The 4 Stages of Fire and How to Put a Fire Out | SERVPRO of Bartow County

1/7/2022 (Permalink)

If your home or business has any damage, SERVPRO of Bartow County is ready around the clock to help you recover.

Have you ever heard of the term tetrahedron? Don’t worry, there’s not going to be a quiz at the end of this blog. We want to discuss the fire tetrahedron and what that means. In short, a fire requires four components in order to burn, live or grow—hence, the tetrahedron.

The 4 Things a Fire Needs to Live

| Fuel | Just like people need fuel in order to live, a fire does, too! Simple everyday items like wood, paper, plastics and other organic materials are all that a fire needs to help it ignite.

| Heat | Different things require a different amount of heat to make a fire burn. Some things simply melt, whereas other items will combust, causing damages.

| Oxygen | What makes a fire so scary is one of the sources it needs is air! And obviously, air (or oxygen) is everywhere. Oxygen will feed a fire, helping it to grow and live on.

| Chemical Chain Reaction | This is the feedback of heat that fuels a fire and causes a chain reaction. This helps a fire provide the heat necessary to keep the fire going.

The 4 Ways to Stop a Fire

• Cool It | While this may be common knowledge, the easiest way to put a fire out is to cool it down. This is usually done by dousing it with water from a water hose or bucket, but it’s important to remember that it can take a lot of water to put out flames.
• Smother It | If the fire becomes too large or the cooling agent isn’t working, another way to help is to stop feeding the fire. A fire can’t live without oxygen, and if you deprive it of air, it will eventually succumb. That’s where “stop, drop and roll” comes from. When your clothing catches on fire, laying down on it will smother the flames by removing oxygen.
• Starve It | A fire will continually burn as long as it has something to feed off of. Removing fuel sources will help diminish the fire.
• Interrupt the Chain Reaction | This one’s a bit more complicated. In some cases, chemicals can be used to stop the fire. A chemical known as halon was previously used to break up the chain reaction, but since it has an elevated potential for ozone depletion, it is prohibited.

If the fire tetrahedron makes a wreck of your home or business, we’re ready around the clock to help you recover. Contact SERVPRO of Bartow County anytime for fast, thorough cleanup and recovery after a fire.