same method of operation. Furthermore, all extinguishers for any one function (e.g. to cover class A hazards) should also be similar in shape, appearance and colour⁷.
• Staff should be trained on using the equipment⁸.
• Sufficient spare extinguishers should be available so that discharged extinguishers may be replaced immediately after use¹.
• For safety and convenience reasons, 6 litre AFFF foam extinguishers that have passed the electrical conductivity test of BS EN 3 are, in the vast majority of circumstances, a more appropriate recommendation⁹ than 9 litre water extinguishers of the same A-rating that have not passed the electrical conductivity test of  BS EN 3.

Class A Cover – Carbonaceous Solids - Generally Applicable in All Premises and Occupancies

• For all floors in all buildings there should always be at least two class A extinguishers¹⁰.
• The minimum total class A rating required for a floor is 26A¹⁰ except:
  • For large floors (more than 400m²) there must be a minimum total class A rating of 0.065×floor area (measured in m²)¹⁰. E.g. a room 30m×20m would, if there were no special considerations, require 0.065×30×20 = 39A cover.
  • For small single-occupancy buildings, with a total upper floor area (i.e. excluding the ground floor, basements, etc) of less than 100m², the minimum total class A rating required for all of these above-ground floors is 13A¹⁰ (but still with the minimum two class A rated extinguishers per floor). This exception does not include or apply to the ground floor however.

Class B Cover – Liquids or Liquefiable Solids

The provision of cover for Class B hazards is a specialist subject and not covered here - The reader should contact us for further information, although further details are provided here for reference.

Class C Cover – Gaseous Hazards

In all but some very exceptional cases, a gas leak should only be dealt with by closing a control valve or plugging the leak - personnel should not be encouraged to tackle these hazards in any other way. Refer to the standard for details¹¹.

Class D Cover – Hot Metal Hazards

It is not possible to make general recommendations for the provision of extinguishers to protect against combustible metals (e.g. magnesium). Decisions should be made solely by experts on a case-by-case basis. The use of inappropriate equipment can make a situation far worse¹².

Class F Cover – Fats & Cooking Oil Hazards

As with Class B above, the provision of cover for Class F hazards is also a specialist subject. However, there are two points pertinent points:

• All deep fat frying situations should be covered by either Class F extinguisher(s)¹⁵ or, in the case of very large fryers with a surface area in excess of 0.4m², a fixed system.
• Other fat and cooking oil hazards may also require the provision of either Class F extinguisher(s)¹⁶ or a fixed system.

The reader should contact us for further information, although further details are provided here for reference.

Cover for Electrical Hazards

It is important to note that, as electricity does not burn, fires involving electrical hazards are in fact always fires of another class with the additional complication of the presence of an electrical hazard. Additionally, electrical equipment is unlikely to provide the major fuel source and fire extinguishers should therefore be decided on the basis of the other hazards in the area (class A are likely to apply in most cases)¹³. However, all extinguishers sited near any electrical equipment that may be involved in a fire, should be marked as suitable for use on electrical fires¹⁴.

The phrase “class E” is often misused to describe fires, hazards and cover concerning electrical hazards. However, there is no definition of a Class E in the standard BS EN 2, the British Standards that specifies the “Classification of fires”.

Full Copies of Standards

The British Standards are covered by copyright and are not available freely. However, these can be purchased at British Standard Online or alternatively, some libraries may carry copies of the more common standards.

Footnotes and References

1. As per BS 5306: Part 8: 2000, clause 6.9
2. As per BS 5306: Part 8: 2000, clause 7.1
3. As per BS 5306: Part 8: 2000, clause 7.3
4. As per BS 5306: Part 8: 2000, clause 7.4
5. As per BS 5306: Part 8: 2000, clause 7.2
6. As per BS 5306: Part 8: 2000, clause 7.1, BS5499: Part 1, Fire Precautions (Workplace) Regulations and the Health & Safety (Safety Signs & Signals) Regulations: 1996.
7. As per BS 5306: Part 8: 2000, clause 4.4
8. As per BS 5306: Part 8: 2000, clause 4.3
9. As per BS 5306: Part 8: 2000, clauses 4.5 and 5.3
10. As per BS 5306: Part 8: 2000, clause 6.2
11. As per BS 5306: Part 8: 2000, clauses 5.2 and 6.5
12. As per BS 5306: Part 8: 2000, clauses 5.2 and 6.6
13. As per BS 5306: Part 8: 2000, clause 6.7.
14. As per BS 5306: Part 8: 2000, clauses 5.3 and 6.7. There are some qualifications here, however, and the reader is referred to the Standard for full details.
15. As per BS 5306: Part 8: 2000, clauses 5.4 and clause 6.8, Table 2.
16. As per BS 5306: Part 8: 2000, clause 6.8.