Class K Extinguisher

A Class K fire extinguisher is used on fires in commercial cooking sites, such as restaurants involving cooking media, including:

• Fats
• Grease
• Oil

These fire extinguishers work on the principle of saponification. Saponification takes place when alkaline mixtures, such as potassium acetate, potassium citrate, or potassium carbonate, are applied to burning cooking oil or fat. The alkaline mixture, combined with the fatty acid, creates a soapy foam on the surface that holds in the vapors and steam and extinguishes the fire.

Class K fire extinguishers are now required to be installed in all applicable restaurant kitchens. Class K fire extinguishers are only intended to be used after the activation of a built-in hood suppression system. If no commercial cooking system hood and fire suppression system exists, Class K extinguishers are not required.

These extinguishers are identified by the letter "K."

To learn more about Fire Extinguishers visit our Portable Fire Extinguishers Online Training web page.