Buying an extinguisher is the easy part. Buying the right class, in the right size, and getting enough of them in the right places is what actually passes an inspection — and it is what stops a fire getting away from somebody. We supply units from established manufacturers, work out what your building needs, and mount and tag them properly.
The class of an extinguisher describes the kind of fire it is built to put out. Using the wrong one is not a neutral mistake — water on a grease fire spreads it, and a dry chemical unit in a computer room does enormous collateral damage.
ABC dry chemical is the general-purpose workhorse and covers most of an office, retail unit, warehouse or apartment common area. It is inexpensive, effective across three classes, and leaves a corrosive powder residue that has to be cleaned up quickly.
Class K wet chemical is mandatory in any commercial kitchen with a deep fryer or solid-fat cooking. It works by saponification — turning the burning fat into a soap layer that smothers it — and it is designed to be used after the hood system has discharged, not instead of it.
CO₂ leaves no residue at all, which makes it the right choice for server rooms, electrical closets, labs and anywhere with sensitive equipment. It is heavy for its capacity and has a short discharge range.
Water and water mist units suit Class A hazards in places where dry chemical residue would be a problem — hospitals, some schools, clean areas. Water mist units are safe around energised equipment; plain water units are not.
NFPA 10 sets a maximum travel distance — the walking distance from anywhere in the building to the nearest suitable extinguisher. It is measured along the route somebody would actually walk, not in a straight line through the walls, which is why a building can look well covered on a floor plan and still fail.
A new extinguisher still needs a tag, and its clock starts the day it goes on the wall. We mount units on proper brackets or in cabinets, fit signage where a unit is not visible from the approach, tag everything, and add the property to a service schedule so the first annual does not get forgotten twelve months later.
It depends on the hazard, not the square footage. A 5 lb ABC unit is the common choice for offices and retail; kitchens, workshops and mechanical rooms usually need 10 lb or larger; and a commercial kitchen needs a Class K unit within 30 feet of the appliances regardless of what else is in the room. We walk the property and tell you what the code requires before quoting anything.
Yes. They are two separate requirements and they do two different jobs. The hood system knocks the fire down automatically; the Class K unit is for the person standing there afterwards, dealing with what is left. A kitchen with a hood system but no Class K unit will still be written up.
Recharging is almost always cheaper, and a commercial extinguisher shell can stay in service for decades if it passes its internal examinations and hydrostatic tests. Replacement makes sense when a shell fails testing, when a valve is damaged, or when you have disposable units that were never designed to be refilled.
Yes — we work with homeowners as well as businesses. For a house, an ABC unit in the kitchen and one on each additional floor covers most situations, and it is worth adding a Class K unit if you fry regularly. We will tell you where to mount them.
Fire Extinguisher Sales across Chicago and the surrounding Cook County suburbs. See all areas →
Call 312-877-2355 during business hours, or send the details and we'll come back with a quote and a service window.
1840 N Clybourn Ave · Chicago, IL 60614
