No home or office should be without at least one portable fire extinguisher to put out small fires before they grow beyond control and become devastating. It is recommended that every home have an approved fire extinguisher in any room that has exposed flame or other ignition source. This list includes kitchens, garages, workshops, or rooms with heaters.

When you are buying a fire extinguisher these are important features to look for:

• Make sure an independent testing lab such as the Underwriters Laboratory (UL) has approved the fire extinguisher.
• The extinguisher should be for the kind of fire you will likely have.
  • Class A extinguishers are for fires from everyday combustible materials like wood, cloth, paper and many types of plastic
  • Class B extinguishers are for fires from flammable liquids like grease, paints, gasoline and oil
  • Class C extinguishers are for electrical fires from wires, appliances, and fuse boxes
  • Class D extinguishers are for fires from flammable metals and are not usually recommended for non-professional users
  • Multi-class extinguishers are combinations of A, B and C classes and are used for all-purpose extinguishers
• The extinguisher should be of sufficient size to handle the largest fire you expect in the area it will be placed
• It is a good idea to have an indicator dial on the unit so you can easily see the working condition of the fire extinguisher.