Vehicle fires.

[Deborah]

I drove to Florida to be warm. I hadn't traveled like this in over twenty five years. Noticing along the roadside, Never had I seen so many places alongside the hwy where it appears a vehicle had been engulfed in flames leaving a burnt out spot. Just curious about possible causes. This is new to me.

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[nature lover]

I saw one where a boat burnt up because the guy in the pick up truck towing it tossed out a cigarette. Scary, as I went by the thing it was off the road and I was in the far left lane, but I could feel the very intense heat i through my windows. Once a flame gets going imagine traveling 70 miles an hour making air to fuel that flame.

 

[Deborah]

I think these are mostly vehicles, the spots are not very large like a boat or trailer.

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[vgilbert]

Because crazy things always happen in Florida..... I lived down there 4 years in a sticks/bricks and was amazed at how much weird stuff seemed to happen in Florida.

You bring up a point however, was just having this conversation with another nomad today about the dangers and possibilities of our rigs catching fire. If you are reading this and you do not have a fireproof box or safe in your rig please consider doing so. A safe place to store titles, insurance, birth certificates, credit cards, etc is good peace of mind.

 

[crofter]

Don't forget a fire extinguisher or two for the road.
-crofter

 

[MrNoodly]

We notice the spots from burning vehicles because they're extremely rare compared to the number of vehicles out there and the miles driven. There are about 280 million vehicles in operation in the US. There are about 180,000 vehicle fires a year. That's about 0.06%. And about 60% of that 0.06% are caused by collisions.

Sure, keep your rig in good mechanical shape, have a fire extinguisher, be careful with cooking, heating and fuel storage, but I think catching fire can be way down on your list of concerns.

 

[BelgianPup]

Three fires in my S&B neighborhood in the last ten years or so, two were complete losses. All from cigarettes.

 

[Deborah]

Because crazy things always happen in Florida..... I lived down there 4 years in a sticks/bricks and was amazed at how much weird stuff seemed to happen in Florida.

You bring up a point however, was just having this conversation with another nomad today about the dangers and possibilities of our rigs catching fire. If you are reading this and you do not have a fireproof box or safe in your rig please consider doing so. A safe place to store titles, insurance, birth certificates, credit cards, etc is good peace of mind.

I was glad to get back to my home state. ;0).

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[HappyLife1977]

Will a fire extinguisher work for a propane blow up?
Extinguishers on our got to buy list!

 

[crofter]

Will a fire extinguisher work for a propane blow up? 
Extinguishers on our got to buy list!

This article says the tank could blow up if it is on fire. When my 100 pound bottle was on fire, the fire department stood back and let it burn.
-crofter

https://www.greenevillesun.com/news...cle_64b2b018-853e-565c-9c8b-d8e2725ed621.html

 

[crofter]

Here is a link from the gas company on how to put out the fire in your gas grill BEFORE it gets to the bottle, involves turning off the gas knob, dumping baking soda to smother, and worst case calling 911.
-crofter

https://www.mhoilandpropane.com/blog/extinguish-propane-gas-grill-fire/

 

[bullfrog]

Prevention is most important as in maintaining equipment and checking for leaks. unfortunately it is difficult to distance yourself in many cases, but if you can't reach the valve due to dripping flames run far away. A friend of mine recently had a grill fire on his back porch and ran out of baking soda trying to put out a grease fire and the burning grease was dripping preventing access to the valve. Unfortunately he ran into his nearby kitchen to get more soda and a oven mitt and was just about to go back outside with a new box thinking he could turn off the valve when the bottle exploded. It blew out the windows and he got some minor burns and one pretty major cut. It melted and burned most of the back wall of his house. thank goodness he was still in the house when it blew!