Greasefire at the Qwikshot Residence

[Qwikshot]

Late late last night I manage to get home from work, my daughter is asleep on the couch, and my girlfriend offers to make burritos on the stovetop.

I am working on the bills when she lets out a yell of "Oh my". I turn to look at the kitchen to see an scary bright orange glow...sure enough the pan had caught fire (My girlfriend is a good cook but she is notoriously lax on cooking safety...she has repeatedly left the stove on after use, left box cartons on top of the stove, etc...)

She tried to put a top on the frying pan, but by this time it was getting out of control...but I was calm for the most part. I reached down under the sink and grabbed a chemical fire extinguisher (made sure it was good for grease fires) pulled the pin and with the help of my girlfriend extinguished the fire...then I proceeded to open every window in the house...it was scary with the cloud of chemical making the kitchen hazy and smoke running atop the entire apartment.

Now my question...the powder is everywhere, and I mean everywhere. I've breathed in much of it to know its not something you want on plates, pantries, stovetops...but anyone had experience with these things? What is the best method of cleaning it...I'm going out today to buy a new extinguisher to replace the old one, best money I've ever spent.

[cuervo72]

Wow, the worst I ever do in the kitchen is to leave bags of hot dog rolls on top of the toaster oven when I use it....mmm, the smell of burning plastic (I did once intentionally leave a paper towel on an electric burner in home-ec class in junior high though, turning it on just before we went back to our seats. I don't think my teacher was very amused).

No first-hand experience here, but I think I'd seriously consider hiring a professional maid service to come in and clean it up, if they'd agree to it.

[Qwikshot]

Well, last night we did manage to clean off the countertops, the stove top, the undercarriage of the stovetop, the walls, the floor, the sink, everything on the counter BUT

it got into the cupboards, it got underneath the stove (in the stove), it got into the cracks around the stove, it got into the heating vent (nonremovable, so everytime the heat kicks up I see chemical particles), I've mopped the floor 3 times, still feel the grit on my feet (it was clean prior to the fire believe me)...we did use the dishwasher last night but it seems the grit needs to be scrubbed off...I feel it all up in my nose...

It just pisses me off because she can be so irresponsible sometimes about things...I'm relieved it was no worse than this dusting, and some smoke marks on the wall but still...

[cuervo72]

Sounds like you'll just have a load of cleaning to do and won't fully get rid of the stuff for a while.

I can understand the frustration...I feel lucky my wife has pretty good common sense, most of the time better than mine.

What is your gf's take on the whole ordeal? Do you think she will be more careful in the future?

[Qwikshot]

I hope she will, but I think it may be wise to stock up on some more extinguishers...I think it did knock some sense into her, the problem is how long before it devolves back into carelessness....I'm not even that upset, greasefires do happen, it is just the other things that occur like papertowels, and empty cartons on the stove top should not...our daughter (2 years old) is smart enough to do something like turn on the stovetop, and it would be mass chaos...

[Maple Leafs]

I'm sure I'm missing something obvious, but what exactly did she do to cause a frying pan to catch fire?

[ctmason]

Originally posted by Qwikshot

It just pisses me off because she can be so irresponsible sometimes about things...I'm relieved it was no worse than this dusting, and some smoke marks on the wall but still...

Should probably consult John Gray first :D

A wet/dry vac, if you can borrow one or own one is the best thing to do, honestly. I had a chemical fire extinguisher discharge in a car once (don't ask) and this is all I could do. After fully using the vac, then you can start to do some regular cleaning with degreasers and such. Before that you're just going to make a nice chemical soup that will stick.

[Anrhydeddu]

[shakes head]Cooking with grease[/shakes head]

[3ric]

Horned Frog is a fireman, he's probably the best person around here to ask about extinguishers and stuff.

[CamEdwards]

Horned Frog is still recovering from rocks in his peehole, I think. I haven't seen him around much lately.

[Franklinnoble]

Originally posted by CamEdwards
Horned Frog is still recovering from rocks in his peehole, I think. I haven't seen him around much lately.

Delicately put, Cam.

My advice, Qwikshot, is to make the girlfriend clean it up.

[FrogMan]

HornedFrog has been helping here and there with the many storms there's been. I know he was off to Missouri at the beginning of last week and I have not heard from him since last Sunday or so. Might be the same thing this week...

FM
PS: don't know personally, but last time I "talked" to him, the "rocks" were gone and he sounded fully recovered ;)

[Fonzie]

You might think about getting a HEPA air filter and letting it run 24/7 for a while. You can pick 'em up at Sears or Target for about $130. Not cheap, but it'll help to clean out the air. I'm not sure if there are HEPA-quality air filters that can be plugged into your furnace/air handler, but if so that might be a cheaper alternative.

Good luck!

[Qwikshot]

Thanks all so much for your input...the majority of it is cleaned off.

My girlfriends cleaning habits leave much to be desired, but she'll be doing the bulk tonight...

[Franklinnoble]

Originally posted by Qwikshot
My girlfriends cleaning habits leave much to be desired, but she'll be doing the bulk tonight...

She can't cook or clean... I'm guessing the only reason she's still your girlfriend is because she shags like a minx. ;)

[CHEMICAL SOLDIER]

I would put em in the dish washer and wash em with hot soapy water ....if its good enough for VX it's good enough for fire extinguisher residue .

[bbor]

Hmm...rocks in the peehole...does this hurt?? :D

[FrogMan]

Originally posted by bbor
Hmm...rocks in the peehole...does this hurt?? :D

I'd say, yes. Unless you have a very, very large peehole :D

FM

[bbor]

Originally posted by FrogMan
I'd say, yes. Unless you have a very, very large peehole :D

FM

As a matter of fact i do......A DR. once shove a hockey stick down the end of my penis.

[scooper]

Thanks for the reminder to stock up on extinguishers.

[Qwikshot]

Originally posted by Franklinnoble
She can't cook or clean... I'm guessing the only reason she's still your girlfriend is because she shags like a minx. ;)

She can cook, but yes, she's a slob in the worst way...and yes on your deduction...I'm a very happy man.