10 Tips for Fire Safety E.D.I.T.H . Portable extinguishers for home use, however, are not designed to fight large or spreading fires. There is no time to read directions during an emergency.
Extinguishers containing water are unsuitable for use on grease or electrical fires.
Many portable extinguishers discharge completely in as few as 8 to 10 seconds. Use these labels as a guide to purchase the kind of extinguisher that suits your needs. There are three basic classes of fires. All fire extinguishers are labeled using standard symbols for the classes of fires they can put out. A red slash through any of the symbols tells you the extinguisher cannot be used on that class of fire.