Asklemmy

I have one rated for grease fires in the kitchen and one rated for Magic Computer Smoke next to the electronics.

(I live in a small apartment, so two is probably already overkill).

Also, second pro-tip from a Firefighter friend: Regularly pick up your Fire Extinguisher and flip it upside down and tap the bottom like you're trying to get ketchup out of a glass bottle. Often the "dust" inside the extinguisher can settle for too long and when you go to use it... nothing comes out because it is all compacted on the bottom of the Extinguisher. So occasionally making sure everything is loose and ready to go is key. He suggested to me every few months to do it.

One beside the bed, one in the kitchen, and one near the front door.

For oven fires turn off the oven and shut the door. An oven is a fire box, it will contain the blaze. The oven probably isn't completely airtight but it should be close enough that the fire will use up the oxygen and extinguish itself quickly (the vent will pull hot air out but not let cooler air back in). Let it sit for a while and cool after you can't see flames anymore to make sure the fire doesn't reignite when you open the door and let fresh air in. Fire can damage the elements and seals so the oven needs serviced before being used again but so long as the fire was only inside the oven it should be repairable.

Make sure your fire extinguisher has the right rating for the place it is stored. For the oven grease fire, and most kitchen fires, a class K extinguisher would have been most appropriate because it is designed to put out cooking oil fires with minimal splashing.

https://www.nfpa.org/news-blogs-and-articles/blogs/2022/08/26/fire-extinguisher-ratings

So anyway, you started blasting.

Also "on hand" means easily accessible in case of a panicked emergency. Not buried behind the bikes in the garage. Not stowed in a drawer because "it didn't match the decor."

And replace them regularly even if you never use them. The only thing worse than not having a fire extinguisher is thinking you do have one and finding out it doesn't work at a critical moment.

By law, apartments like mine should have one, so I guess there may be one somewhere. If there would actually be a fire, I wouldn't know where to look though

Fire extinguishers are worthless to most. Now hear me out. Most fire extinguishers go bad after ~a year of immobility and tend to be kept for several years after. When a fire breaks out, every second matters and fetching a worthless fire extinguisher costs time that no one has.

If you buy someone a fire extinguisher, you have to take on a degree of stewardship and explain the issue. You become fire extinguisher tech support. Set a calendar for them to periodically turn their fire extinguisher or it’s a paperweight. My father burned down the kitchen in an oil fire but luckily had a hand-me-down fire extinguisher to frustratedly shake for a minute. If you give, expect to educate.

Yes. I rent and my state requires that my landlord have so many based on the number of rooms and square footage.

Glad it worked out for you. For future reference, there are additional steps for grease/oil fires in the kitchen:

Turn off stove

Cover with lid

Then smother with the extinguisher, or baking soda or salt if you don't have an extinguisher handy. Never water.

The first two steps cutoff energy and oxygen, and will minimize the splatter that the extinguisher causes.

If you store extinguisher where fire goes you might not be able to get when fire. Careful.

Got one per floor. One of the first things we did when we bought a hoose was test all of the fire alarms and buy fire extinguishers.

Good thing we did too as two of the fire alarms did not work.

In every room, I have either a fire extinguisher or a bucket of sand. I am biased in favor of the sand though.

Don't learn the hard way that fire extinguishers have expiration dates. Don't be like me.

Yes, one per utility space (basement, garage, laundry room), kitchen, up near bedrooms.

Be sure your kitchen one is appropriate for grease fires

I've never actually had a fire extinguisher before, I should buy one.

No, I have four!

I have three. Thanks for spreading awareness. Everyone needs a few around the house.

Yes. A large one wall mounted in a central location. A small one and a fire blanket in the kitchen.

I don’t have one. I should get one.

Currently don't have one (and should have), but I do know where the nearest fire extinguisher in my apartment's corridor is.

I have one in the kitchen, garage and utility (furnace) room. 2 were given to me by my insurance agent! The 3rd one I bought for my garage because, duh!

I have one in my car because it's required by law (Belgium). I don't have one in my house and I don't know anyone who does.
I do have multiple smoke detectors and carbonmonoxide detectors. The smoke detectors are required by law but there are still people who don't have them. Last night a family of 6 died in a fire and they apparently didn't have smoke detectors.

I have a mini Aerosol can because there are non in the apartments in this complex.

There are some in the hallway thought.

I have several in my home. However, I need to get some for my cars.

I have one standing in the middle of the apartment where it is accessible from every room.

We have several. Fire extinguisher is my favorite house/apartment warming gift to give.

Yup. Got one right next to the laboratory. One day, you could always forget to turn off a soldering iron!

Also -- if you're doing modern electronics development (or RC cars, or just have a lot of old phones), boy will you accumulate bad lithium cells. Fire-safe bags for them are really cheap!

Yep. I have a kitchen extinguisher, one in the central bathroom, and one in the garage.

Yes, in my kitchen

In my apartment building there's an extinguisher on every floor.

I have one in the kitchen, and one in the vehicle I drive to work. I haven't had to use either one. Yet.

I've got one in the kitchen, one in the bedroom, and one in an easily-accessible closet in the hallway.

I used to rent an apartment, and they provided a fire extinguisher in the kitchen and bedroom, plus they had fire extinguishers (the "break glass to get it" type that get inspected yearly and ring an alarm when the glass is broken) and fire alarms on each floor.

Get a fire blanket too!