Fire Extinguisher Ratings in Australia – all you need to know

In Australia, the letters and numbers represent the type and size of fire that an extinguisher can handle, formulating its rating. You should have the right fire extinguisher ratings for your home or business premises, or you may not meet current regulations.

Below is a detailed overview of what the letters and numbers on a fire extinguisher mean and what they indicate about its efficiency against certain types of fires.

Letters classification: types of fire

In Australia, there are six classes or types of fire: A, B, C, D, E, and F.

• A fires rating: combustible materials such as wood, paper, and fabric.
• B fires rating: flammable liquids such as petrol, turpentine or paint
• C fires rating: flammable gases like LPG, hydrogen, butane or methane
• D fires rating: combustible metals such as magnesium, aluminum or potassium
• E fires rating: electrical equipment such as appliances, computers, phones
• F fires rating: cooking oils and fats typically a chip-pan fire

When a fire extinguisher is rated for more than one class of fire, it is expressed in alphabetical order, eg. 2A:40B(E)

So for example, our most popular extinguisher the 4.5kg Dry Chemical Powder has a rating of 4A:60B:C:E which means it is rated for A, B, C and E fire types.

Our 3.5kg CO2 Extinguisher has a rating of 5B:E which means it is rated for B and E fire types.

Now that we have explained the letters component, let's discuss the numbers on your extinguisher.

Numbers rating: sizes of fire

The number in front of the letter is used to rate the performance of an extinguisher during testing, based on its fire extinguishing potential, as outlined in Australian Standards AS/NZS 1850.

• A fires number rating: combustible materials

  Rating numbers range from 1 to 10: possible ratings are 1A, 2A, 3A, 4A, 6A, 10A , those numbers relate to the fuel load of wooden crib used during testing. The higher the number, the greater the fuel load of the test fire.

• B fires number rating: flammable liquids

  Rating numbers range from 2 to 80: possible ratings are 2B, 5B, 10B, 20B, 30B, 40B, 60B, 80B, those numbers relate to the fuel load of flammable liquid (n-heptane or hydocarbone solvent) used during testing. The higher the number, the greater the fuel load of the test fire.

• C fires number rating: flammable gases

  C fires do not come with a rating number: the rating test simply determines if the extinguisher is capable of extinguishing a liquid propane gas test fire.

• D fires number rating: combustible metals

  D fires do not come with a rating number: these are typically tested to international standards.

• E fires number rating: electrical equipment

  E fires do not come with a rating number: the rating test simply determines if the extinguisher is capable of extinguishing an electrically energised equipment.

• F fires number rating: cooking oils

  numbers range from 1 to 4: possible ratings are 1F (0.07m²), 2F, 3F, 4F (0.5m²), those numbers relate to the surface area of the pan or tray used during testing (with sunflower oil). The higher the number, the larger the test fire.

How do you rate a fire extinguisher?

All our extinguishers have been tested by BSI (British Standards Institution) and accredited by JAS-ANZ (Joint Accreditation System of Australia and New Zealand).

The CSIRO ActivFire Scheme is an Australian Government Agency who verify & certify fire products which may be installed into Federal and State Government Departments. All our extinguishers are also ActivFire certified.

Fire extinguisher rating requirements:

Your local fire safety company might have given you a list of fire rating requirements, rather than a list of extinguisher models. Below we have outlined those rating requirements against the required models.

If your extinguisher rating requirement is not included below, do not worry, you can pick a higher rated extinguisher to be 100% compliant.

Our Class A Rated Fire Extinguishers

Possible ratings are 1A, 2A, 3A, 4A, 6A, 10A , those numbers relate to the fuel load of wooden crib used during testing. The higher the number, the greater the fuel load of the test fire.

Our Class B Rated Fire Extinguishers

Possible ratings are 2B, 5B, 10B, 20B, 30B, 40B, 60B, 80B, those numbers relate to the fuel load of flammable liquid used during testing. The higher the number, the greater the fuel load of the test fire.

Our Class C Rated Fire Extinguishers

C fires do not come with a rating number: the rating test simply determines if the extinguisher is capable of extinguishing a flammable gas fire.

Our Class D Rated Fire Extinguishers

D fires do not come with a rating number: these are typically tested to international standards.

Our Class E Rated Fire Extinguishers

E fires do not come with a rating number: the rating test simply determines if the extinguisher is capable of extinguishing an electrically energised equipment.

Our Class F Rated Fire Extinguishers

Possible ratings are: 1F (0.07sqm), 2F, 3F, 4F (0.5sqm), those numbers relate to the surface area of the pan or tray used during testing (with sunflower oil). The higher the number, the larger the test fire.