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Fire Extinguisher Balls

Posted by michael on from the slow-pitch dept.

An Anonymous Coward writes "The Far Eastern Economic Review has this article about a Thai inventor who has come up with throwable fire extinguisher balls. You just toss them into the fire, or place them in high risk areas, and - boom - they explode from the heat and spew various fire-retardants all over the place. According to the article, they will soon be on sale in Thailand's 7-Eleven stores and are being considered by US-based fire and safety supply company Tyco."

3 of 218 comments (clear)

  1. fyi, About Tyco by Jeff+Knox · · Score: 4, Informative

    This is somewhat redundant as someone mentioned they are from Bermuda, purely for tax reasons of course (like Global Crossing is/was incorperated in bermuda as well) , which is correct, but to say they are a fire and safety company isnt even close to what Tyco is. Tyco is one of the largest conglomerates in the world in everything from electronics to healthcare. In fact, I would say fire & safety is the smallest part of their business. Its also one of the Top ten stocks in volume of trades every single day. A direct quote of their website probably explains them best.

    "

    Tyco International is the world's largest manufacturer and servicer of electrical and electronic components, as well as undersea telecommunications systems. We are also the world's largest manufacturer, installer, and provider of fire protection and electronic security services-not to mention our strong leadership positions in disposable medical products, plastics, and adhesives, and the manufacture of flow control valves. Our Company operates in more than 80 countries and has over 180,000 employees."

    --
    Jeff Knox
  2. Re:invented? by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 1, Informative

    1871? 1883? Long expired.

  3. Re:So another "why did I not think of that" by glueball · · Score: 2, Informative
    It has been thought of.

    Anyone who has worked on a flight deck is familiar with halon balls. Engine flames up? Lob one of the balls in the sucking side of the engine and poof! flames are out, the plane and pilot are safe. Find out what caught fire, fix it/plug it, and you're good to go.

    If you use a powder or foam on the engine, sure the flames will go out, but someone will be picking residue out of that engine for weeks, if not months for a rebuild.