For a portable fire extinguisher to be considered “certified”, it needs to meet the international standard of EN-3.
Fire Extinguisher EN-3 Standard
The requirements include:
- Fire extinguisher body must be “signal red” color as red is the colour associated with both danger and fire. Secondly, red is the colour most easy to see, especially in a darker environment, such as a smoke-filled room.
- There are 5 types of fire extinguishers and each must carry a specific color code. Click here to find out the 5 types of fire extinguishers.
- Many others such as
- Manufacturer’s name and address
- Temperature range
- Working pressure
- Test ratings XA / YB
- Types of fires etc
The above inherently means all fire extinguishers will look the same. And rightly so for the fire extinguishers in industrial and commercial places since it is imperative that any one can immediately identify that these are fire extinguishers.
But when it is for home use, most people wouldn’t want a red fire extinguisher to be in the middle of their living rooms. For those who are already fire risk aware, it is likely that they would have owned a portable fire extinguisher. And it’s also highly likely that these fire extinguishers are placed in store rooms and spots away from the general line of sight.
It would be fair to say a fire extinguisher should be within easy reach for quick reaction in event of fire. A fire extinguisher placed in a store room or somewhere out of sight is unlikely to be reached by an individual as compared to one that is placed in the living room.
While it might be argued that a fire extinguisher, that blends into the decor of the home, is hard for anyone to spot other than those who knew, it is equally, if not more true, to say that surely we do not expect any stranger to come into our homes to look for fire extinguishers. As long as the family concerned is aware (and we do stress a lot that you should ensure all your family members are aware) of the presence of these fire extinguisher(s), it is more than enough.
You can see by now that there is a dilemma between the requirements of the EN-3 standard and a visually pleasing fire extinguisher within the living room, within easy reach.
Look like a fire extinguisher, Work like a fire extinguisher, More than a fire extinguisher
Back to the question of “are our fire extinguishers certified”, by EN-3 standard, ours are not certified by paper, but they look like a fire extinguisher, work like a fire extinguisher and more than a fire extinguisher as a home decor piece.
Our principal, Osafe, also distributes the traditional red portable fire extinguishers within Malaysia. And that design is EN-3 certified (circled in blue). The designs you see here at Blaze Guard are manufactured in the exact same stringent process and control, with the only difference being they are not red and do not have all these markings/labels that are compulsory for EN-3 certification. But that does not make them in any way not function as a proper portable fire extinguishers when required.
In fact, we recommend our designed fire extinguishers to be serviced once every 2 years to ensure optimal operational readiness in even they need to be discharged against fire.