With all the sobering news about homes lost to fire in recent months, we’re paying close attention to products that can help keep you safe from fire in the house. A fire extinguisher ranks high on our list of emergency items to stock up on, whether it’s for suppressing a small fire before it gets out of control or keeping a larger fire at bay until help arrives.
Our pick for an all-purpose fire extinguisher is the Kidde Pro 340. It’s built to combat common types of fires not only inside the house but also in the garage and workshop. Read on and you’ll see why it gets our nod over other home-use fire extinguishers.
Kidde Pro 340 Fire Extinguisher, $49.94
To us, the Kidde Pro 340 Fire Extinguisher strikes a nice balance between weight and ease of use. At just under 9 pounds, it may weigh a bit more compared to other single-use fire extinguishers, but you can mount it on the wall and operate it with little effort. Plus, with the extra weight comes over 5 pounds of monoammonium phosphate fire-fighting agent, which gives you a longer discharge time of up to 15 seconds, as well as a range of up to 18 feet. (This helps cut down on the danger of being too close to a fire as you’re trying to put it out.)
As you would want with a product like this, the Kidde extinguisher has a solid construction, with a corrosion-resistant cylinder, a durable rust-resistant handle and an easy-to-pull safety pin. It’s also rated to be useful against Class A (trash, paper and wood), Class B (flammable liquids and gases) and Class C (electrical equipment) fires, which covers the vast majority of fires that hit the house.
The Kidde Pro 340 Fire Extinguisher is also designated as 3-A:40-B:C, which translates to the equivalent of three gallons of water and 40 square feet of coverage. This puts the Kidde well above many extinguishers in the same price range. The extinguisher is also equipped with an easy-to-read pressure gauge that tells you if it’s ready for use, along with a spray hose for better accuracy and clear instructions on the side that explain how to use it.
The Kidde extinguisher comes with a wall mount bracket so you can place it wherever is convenient. Additionally, the Kidde is rechargeable, which means you can count on keeping it around for years to come even after you’ve used it.
Expert reviewers give a solid rating to the Kidde Fire Extinguisher’s versatility and convenience, and so do we. Overall, we recommend this extinguisher as the right combination of range, fire-fighting agents and durable design to have around the house. In fact, we recommend getting a few of them to place around the home, because you can never be too prepared!
