Close Call

I am glad all turned out well , although messy. Keeping your head helps. There is a lesson here for all of us and I will add one more extinguisher to my boat [10#] and replace two 2# units with 5#ers .

No such thing as too many of these things, extinguishers.

In Louisiana, you may not need that stove, I agree.

I have the Pacific, one size smaller.

However, something was wrong. Either the pump overpowered the fuel control or the fuel control was sticking due to lack of use. These things only require one to three pounds of pressure.

So what is the pump and how much pressure does it produce?

MANY, MANY stoves are setup for gravity feed, actually preferred. There are pumps designed or at least spec'd for these stoves. If the P.O. just used whatever he had on hand then the pump may have overpowered the control valve.

A small pump may be used to fill the gravity tank from the boat's main tank.

If this was working properly, UNLESS YOU HAD A BURNER POT HOLE TO LEAK which does not sound like the case, the overflow would not have occured. The valve is designed to only raise the fuel level to a certain point and quit unless overpowered.

I had that very thing happen to me, without the fire. The fuel rose to about 1" deep and quit flowing. But my valve was working and not overpowered by a potentially incorrect pump. It was my fault allowing myself to get distracted and forgot to light it, taking off in the car. At some point I had a holy s++t moment and went roaring back expecting a huge mess. Nope, shut off the fuel and just had to mop out the excess fuel and CAREFULLY light it. In my case, fuel OFF, I simply watched untill the excess had burned mostly away so I could then turn on the flow again.

Just a suggestion.

But I do understand if the stove is removed, you no longer trust it.

C: You're right, I don't trust it anymore. The original pump died a few years back, replaced it w/ one from Dickinson that they recommended. Recently replaced the valve with a new one from Dickinson, installed it exactly as the old one. Two things might have occurred, the pot had a pinhole in it as you say, or the return line was clogged and allowed the pot to overflow. I don't know but will take a look when I get this beast out of the boat, which I don't think is going to be an easy job by myself. I'll post what I find.

Man - I'm sure design of today's hydrocarbon-fuel fired heaters are much improved as compared to what I was decades ago (early 70's) using to heat a house in Rockport ME. But - what was then simply called a "pot burner" was dangerous as all get out!


Good Luck and Be Careful!

That stove will be a grunt at I'm guessing 125-140# so get some help with it.
My Pacific is ~110# so yours must be a bunch heavier.
Don't damage your back.

Went to the boat this weekend and took a look at things. No scorching of the area behind the stove, the fire stayed contained to the area below the pot as I described earlier. The last fire extinguisher I used to put the fire out, which is now half empty, did not have a date on the front or back label. It did have the number 92 in raised metal on the bottom which I am guessing is the date of purchase. The boat was launched in 92 so if correct, the FE is 22 years old. Talk about luck that the thing worked.

Gulf Comanche said:

.... It did have the number 92 in raised metal on the bottom which I am guessing is the date of purchase. The boat was launched in 92 so if correct, the FE is 22 years old. Talk about luck that the thing worked.

Click to expand...

Good luck is right. The date on the bottom is the year of manufacture. At 12 years, maximum, the non-rechargeable portable extinguishers, must be removed from service.

I predict a lot of new fire extinguishers are going to be installed on forum owner boats this year. Thanks for boosting awareness.

All I want for Christmas is my two huge new portable Fire Extinguishers!

I will also perform thorough check-up on and/or full replacement of all others.

I'm still blown away to learn how so many of us (myself included) have been lax in checking on our portable FE's!

The cleanup of the white powder after we had a small electrical fire can take weeks, it penetrates every where. We have a CO2 unit picked out to replace the dry powder type after our fire.

Not being a well informed fire extinguisher officiando myself... I ask for help in learning/locating the most reputable brand, recommended size, and best type of fire extinguishing contents for marine portable fire extinguisher.


Although it clearly seems that CO2 extinguisher contents save considerable clean-up needs after danger has passed. The clean-up after crisis has passed is not my main concern. Extinguishing the fire completely is.


I believe it is not only I who will benefit from detailed guidance by those who well know ins-and-outs of portable FE's


IMHO - This is a great thread!

Art-- I woudl strongly recommend a visit to a reputable and experienced fire extinguisher company, particulary one with marine experience if possble.

We did this a number of years ago when we needed to have some of our extinguishers checked and recharged, and it proved to be very valuable. We learned a lot about extinguishers, what makes some brands good for boats and others not so much. And the company suggested extinguishers for the different compartments in our boat, for example using foam in the main cabin where all the electronics are as opposed to dry chemical.

We continue to use this company for our periodic extinguisher needs.

Marin said:

Art-- I woudl strongly recommend a visit to a reputable and experienced fire extinguisher company, particulary one with marine experience if possble.

We did this a number of years ago when we needed to have some of our extinguishers checked and recharged, and it proved to be very valuable. We learned a lot about extinguishers, what makes some brands good for boats and others not so much. And the company suggested extinguishers for the different compartments in our boat, for example using foam in the main cabin where all the electronics are as opposed to dry chemical.

We continue to use this company for our periodic extinguisher needs.

Click to expand...

Thanks, Marin. I agree.

Here are a couple links for general info. Been so long since I paid attention to fire extinguisher reasoning that memory is flooding back. Amazes me how lax I'd become over years of no problem. This thread kicked my assss back into FE gear!

Fire Extinguishers – Which is Best for the Job

http://www.boatsafe.com/nauticalknowhow/060199tip3.htm

Fire Extinguisher Depot

https://fireextinguisherdepot.com/fire-extinguishers-1/marine-fire-extinguishers-1.html