The parts and components of a 

fire extinguisher plays a vital role to suppress a fire before it can spread

out of control leading to property damage and maybe even loss of life. In order to properly use it. an
individual must familiarize its parts and uses to avoid accidental discharge.

THE DIFFERENT PARTS OF FIRE EXTINGUISHER

Shell/Cylindrical tank-the tank of any fire extinguisher is responsible for storing the
extinguishing agent and the propellant under the correct amount of pressure. Typically
made of steel, even small tanks can be surprisingly heavy.

Discharge valve- Discharge Valves are devices that make it possible to monitor and control the
flow of a substance from a source and through some type of circulation system. ... At various
junctions in the pipeline that is used to deliver the natural gas to consumers, discharge
valves are strategically placed as safety devices

.-- responsible for controlling the flow of the agent, the valve is the mechanism connecting the
carry handle and the operating lever and around which they function.

The function of the valve is to control or regulate the flow of the extinguishing agent. It consists of a
machined body made of metal bar stock on a lathe (or plastic injected molded part for economy
versions), a handle that allows for grasping and lifting and transporting the extinguisher, a metal locking
pin to prevent against accidental discharge, plastic tamper seals to keep the locking pin from falling out,
a metal release lever and a dip tube through which the agent is drawn up for expulsion. Stored pressure
fire extinguishers may also contain a pressure gauge.

Carry Handle: simply that, the handle allows for easy grasping, lifting, and carrying of the
extinguisher.

 Operating lever: the lever is the metal piece that can be pressed or squeezed to
operate the extinguisher. However, the operating lever will not be able to be
pressed/squeezed unless the pull pin has first been removed.
 Pull pin: also known as the locking pin, this metal pin is inserted into the valve
portion of the fire extinguisher and prevents accidental discharge (for instance,
accidentally squeezing the operating lever down when you only meant to carry
the extinguisher to a different location).

Pressure gauge: the pressure gauge is a small, circular gauge attached to the
outside of the valve assembly to show whether or not the fire extinguisher has
proper pressure to expel the agent in the event of a fire. If the arrow of the gauge
is in the green, it is properly charged. If it is to the left of the green, it is
undercharged and will not have enough pressure to work properly. If the gauge
needle is to the right of the green, it is overcharged and is a hazard at risk of
exploding. C02 extinguishers do not have pressure gauges.
  Discharge hose: the discharge hose is the hose that allows the extinguishing
agent to travel from the tank to the base of the fire and enables the user to aim
the flow of the agent.
 Discharge nozzle: the nozzle is the hose’s conical end, out of which the
extinguishing agent disperses.

Pick up tube/siphon tube/dip tube - The function of dip tube is to deliver liquid carbon dioxide outside the
bottle. If dip tube in not provided, CO2 evaporates from the surface while discharge taking latent heat of
vaporization and remaining liquid CO2 will freeze inside and hence failure of CO2 discharge. Therefore it is
necessary to operate CO2 fire extinguishers in up right position.

CO2 Cartridge

A squeeze-grip handle operates a spring-loaded device causing a pointed spike to pierce the disc
that held back the pressure, releasing the gas into the pressure vessel. The released CO2 expands
several hundred times its original volume, filling the gas space above the extinguishing agent. This
pressurises the cylinder and forces the extinguishing agent up through a dip-pipe, out through a
hose and nozzle to be directed upon the fire. This design proved to be less prone to leak down, a
loss of pressure over time, than simply pressurising the entire cylinder.

-The pressure source is a small cartridge of carbon dioxide gas (CO2)

-Cartridge-operated extinguishers contain the expellant gas in a separate cartridge that is

punctured prior to discharge, exposing the propellant to the extinguishing agent.

Stored pressure extinguisher has the agent and pressure mixed in the same container

inside of the extinguisher. A cartridge-operated extinguisher has just powder/agent inside,
and there is a separate pressure cartridge that has to be activated to pressurize
the extinguisher.