Speaker 1:
Action news. Delaware Valley’s leading news program, with Jim Gardner.
Jim Gardner:
We will go right to Nydia Hahn on the consumer front. Action News is testing products that claim to put out fires fast. Do they work? Should you buy these devices for your home? Consumer Reporter Nydia Hahn is here with all the answers tonight.
Nydia Hahn:
I was surprised by some of these results, Jim. For our test we enlisted help from the experts, firefighters of the Bucks County Department of Public Safety Training Facility, and they were as struck by the dramatic results as we were.
Nydia Hahn:
First up, the kitchen fire blanket, which sells for $39. We set up a grease fire on top of a stove. As the flames shoot up, Chief Fred Hashagan places the blanket over the pot. Immediately, smoke starts coming through the blanket, but be careful. That doesn’t mean the fire is out.
Fred Hashagen:
[crosstalk 00:01:05] the hot [inaudible 00:01:06]. See it’s starting to light back up again?
Nydia Hahn:
We put the blanket back over the pot and let it cool for five minutes.
Fred Hashagen:
Yes.
Nydia Hahn:
And that seems to do the trick.
Fred Hashagen:
[crosstalk 00:01:13].
Nydia Hahn:
So what do you think?
Fred Hashagen:
It did a fairly decent job, as long as you’re safe with it and you don’t yank the blanket around and that, and you leave it on and get help right afterwards, I think it’s a good product.
Nydia Hahn:
Next up, the StoveTop FireStop which retails for $56.95.
Nydia Hahn:
So Chief, these are just magnets.
Nydia Hahn:
These are small canisters that attach underneath your vent hood with magnets.
Fred Hashagen:
[crosstalk 00:01:33].
Nydia Hahn:
Once a flame touches the FireStop fuse, the product is supposed to release a suppression powder. Let’s see what happens.
Fred Hashagen:
There she goes.
Speaker 5:
There it goes, yep.
Nydia Hahn:
The powder smothers the fire in seconds.
Fred Hashagen:
It’s a great product.
Nydia Hahn:
So much so that fire marshals in Bucks County are looking into getting grants for stove top devices like this to be able to hand out to the community.
Fred Hashagen:
There’s a couple chiefs that are here that’ve seen them used and it has saved a lot of property.
Nydia Hahn:
And finally, we tested the Grotto’s On Fire Fireball, which carries a price of $39.95. It says it can be placed anywhere in your home or vehicle, and you just set it and forget it.
Nydia Hahn:
The first one, we placed on top of the dresser surrounded by accelerant material. The Fireball claims to extinguish a fire in seconds once the ball’s temperature reaches 158 degrees. However-
Fred Hashagen:
Ball’s glowing at 350 [inaudible 00:02:24].
Nydia Hahn:
That’s 350 degrees, more than double, and nothing is happening. It takes more than 10 minutes for the ball to finally go off, and when it does.
Fred Hashagen:
Woah.
Nydia Hahn:
The fire is still going. So we do a second test, hanging the product on the wall above a trash can we light on fire. Once again, the ball reaches 316 degrees, well above the supposedly required 158 degrees.
Nydia Hahn:
When it does explode, it knocks the flames down for a second before the fire flares back up.
Nydia Hahn:
In our third attempt, the firefighters roll the ball into the fire on the ground. The ball catches fire and explodes, but does not put out the blaze. Chief Hashagen’s reaction?
Fred Hashagen:
I’m not impressed at all. Even when we rolled it into the fire, it took a long time to get into the fire and light off, and still didn’t put the fire out.
Nydia Hahn:
You would not recommend this product?
Fred Hashagen:
No, I would not.
Nydia Hahn:
We did get comment from Grotto’s On Fire. A company spokesperson says quote, “It is difficult for us to comment on tests that were conducted without us being present, or at least seeing a video. With tests we have conducted on our own under the supervision of firefighters here in New York State, we have had excellent results. This was the case with brush fires, Christmas tree fires, bales of hay ignited with road flares, wood fires inside steel barrels, and more. Out of all our tests, we have not had a single case where the Fireball did not extinguish the fire. Results will vary based on different conditions.”
Nydia Hahn:
Also an important note tonight, fire suppression devices do not replace the need for working smoke detectors and fire extinguishers in your home, make sure you have both. We’ve posted a video of the proper way to use a fire extinguisher on 6abc.com.
Nydia Hahn:
And any time there is a fire you should always call your local fire department to make sure it is properly and completely put out.
Nydia Hahn:
That’s probably the most important thing, Jim.
Jim Gardner:
Those first two products were impressive.
Nydia Hahn:
They were, in fact. The kitchen blanket we’re going to get at home.
Jim Gardner:
Any reason to send Grotto the video that you have of the tests that-
Nydia Hahn:
We may do that.
Jim Gardner:
Get their reaction.
Nydia Hahn:
Yeah.
Jim Gardner:
All right.
Nydia Hahn:
[inaudible 00:04:29].
Jim Gardner:
I don’t mean to, well you know [crosstalk 00:04:32].
Nydia Hahn:
We’ll follow up with you.
Jim Gardner:
Okay.
Nydia Hahn:
Thanks.
