A fire extinguisher is only useful if someone knows where it is and how to use it. If you are putting a fire extinguisher in your business or rental property, you may want to hang some signs near it. The signs you should choose vary based on your objectives.

Here's a look at some of the signs you may want to consider:

1. Arrow Signs

If a fire starts, your employees or tenants should be able to locate the fire extinguishers easily. To that end, you may want glow-in-the-dark arrows along corridors to guide people toward the extinguisher. Similarly, you may want a large glow-in-the-dark sign immediately above the extinguisher alerting passersby that it is there. Luminescence is important because there are sometimes power failures during fires.

2. Maps

In some cases, you may want maps to fire extinguishers. For example, if you own a hotel, you may want to put a map that includes exits and fire extinguisher locations in each room. That way, your guests have some directions on what to do if a fire occurs.

Similarly, if you own an apartment building, you may want a map on the main entryway that marks all the fire extinguishers in the facility.

3. Types of Fires

Fire extinguishers are classified into a range of different categories. These indicate which type of fire the extinguisher can handle. For example, oil fires and electrical fires fall into different categories. Extinguishers use letters to designate which types of fires they work with, and in many cases, extinguishers can handle multiple types of fires.

However, most people haven't memorised the letters assigned for different types of fires. To simplify matters, hang a sign over the extinguisher that says exactly what it is for. Be simple and concise. For example, messages such as "Use on Electrical Fires" or "Only Use on Grease Fires" can be effective.

4. Instructions

You may also want to hang a sign with instructions on how to use the fire extinguisher. This information may come on a sticker affixed to the extinguisher. However, you may want to reiterate and simplify the instructions with a nice wall poster.

5. Expiration Date

Finally, make sure that you have the expiration date clearly marked on a sign or sticker near the extinguisher. Ideally, you should check your extinguishers on a regular basis to ensure that they are not expired. Then, you should replace any units that have expired or have them refilled by a service. Click here for more information on how this is done. 

 

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