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Old 07-05-2020, 08:51 AM   #1
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Engine fire...not yet.

I admit to being a little annal about fires... 9 extinguishers of various types all over our home and now 7 for our DP. I have two 10lb foam on either side of the fuel tank... those doors do not lock. The sorry 1A-10BC that comes with these rigs (shake often), two 16oz liquid/gas in the kitchen plus a 3lb Halon beside the bed.

While I do not worry about a engine fire, they do happen with usually a total destruction of the rig. So, I’m too cheap to buy a automatic system, but a manual one is within my budget for this concern. Bought a 9lb Halon for $135 that will fit in a hole beside the bed...it can still be used as a portable fire extinguisher.

Drilled a hole through the floor into the engine compartment for the nozzle. The DW’s job will be to activate it about the time I get stopped so I can get out and use one of the foam spraying under the back cap onto the engine. Do not open the rear hatch to supply more oxygen for the fire. Get the other one and spray the other side of the engine. If that doesn’t put it out, unhook the car and kiss it goodbye.
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Old 07-05-2020, 09:25 AM   #2
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WOW! 9 house fires and 7 RV fires! It's a miracle you're still around!
Don't bother buying any lottery tickets!
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Old 07-05-2020, 09:36 AM   #3
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Quote:
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I admit to being a little annal about fires... 9 various types all over our home and now 7 for our DP. I have two 10lb foam on either side of the fuel tank... those doors do not lock. The sorry 1A-10BC that comes with these rigs (shake often), two 16oz liquid/gas in the kitchen plus a 3lb Halon beside the bed.

While I do not worry about a engine fire, they do happen with usually a total destruction of the rig. So, I’m too cheap to buy a automatic system, but a manual one is within my budget for this concern. Bought a 9lb Halon for $135 that will fit in a hole beside the bed...it can still be used as a portable fire extinguisher.

Drilled a hole through the floor into the engine compartment for the nozzle. The DW’s job will be to activate it about the time I get stopped so I can get out and use one of the foam spraying under the back cap onto the engine. Do not open the rear hatch to supply more oxygen for the fire. Get the other one and spray the other side of the engine. If that doesn’t put it out, unhook the car and kiss it goodbye.

The bold, above, is the one thing that jumped out to me. Leaving anyone in the RV, let alone directly in proximity to the burning engine compartment from which escape is difficult, is too risky, IMO. Everyone should evacuate immediately and fire suppression attempted from the outside.

If she is to activate it while you are still trying to stop the coach, that's a different story since no one could evacuate at that time. My point is, of course, once stopped, all should leave immediately.

You may lose the coach, but you'll save your wife. Sorry if I misinterpreted your OP.
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Old 07-05-2020, 09:57 AM   #4
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WOW! 9 house fires and 7 RV fires! It's a miracle you're still around!
Don't bother buying any lottery tickets!
9 extinguishers in his house and 7 in his RV.
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Old 07-05-2020, 10:24 AM   #5
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Having lost our last coach to a fire, all I can say is get out at the first indication of a fire and get you and your family far away. There are all sorts of flammable and potentially exploding things in a RV. Aerosol cans go up like rockets, tires explode sending burning rubber many many feet away, propane tanks will outgas potentially sending a flamethrower like flame many many feet, etc. etc. etc. When the fire department showed up, they stood far back and sprayed the water up and onto the burning wreck.

Be safe. You will live longer.
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Old 07-05-2020, 10:27 AM   #6
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As a retired firefighter, I love the pre-plan. Knowing the limitations of the halon and the air movement in the engine bay, it may not do much. I would up the size of the halon. I have foam as well because once it lays the stays for awhile. I do have the auto extinguisher in the fridge bay. A pressurized water extinguisher can put out a lot of issues and cleans up nicely over powder.
Now, where is my gasoline? I need to start a campfire.
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Old 07-05-2020, 10:46 AM   #7
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DW is going to stand up and walk/run to the rear while you are standing on the brakes? Think about this. As soon as she releases her belt she will be planted on the windshield!

