Tools & Fabrication - Shop Fire Safety

So what do you guys do for shop fire safety?

I've been welding and grinding a lot more recently. I got to looking around my shop. Plastic container of gas right there, pile of rags there, cans of brake cleaner over there, another gas container 10 feet from the first one, cardboard, parts washer, etc. And one dinky little Safety First fire extinguisher from Target mounted to my lift.

So I've halted welding until I get stuff cleaned up.

I picked up a couple of Flammables safety cabinets locally off of ebay last week (18 gauge with an air gap shell, side vents, etc). I put them at the end of my shop as far away from the welder as possible. I moved my parts washer over there as well. I also picked up a (beat up but free) metal 4-drawer filing cabinet and have filled it with all of my other fluids - oil, wax/wash, spray paint, and other misc fluids. I also went through my shop, picked up ALL the rags, consolidated the mostly clean rags in to two containers and threw out 2 large boxes of other rags / clothes / towels / etc.

I'm kicking around the idea of sheet rocking the lower ~4 ft of my walls, especially on the side where the welder is, just to cover up the plastic-backed insulation. I know that particular plastic will burn (lol).

I need to get a couple of 'real' fire extinguishers. Where do you guys get yours? Local place or online? What kind of places sell 'real' fire extinguishers (I'm thinking 10 lb units, 2 or 3 of them - one on the lift, and one near either door).

What else do you guys do for fire safety around the shop? I think 'keeping it clean' is my biggest issue... but I'm working on that.

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I also have the steel cabinet for all my brake clean, paint, mineral spirits ect ect. When my shop was built,
they installed 4 X 8 sheets of plywood around the bottom. They used some pretty good stuff, 1/2" or 5/8".
More for keeping me from smashing up the dry wall. It does work pretty good at deflecting sparks.

I also have 4 fire extinguishers mounted. 1 at door, 1 at bathroom, 1 at work bench & 1 near car.
One day after seeing my extinguisher at the door, he went out & got the big daddy "real" type for all his buildings.
He bought them from a fire system business.

I keep my fuel & used oil barrels in a corner, away from any cutting, grinding, heat. I keep my floor spotless,
but I do use gas for cleaning??

I would never allow anyone smoking in my shop.

Oh yea. I've really been kicking around the idea of getting a couple of automatic sprinkler heads.
From what I've seen, if you build the line with plastic, it's the same as running your air lines?? 1 in my utility room,
1 over welder, 1 over parts washer, 1 over work bench.

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I don't know about water lines out of plastic for fire suppression. If the fire burns the line, you lose the line right there. I'd think galvanized would be the way to go.

I think I'm going to try to find a local fire systems business to get the extinguishers from.

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I agree, but I'm still in my rental. The fire will probably not start on the ceiling, so I was thinking,
use the pile of plastic I had left from air lines. The new shop will be the cast stuff. We did the new house
& my wife was really glad I suggested it. Also got my stairs from garage to basement:D I whined about.
Everything else was all her.

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I just picked up 3 10lb fire extinguishers from Grainger. About $55/ea, not bad. At least this way if I start a fire, I may have a chance of putting it out.

My little piddly one or two pounder (with its "inspection tag" that has 19__ on it) will be retired properly... I'm going to take my son out in the back yard and have him empty it. :D

i need to get some fire ext. to replace my 10 year dead one, i have def started some small fires, even gone to bed wondering if something is smoldering
i had a procharged b/b chevelle, the float got stuck and hydro locked the motor-i pulled the plugs, and went to spin the motor w/o thinking about killing the ign-you guessed it, the most massive fire ever, all underneath, out the sides, half way up the hood-thought about pushing the car out and saving the garage-fire ext. was dead-but i fought it with anything i could pour on it
got it out, amazing it didnt hurt anything, not even the paint-i gotta get my fire ext., maybe tomorrow
one other thing you might want to do-lable on the outside of the garage any tanks and flamable stuff, in case a fireman needs to come in, for his safety
i think they sell kits for that

I've got both Foam and Dry chem (20 lb) in the garage. But I wonder how many have fire extinguishers in their cars?

They make a special plastic pipe called Blazemaster cpvc that is used for fire sprinkler systems. Not quite as heavy duty as black pipe, obviously metal vs. steel, but for a quick small job like you 2 are talking it would be ideal. Not sure if I can post this link due to them not being a sponsor but its not car related.

http://www.tyco-rapidresponse.com/Products/BlazemasterCPVCPipeFittings/tabid/65/Default.aspx