Types of Fire Extinguisher

You should supply the correct type of extinguishers for the working environment

The environment you are in will determine the type of fire extinguishers you will need and should have available.

Colour Codes

All Fire Extinguishers are colour coded so you can see at a glance what the extinguisher is and what it contains.

Fire Extinguishers Types

British Standards BS7863 means that a block of colour has now been placed above the operating instructions to cover 3-5% of the extinguisher area. The most common types of fire extinguisher available are shown below.

Label Colour	Contains	Use on the following Fire types
White	Water	Paper, Fabric, Wood, Textiles.
Blue	Dry Powder	Paper, textiles, flaming liquids (i.e. oil, alcohol, solvent paint and gases) & Electrical.
Cream	Foam	Flammable liquids (not electrical fires).
Black	CO2	Electrical Fires and burning liquids such as grease, fat, oil, paint (not chip pan) electrical fires, but switch off supply first.
Green	Vaporising Liquids	Flammable liquids and live electrical equipment
Yellow	Wet Chemical	Paper, Fabric, Wood, Cooking Oil