Customer Reviews

First Alert AF400 Tundra Fire Extinguisher Aerosol Spray

5 star:		(12)
4 star:		(0)
3 star:		(2)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(4)

 

 

I would have rated this item NO stars but that option wasn't available. I purchased three of the First Alert Tundra fire suppressants; one for each car and one for the kitchen because they were small and simple to operate. Last night our fireplace pellet stove malfunctioned and spewed smoke and fire. I grabbed the First Alert Tundra and followed the simple directions carefully. It worked for about 3 seconds and then spit and stopped. Fortunately fire fighters from our fire department arrived and were able to contain the fire with only smoke damage. Today I tried the extinquisher outside and it just went "pfft". Nothing. Obviously I'll remove the extinquishers from our cars as they only provide a false sense of security. Don't waste precious time trying to get your Tundra to work. Call 911 instead and purchase a better fire extinquisher. It could be a matter of life or death. BTW the expiration date on the extinquishers is 04/24/10

These things literally stopped a condo complex from burning down. Got up this morning at 5 a.m. and saw the front of a condo entryway across the parking lot engulfed in flames. My brother went outside, set off his car alarm, and started yelling to wake people up. I called 911. By the time I got outside, most of the neighbors were up... and just standing there staring. No one was doing a damn thing. So I ran back in and grabbed my 2 First Alert AF400 Tundra Fire Extinguisher Aerosol Spray, and handed one to my brother and said "Let's try to contain it!". He scoffed that "These are just little cans!", so I told him it was better than just watching. To be honest, I thought we were going to look like kids with toys trying to put out a well-established house fire with these, but whatever, right?

To my complete and utter amazement (I had bought these in case one of my sons started a small fire in the house cooking, or whatever), not only did these small extinguishers partially contain the fire, they completely extinguished it. Giving me time to run into the guy's house, shut off his circuit breakers, and get out his garden hose, turn it on, and completely extinguish the fire before the fire department showed up *15-20 minutes* after I called.

I've attached pictures of the fire's damage to the product. It could have been a lot worse.

I would recommend these in a HEARTBEAT. They performed beyond what I thought they would OR could. If you're on the fence thinking you need a "real" fire extinguisher, I can assure you - these are as real as any fire extinguisher ever, and a heck of a lot easier to use.

Consumer Reports May 2010 assessment: We tested two aerosol fire sprays, the First Alert Tundra and the Shield Fire Protection Kitchen Guard, and have judged each as Don't Buy: Performance Problem. Unlike the extinguishers we tested, neither has a pressure indicator that shows whether the unit is ready for use. And the sprays are not intended to replace a standard extinguisher (NFPA 10 compliant) where required, as the makers say on the labels. The sprays sometimes made the grease fire in our tests flare up before they put it out. That could cause the fire to spread or prompt the user to stop the spray. We found that two of the 10 Tundra samples didn't properly discharge.

Fortunately I did not have the problem one of the other posters had with this product. I purchased this product for my wife since local newspaper reviews gave it high marks and it looked easy to use.

I actually had to use it the other day because we had a grease fire and it worked like a charm. The Tundra put the fire out after a few seconds and was very easy to use, especially in a tense situation. Also felt like there was still quite a bit left in the can. The clean up was easy as well.

I purchased these at a box store. Next to them were the "old style" extinguishers. I liked the size, and the price was $15 cheaper than the old-school. However after getting them home and looking closer I found an expiration date 2 years in the future meaning that I'll have to re-purchase them again in 2 years (assuming I don't use them). I find that frustrating because the "old school" extinguishers right next to them had a big sign "good for 10 years". Suddenly saving $15 feels like spending $$ every two years.

I bought these to get a discount on my home insurance, and of course for home safety. But it won't be very safe if I (probably) forget about them for 5 years until there is a fire and find them under the kitchen sink expired. I think I will bring them back and exchange for the old style extinguisher.

I am posting this because of the idiot reviewer who gave this product a single star based on a Consumer Reports article.

I have used the Tundra. Once. I bought it two years ago for my kitchen. Never used it until a few months ago. I had stored some bakeware in the oven since I hardly do any baking. I had a relative stay over for the weekend. She decided to surprise me with a baked dish. She set the oven to preheat and was in the bathroom when she smelled smoke. She ran out and hollered for me. We opened the oven and the plastic lid on a corning baking dish was on fire, along with other stuff like spatulas.The flames were atleast 2feet tall, the whole inside of the oven was on fire. I grabbed the Tundra, read the instructions (since I never bothered to read em) and sprayed on the fire. It was completely extinguished leaving charred plastic and noxious smoke. The Tundra saved my oven and possibly my home. My only regret is my relative waited 5 minutes for me to put out the fire while the Tundra was sitting right there. Oh well.

Fortunately, I have not had to use this yet, so I am judging by its features and potential. I like the idea of something small, handy and that is easy to operate. I think they are right that the few seconds you save by having something nearby probably makes a big difference. However, I share concerns of others about the two-year expiration date. The bigger issue is any lack of pressure indicator, which you find on conventional extinguishers. Without that, two things will happen. People who own spray cans that are still good and usable will be needlessly tossing them because of the expiration date. The company's web site suggests that the pressure holds for many years beyond that, but they give you the date for a margin of safety, or more likely because the lawyers told them to. So there will be a lot of these tossed while in perfectly good condition. But worse is that other people will forget about there being an expiration date and the thing will not work when they need it to. The company should try to figure out a cost-effective way of adding a simple go/no-go pressure indicator that tells you with a glance whether the device is still usable. That would be a much better way to deal with the issue. Even if it raises the price, it would still be cost-effective in the long run because they would only be replaced when necessary, and not by the flipping of a calendar page.

You buy these types of products in the hopes that you never have to use it. This morning, my kitchen was in flames and I was so grateful that I did buy it. Until I tried to use it, and it doesn't work. Luckily, 2 boxes of Arm & Hammer baking soda DID work to put out the fire. I can't begin to explain the range of emotions and panic that overcome you in a fire when your prevention materials don't work.

It's unfortunate that this fire extinguisher didn't work for some people, which is unsettling. It worked perfectly for me when I had a small kitchen fire. There was no grease involved---dear hubby turned on the wrong burner and caught a potholder and oven mitt on fire. There were decently sized flames! He started wacking it with a kitchen towel (which wasn't working) while I dug through the cupboard under the sink and got the can out. I didn't know if I was supposed to shake it or not and didn't have time to read so I gave it a few good shakes and sprayed. Took care of the fire right away. A few seconds after I stopped spraying the flames popped up again but were quickly extinguished with my oh-so-fast reflexes. Poor hubby feels like an idiot, and I'm a hero!

After hearing some reviews about them not working randomly, I may look for something else to keep under the sink. I do have other fire extinguishers in the house though of the more old-fashioned and bigger kind, which I could've used if this one failed. It seems like common sense to me to keep more than one fire extinguisher in your house, but to each his own risk I suppose.

It is a good product, not like the other extinguishers you can use this for small fire and re use it for anoter occation. But they recomended to use completeley one time. I have used this product for a project (Automatic Fire Extinguisher) I had a hard time using the regular fire extinguisher because once u test that you cannot re use. I tested this with the small fire and it worked well. But never had a chance of testing this on a big fire.