MSA Approved Fire Extingishers

MSA Approved Fire Extingishers

Author
Discussion

Erich Stahler

Original Poster:

2,878 posts

275 months

Thursday 3rd March 2016
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2016 MSA Blue Book appears to only allows two kinds of foam system, Zero 2000 and AFFF, no mention of gas, eg. Zero 360, which seems to be FIA but not MSA approved?

Thinking of going for a Lifeline Fire Extinguisher, 4 Litre Aluminium Mechanical 102-400-002.

Its a GRP car and will be wearing 3 layers of Nomex and underwear.

Feedback so far, MSA approved environmentally friendly systems are almost useless and your better getting the cheapest you can get away with and get out of the car as quickly as possible, which does not exactly fill me with confidence, what do you guys think?


Tanuki

108 posts

210 months

Friday 4th March 2016
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I've run a Lifeline Zero360 system in my Elise for best part of 10 years and never had an issue.

Can't see it being a problem in the real world.

Galveston

728 posts

204 months

Friday 4th March 2016
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Years ago I was co-driving on a stage rally. At the end of the event we were putting the car on its trailer etc, and I went to put the safety pin in the extinguisher and... set it off. Clever boy.

The resultant dribble of AAAF was quite alarming. I'd heard lots of people say how useless the AAAF extinguishers are but I hadn't believed it until that day. It might've extinguished a match held 6" from the nozzle but little more.

Erich Stahler

Original Poster:

2,878 posts

275 months

Friday 4th March 2016
quotequote all
Have made some phone calls and FIA approved inert gas systems should be acceptable to any race series that uses MSA technical safety regulations. Being the governing body of the MSA anything with FIA homologation is by default acceptable.

vjay48

192 posts

164 months

Friday 4th March 2016
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I am pleased that a previous poster has not had a problem for ten years with his system,it might have been a problem if the car had caught fire!!! The makers of these systems have various protocols over age of bottle and re-fill dates.in some cases the complete system is not much dearer than re-fill costs,unless you use a "local" re-filler. As to the affectiveness of the contents,dont hold your breath,sorry hold your breath as you leap out of your blazing car and run. The contents re-semble clean washing up water.

Aeroscreens

457 posts

231 months

Friday 4th March 2016
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I've always worked in the basis of getting my extinguishers serviced at appropriate intervals and that they
simply buy you time to exit the vehicle rather than actually being able to extinguish a fire.

88racing

1,748 posts

161 months

Saturday 5th March 2016
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At least foam is easier to clean up if you set it off accidentally - powder was a right pig!

Edited by 88racing on Saturday 5th March 09:03

Tanuki

108 posts

210 months

Monday 7th March 2016
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vjay48 said:
I am pleased that a previous poster has not had a problem for ten years with his system,it might have been a problem if the car had caught fire!!! The makers of these systems have various protocols over age of bottle and re-fill dates.in some cases the complete system is not much dearer than re-fill costs,unless you use a "local" re-filler. As to the affectiveness of the contents,dont hold your breath,sorry hold your breath as you leap out of your blazing car and run. The contents re-semble clean washing up water.
I mean I've had a Zero360 in the car for 10 years and not had a problem with *passing MSA scrutineering* in that time.

Not, I've had it in the car UNSERVICED for 10 years!



Edited by Ollie_M on Thursday 31st March 12:21

vjay48

192 posts

164 months

Sunday 13th March 2016
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tanuki I don't see what your problem is
It is fact that the water system is not as good as halon system
Bottles are lifed for re-fillimg.
Meet me at a race meeting to discuss!

vjay48

192 posts

164 months

Sunday 13th March 2016
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If you contact Lifeline they have a guide to servicing.
A ten year old system is at the end of its life,
Service should every 2 years,they will not service if more than 4 years since last doneIf you race under FIA bottles need to be up-date, msa have a recommodation for servicing, I have
taken a car for scrutinering and been told to get it up-dated. If you have raced for ten years without servicing the bottle you have done well.
It does seem that the newer system should be more effective.
I have personal experience of the discharge of a gassy water bottle.
With regard to the attack on me by the previous poster he should know better, we wont be using his services for instruction!!
Takuni you need to buy a new fire system,expensive business racing

anonymous-user

59 months

Monday 14th March 2016
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Strange couple of posts.

Halon has been illegal for 13 years in the UK, you cant buy it.

Zero 2000 is a foam system, not water.

The better systems use gas discharge of agents such as Novec 1230, Zero 360 and Zero Zero use this gas discharge system.

There are new FIA standards for 2016 that are mandatory on FIA WRC cars, which use systems that mix different discharge agents and offer better protection still, but these are not mandatory on anything except the WRC at the moment and probably wont be on other categories for many years. They are very bulky and wont be inexpensive.

vjay48

192 posts

164 months

Monday 14th March 2016
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Sorry if I appear strange,age thing you know,i go back to when halon was the choice,i always it funny that the bottles contain a warning about dis charge in a confined space,i always hoped that a saloon car was a confined space. With regard to zero 2000, the last person to service my bottles used my tap to fill a bucket so I assume water was involved to make the foam. My point has been that a system better than the foam/water one would be a improvement.