Get the rig stopped and get out. Both of you. A remote trigger for the engine fire suppression system could be triggered from the drivers seat.

Unless it is a very small fire that can be put out with one extinguisher, get away from the rig. Let it burn. We buy insurance for this sort of thing.

One thing you may not have thought about is to have a grab bag as you exit. Containing things like passports, other id's, meds, and prescriptions, insurance etc. Some of this stuff can be a real hassle to replace. Even a bottle of water.

In some cases a picture on your phone will suffice. However, consider that you make your way North and are welcomed to our beautiful Annapolis Valley here in Nova Scotia. Getting home to the USA may be a tad difficult with no ID. Assuming of course that the border is opened soon and we can all travel to each other's country again. Can't wait.

Our family has spent many vacations in your country and hope to again.

Hope this helps.
I too have a respect for fire and take precautions.
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Old 07-05-2020, 11:04 AM   #8
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I prefer to use an automatic self-activating system for the economy and ease of use plus the ease of installation. I've read several times about engine fires and it's rare that the victim noticed the fire as soon as it started. Usually it's been active for quite a while before noticed and the driver can pull over.

I installed this product on the underside of the metal cover over the engine, in the bedroom. Most RVs are destroyed by engine fires according to salvage yards, followed by refer fires not too long ago. Most of those fire-prone refers are out of the system now and my rig never had one so I've not done anything about that but the engine now has one of these installed: TenYu
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Old 07-05-2020, 11:06 AM   #9
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By the time you squirt your extinguishers, it will be to late to unhook the toad so you can kiss that goodbye also.



My plan is to get stopped, get out and far away and start planning my replacement coach.
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Old 07-05-2020, 11:25 AM   #10
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Quote:
Originally Posted by ercjr1101 View Post
As a retired firefighter, I love the pre-plan. Knowing the limitations of the halon and the air movement in the engine bay, it may not do much. I would up the size of the halon. I have foam as well because once it lays the stays for awhile. I do have the auto extinguisher in the fridge bay. A pressurized water extinguisher can put out a lot of issues and cleans up nicely over powder.
Now, where is my gasoline? I need to start a campfire.
If it’s smoke inside the MH that makes me aware I have a fire, it’s on the side of the road and we both get out. With a DP, there’s nothing back there to explode. I’m still going to use the 2 foam extinguishers which should give me more time to unhook the car. One of the better “fun” things in boot camp was the fire fighting.
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Old 07-05-2020, 11:33 AM   #11
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Ditto and X2 on what the other posters said above! On another IRV thread, a poster (the OP) told a sad tale about his 2016 Dutch Star which was brand new at the time. Engine caught on fire... the OP had an extinguisher and other passers by helped also and they managed to put out the fire, but only after catastrophic damage occurred. So the OP began a long drawn-out legal battle with Nemar, Cummins, Spartan, and Allison. He was a full-timer and his coach was his home. He and DW had to rent a house in the city where the coach was being stored/evaluated. Had to hire a lawyer. It took a year and a half of all parties pointing fingers at each other before a settlement occurred and (finally) the coach repaired. As I recall, the culprit in the fire was improperly placed fuel and tranny lines. Eventually Cummins issued a national recall and Spartan ditto. Moral of the story is that the OP devoutly wished he had let the coach burn and just collected the insurance. Also, as I recall, the OP suffered minor burns when he tried to put out the fire. Anyway, if my coach catches fire like that, I'll let 'er burn!
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Old 07-05-2020, 11:39 AM   #12
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Have had to use both of my size 2 ABC's in North Carolina when coming onto an accident.....one never knows what lays ahead.....
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Old 07-05-2020, 12:20 PM   #13
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I'd rather install an ejection seat.
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Old 07-05-2020, 03:02 PM   #14
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I agree that by the time you know you have a engine fire it’s probably time to bail out SO I bought a Detect-A-Fire 325 degree fire detection sensor to mount in the engine compartment. Now if I can find the extra wires Monaco ran to the front so it will turn a red light on.
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