Looking at installing fire system in the car.

Anything to look for, brand, type(AFFF), electric or manual?

Im going to get a Safecraft system when I get one. These are marked not available now, a few weeks ago that note wasnt on the website

I did a lot of research several years ago before I bought the one I put in my race car. I don't think much has changed. Most of the top brands seemed about the same. The one I got was made by Phoenix. I was more comfortable with a manual system than an electric one. I also figured that if I was injured in a crash, a push actuator would be easier to use than a pull system. I chose the 10 lb over the 5 lb tank, I did not want to run dry if I every needed it. I think Halon is the way to go. I had 3 nozzles, 1 in the cabin, 1 in the engine bay and 1 in the front trunk by the fuel cell.

I was told that it did not matter how I did the plumbing with the T fitting. The dealer said all 3 would get plenty of foam. I still made the one pointed at me the direct line and T'd off to the other two. I did see one guy that also had a 2nd remote plunger outside the car that was marked for easy access by the safety crew.

Check with member "flatvw" His name is John and that is his line of work.

Get an AFFF system, not Halon
AFFF covers the fire, and reduces the chance of it re-igniting. Halon does not...

Also get at least a 4 liter unit. That's what's recommended for closed cockpit cars

Personally, I'd go for a mechanical set up. But that's just me...
I hate electric stuff and I'd hate it even more if I found out that I wired it wrong in the moment I needed it most
But if you're comfortable with electric installations, YMMV

Either way, put 2 "actuators" in the car. One where you can reach it (strapped into your seat) and one on the outside of the car, where the track crew can reach it (usually the driver side front cowl)

AFFF will destroy any electronics that would have survived on halon---also you have to wash the AFFF off immediately or it will start attacking everything metal--if it gets inside your longs they will be toast in short order--

All the canisters for AFFF have a plastic liner in them so it does not eat thru the can--

We use that stuff in the military--all it really is, is super, super, concentrated soap--

That shit will polish brass like nothing else

The problem with halon is it is known to cause sudden death---both types 1301 and 1211--but not as bad as CO2---

The powder type--PKP--or known as "Pure fucking magic" powder is also highly corrosive--but only when wet---that stuff will mix with a fluid fire and create a slurry and keep reignition from happening--but then it is wet---


Just keep a bottle between your legs and when it goes up run for cover!!!

Dave,
This topic was discussed in detail on the Production Forum last year.
I think a product called Cold Fire (?) was recommended there.

I think the issue of Halon and death is that it can displace all the oxygen in an enclosed space and cause suffocation.
The main purpose of a fire system is to buy the driver a little time to get unbuckled and out of the car. An actuator outside the car is much less important than one for the driver. Corner workers responding to a crash typically show up with a fire bottle in hand and the switch they are trained to look for is the electrical cutoff. Killing the electrics will stop the fuel pump from feeding a fire.

There is actually a new product which replaces halon called FE-36

Made by Dupont it dosen't depleat the ozone layer like halon does. (Which is why halon was banned)

Available in 6 , 10 & 14 lbs portable units.

I believe a 6 lb unit will cover 256 cu ft of space.

AFFF is usually used on large volume fires involving gasoline type fires. (Tanker trucks, fuel storage stations)AFFF has to be mixed with water to deliver it. There are a few AFFF systems are used in fixed instalations, but are usually a seperate tank which can be mixed with the water carried on a fire truck. I've never seen a AFFF portabe extinguisher, but they may exist. When we use AFFF at work we have to flush our systems with clean water for at least 5 min to insure it dosen't eat the trucks. Highly corrosive.

Cold Fire is a water wetting agent. There are several brand names of this type on the market. It is added to water to make it penetrate materials to let the water extinguish fires better (It actually lowers the tempature of the fire and removes the fuel source by not allowing more fuel to be ignited). We use a simular type of agent at work.

What you want is a system that protects you first and your car second.

You want a system that works to remove one of the components of the fire tetrahedron (heat, fuel, O2 and chemical reaction).

A Halon (or that type system) removes the O2 without causing a adverse effect to the car or it's systems. The down side to that type is that it does what it's designed for (removing O2).

Can you take a deep breath, activate the system and then remove you seat belts and exit the car?

As a rule the body can survive without O2 for 5 min.