What is it and How Does it Spread?

12/4/2018 (Permalink)

What is it and How Does it Spread?

How does Fire Spread?

Once started, a building fire is likely to spread until all fuel has been used up. This could have devastating consequences for your home or business. By understanding how fire spreads, you may be better equipped to extinguish it.

• Chemicals and combustibles: When fire comes in contact with lab chemicals, household cleaners, paint, and other chemicals, the fire burns hotter and more aggressively, encouraging it to spread. Other combustibles commonly found in the home include mattresses, sofa cushions, magazines, newspapers, and various textiles.
• Open space: A building with limited interior structure burns much faster than one with hallways and closed doors. Walls and doors trap the fire and prevent the flames and smoke from spreading. While the fire will eventually burn through the structure and continue to spread if left to its own devices, firefighters have a much easier time dousing the flames in a building with more walls and doors, especially if those structures are built to withstand the heat and damage of a fire.
• Construction materials: While a fire can burn through just about any modern building, fire resistive buildings made of concrete and steel curb the spread of fire better than wood frame homes.
• Ventilation: Buildings with central heating or air conditioning have ductwork, which provides a way for flames and smoke to spread between floors of a building, even when the structure is comprised primarily of concrete and steel.
• Water: In some cases, water is not the best fire extinguisher. Grease fires, for example, can actually spread faster when doused with water. A special fire extinguisher or baking soda should be used to suffocate and stop the spread of grease fires in the kitchen.

If your home or business has succumbed to the destructive forces of a rampaging fire, professional restoration services from SERVPRO of North Central San Antonio can help you get your life back in order. Please contact us today to begin the recovery process.