With camping season nearly underway I’d like to make a quick run over RV Fire Safety. During my 33 year career as a fire captain and fire/arson investigator I responded to and investigated many RV fires. One thing about RV fires everyone must know, no matter the cause they go up FAST. This is due to a few reasons. One being the lightweight materials used in construction, another being they “vent” very quickly meaning the fire breaches the outside quickly and fresh oxygen is introduced to the fire. I’ve responded to many RV fires on the freeway within a mile or two of my station and almost all were fully involved by our arrival in just a few very short minutes.
There are some very inherent dangers in RV fires. The smoke generated by the fires is extremely toxic in nature, more so than other fires again due to materials used for construction and contents and other items you might have stored in places like the basement or compartments. Should a fire of any size at all occur and cannot be controlled within the first couple of minutes with an extinguisher you the RV’er should get out and get as far away from the RV as possible. The reason for this is when propane tanks become impinged and heated by the flames it can cause a BLEVE (Boiling Liquid Expanding Vapor Explosion). What happens is the tank explodes and becomes a projectile which can be hurled up to 2,000’! I’ve been on many BLEVE’s and it’s enough to take 10 years off your life IF it doesn’t kill you. While the average citizen doesn’t ever see anything like this firefighters do quite often. It’s an inherent danger of the job.
One of the very first things we’d do on arrival was try and determine the location of the LPG tank(s) and immediately cool that area first in an attempt to avoid a BLEVE, many times done with hose lines from a distance.
Should you be woke up by a fire at night in your RV it is usually a sign the fire has had a bit of time to progress as if you were already awake. The best thing to do at this point is get out by any means possible and get away from the RV. I could tell you some real horror stories about some of these fires, but instead I will go into means of prevention and maintenance to avoid them instead. Yes I have responded to some with fatalities involved so the best type of RV fire to have is none at all!
* Fire extinguishers…. You should have more than one, ideally one in the living area and another in the sleeping area. If you are awakened by a fire at night the extinguisher in the living area may not be accessible and you may need one to assist in your egress. Class A or class A, B, C extinguishers are best as they are designed for things like wood, cloth and normal materials with the exception of the Class C for electrical. Some extinguishers like Halon and similar products can be a danger as they are designed to eliminate the oxygen in an “enclosed areas” thus assisting in putting the fire out by robbing it of O2. Not a situation you want to be in if avoidable. Those are best for confined spaces such as engine compartments, storage areas and such, not open living areas. Extinguishers change often with types and contents so go by your local fire station and ask the crew which would be best in your scenario. Again if the fire cannot be contained within a minute or maybe two it isn’t going to be and you need to get out! An RV can be replaced, You can’t!
* Smoke alarms… Replace the battery every year! Test them often and don’t wait for the test to fail before you replace the battery! They really do save lives! At one rally I attended and put on a seminar I checked a gentleman’s smoke detector and it didn’t work much to his surprise. The reason was the battery (brand new) still had the no connect tab between the connections for shipment! Believe it or not if the alarm doesn’t wake you up it’ll most likely be too late or the smoke will have already gotten to you. Smoke rises so the detectors go off in the very early stage of the fire.
* Maintenance comes into play as well and is just as important. Make sure all your appliances are in good condition and proper working order. One example is the exterior area where the vent for your water heater is located. Look for black soot on the outside and inside of this compartment. This is indicative of improper combustion and many fires I investigated were caused by improperly maintained water heaters. I’ve also investigated many fires that were caused by overheated wheel bearings because of lack of or no maintenance at all. Ever wonder why a 20 year old fire truck looked and ran like brand new? It’s called preventive maintenance. Inspect your RV annually or have a qualified tech do so. Be safe! I’ve been sincerely shocked at how many people just drive and camp and do no maintenance at all and the things I’ve seen!
*… Emergency Exits… Know how they work! You’d be surprised at how many don’t. I’ve put on many seminars and it scared me to death when I asked someone to show me how theirs worked and they did not know! If you don’t open them now and then they can be come corroded and difficult to open, not something you want to encounter during an emergency. Some RV’s like mine have a long drop from the bedroom window emergency exit, but think about it. I’d rather suffer a possible broken bone rather than die in a fire! They make small ladders now with “hooks” that fold out and can be hung in the window sills to make it easier to egress during an emergency. As you can see by the picture in the article age is not always the common denominator in RV fires. Very few of the fires I investigated were accident relate, but more human caused and/or a lack of maintenance issue.
The age old question of fueling with fridges running etc comes up all the time. I see no problem traveling with the propane on however everything should be turned ofgf when fueling. I responded to and investigated a fatal fire once where in fact the fire was caused by gasoline fumes that found there way in an ignition source (fridge) and it was a horrible fire. the man perished in front of his wife, kids and us as we rolled in. I will not argue this with anyone as I was there. Probably a one in a million chance, but I’m not rolling the dice. I’ve seen what can happen where most civilians haven’t.
I’m sure most of you have heard how oily rags kept in containers or piled up have caused a fire through spontaneous combustion, much like a haystack or silage piles. don’t store used old oily rags in your RV or even in the basement/compartment. This is a very common cause of fires. Discard the old oily rags when done.
In addition follow the same simple rules you would in a conventional home regarding candles, smoking and things like that. One reason I am such an avid user and promoter of RV Notebook software is it can remind you of all these things once you put them in. We all forget at times. It can be used for all maintenance things to include servicing fire extinguishers, changing the detector batteries which all should also be done annually and everything thing else in between. Even with all my experience and knowledge I can forget too. This is why it’s all put in my RV Notebook software program to insure it ALL gets done. Be safe and do it right. Have a safe and enjoyable upcoming camping season!
Tony (aka Firedude)
